Hunt Scanlon Media CFO Recruiting Summit: Leadership, Growth and the Future CFO

Hunt Scanlon Media’s CFO Recruiting Summit: Beyond the Balance Sheet – Executing Growth and Value Creation brought together over 250 senior leaders at The Ritz-Carlton in Chicago, creating a high-energy forum focused on the evolving role of the modern CFO.

With CHROs, chief talent officers, CFOs, and executive search professionals all in one room, the conversation centred on a clear shift: today’s CFO is no longer just a financial steward, but a strategic leader driving growth, transformation, and long-term value creation.

📸 Pictured: A packed room at Hunt Scanlon Media’s CFO Recruiting Summit in Chicago.

As a Gold Sponsor, Ezekia was proud to be part of the event, connecting with firms navigating the increasing complexity of finance leadership and talent strategy. Throughout the day, conversations reflected the growing importance of building adaptable, forward-thinking leadership teams in an increasingly competitive market.

A standout moment from the Summit saw Max Woolger, VP of Revenue at Ezekia, take to the stage to moderate a panel on “Building the CFO Bench: Developing Finance Leaders for the Next Cycle.” Joined by Heather Rickard (Cushman & Wakefield), Amanda Henkel (Caldwell), and Meenal Sethna (Option Care Health), the discussion explored how organisations are developing future-ready finance leaders.

📸 Pictured: Max Woolger moderating “Building the CFO Bench: Developing Finance Leaders for the Next Cycle”.

Key themes included the importance of balancing internal talent development with external hiring, building leadership pipelines that can operate across transformation and uncertainty, and redefining what “readiness” looks like in today’s market.

While the Summit itself was packed with insight, it was also a chance to experience Chicago for the first time.

📸 Pictured: Taking in the Chicago skyline from the 26th tallest building in the world.

Reflecting on the visit, Max shared:

“It was great for (and me) to be a part of the Hunt Scanlon Media Building the CFO Bench: Developing Finance Leaders for the Next Cycle event in Chicago on Monday. As usual, there was a great group of people in attendance, and it was a thoroughly enjoyable day.”

📸 Pictured: Connecting with attendees at the Ezekia stand throughout the Summit.

As the demands on CFOs continue to expand, events like this highlight just how critical leadership, adaptability, and talent strategy have become. It was a pleasure to be part of such a well-curated and forward-looking gathering.