The influence of corporate tax leaders is at an all-time high, according to new research, with 90% saying they’re regularly invited to weigh in on business decisions and that their recommendations carry significant weight.
The types of discussions they participate in include core strategic priorities, such as business resilience strategies (for example, preserving revenue or preparing for economic volatility). About two-thirds (63%) of the 300 senior tax leaders surveyed by BDO said they were “very involved” in that area.
Additionally, 60% said the same about strategic transactions such as M&A, divestitures, carveouts and restructurings.
As with so many business trends today, economic factors are playing a key role in this one’s continued development. “CFOs’ growth strategies for 2025 initially included plans for M&A, product and service pivots and expansion initiatives, but tax and trade policy uncertainty in the first half of the year complicated these strategies,” BDO said in its survey report.
Now, in the wake of the new reconciliation tax bill known as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, companies are analyzing the implications of tax policy changes.
Top areas of concern include U.S. tariffs, Inflation Reduction Act clean energy credits, new accounting rules (such as Accounting Standards Update 2023-09), transfer pricing audit activity and changes to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act enacted as part of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
In response, according to the report, CFOs are fostering greater collaboration with tax teams. “By involving tax earlier in the decision-making process,” BDO wrote, “CFOs help translate complex tax implications into clear business impacts.”
Additionally, organizations that do so are better positioned to identify and mitigate tax risk and seize emerging opportunities, the report said.
CFOs represented 23% of the survey participants, and their views on how finance collaborates with tax were quite aligned with those of non-CFO tax leaders.
For example, 87% of finance chiefs and 92% of the others agreed that “CFOs bring tax leaders to the table for important conversations about business strategy.” And 94% of finance chiefs and 89% of the others agreed that “the CFO and tax leader have a defined, shared vision for tax’s role in the organization.”
At the same, BDO sounded an alarm relating to the resources needed to cope with the current tax challenges. “Technology and talent gaps remain for too many tax teams, and this lack of resources may have a considerable impact in a year when tax complexity will challenge the C-Suite,” the report advised.
