Business
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Why Oracle’s new CFO Hilary Maxson is key to its AI ambitions
Good morning. Hilary Maxson is stepping into the CFO role at Oracle at a pivotal—and risky—moment. As the company invests heavily in AI infrastructure to keep pace with other hyperscalers, the job is no longer just about financial stewardship; it’s about managing the trade-offs of a capital-intensive bet on the future. Maxson began as CFO
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Bill Ackman channels Warren Buffett with his $64 billion bid for Universal Music Group
In today’s CEO Daily: Diane Brady examines Bill Ackman’s effort to build a modern-day Berkshire— without the folksy charm. The big leadership story: Anthropic is giving companies an early look at its most advanced AI model. The markets: Stocks skyrocket globally on news of a U.S.-Iran ceasefire deal. Plus: All the news and watercooler chat
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H&R Block wants to be more than a tax company. It wants to be your year-round financial adviser
Curtis Campbell knows exactly what kind of company people think H&R Block is. It is the place you go in late winter or early spring when your W-2s, 1099s, deductions, and deadlines are piling up, your refund feels urgent, and your anxiety is rising. It is familiar, local, and useful, but not the kind of
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AI is moving fast. CFOs have a narrow window to shape its value
Good morning. AI is moving fast, but many companies still have not decided who should own the job of turning that momentum into measurable business value. At Fortune’s Modern CFO dinner in San Francisco last Thursday, sponsored by Deloitte and ServiceNow, Melissa Valentine, a senior fellow at Stanford Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence, delivered a
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CEOs are lining up behind the $1,000 Trump Accounts for babies
In today’s CEO Daily: Diane Brady examines why so many companies are eager to contribute to Trump Accounts. The big leadership story: H&R Block’s new CEO on what distinguishes C-suite leaders from middle management. The markets: Mostly up amid reports that the U.S. and Iran are considering a ceasefire. Plus: All the news and watercooler
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H&R Block CEO shares the deeply human fear that separates middle managers from those destined for the C-suite
Corporate America has long been drawn to the self-made executive narrative. But Curtis Campbell, the new CEO of H&R Block, tells his version with a realism that gives it unusual credibility. Campbell, who grew up in a small Southern town and became the first in his family to attend college, traces his rise to a
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The biggest mistake HR leaders make when pitching new benefits to their CFO
Good morning! If HR wants a CFO to sign off on a new wellness program, “making employees happier” is rarely enough. Finance leaders want the business case: what it costs, what it replaces, and how it will pay off. That’s the message BambooHR CFO Justin Judd has for HR executives making the pitch. A happier
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What the Nike CEO’s remarks reveal about rallying employees through turnaround fatigue
When CEO Elliott Hill addressed Nike employees after another disappointing earnings report, he did something many leaders avoid once a turnaround starts to drag. He named the mood in the room. “I’m so tired, and I know you are too, of talking about fixing this business,” Hill said at a Tuesday all-hands meeting, according to
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The real impact of AI on SaaS isn’t what investors think
Good morning. Fears that AI could render traditional software vendors obsolete triggered a broad SaaS and cloud sell-off in February, a rout that some investors dubbed “SaaSpocalypse.” The catalyst: Anthropic’s addition of a legal task plug-in to its Claude AI, which wiped roughly $285 billion in tech market value within 24 hours. The anxiety was
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Why DOGE’s legacy is hard to measure
In today’s CEO Daily: Diane Brady takes stock of DOGE’s impact in two top-of-mind areas. The big leadership story: Nvidia and Supermicro have a longstanding relationship, but after the arrest of Supermicro’s cofounder last month, Nvidia faces a decision of whether to distance itself from the company. The markets: Largely closed for a holiday weekend,