CFOs are becoming the new contract owners

I noticed something intriguing among our customers: At many companies, it’s not CFOs, not Legal, who are the contract owners.

Back when we started Concord in 2014, everyone agreed that contracts were “legal’s problem.”

But today, a full 70% of our customers don’t even have an in-house Legal team.

Why the huge shift?

Because, contrary to popular belief, a contract has never been primarily a legal document. It’s a business process: a document that dictates how money moves in and out of your company.

And that means CFOs are evolving like CIOs did in the 2010s.

Remember back when IT was just the department that “plugged in your computer?” How times have changed! Today, CIOs are strategic partners. And now an analogous transformation is underway in Finance departments — with CFOs becoming strategists around contracts.

Here’s why this is happening:

• 90% of contracts see zero negotiation or revisions. They’re standardized templates.
• AI can now handle many contract review tasks that once required legal expertise.
• Contract data now feeds directly into financial forecasting.

So what does this all mean?

• Legal gets to focus on strategic decisions where they can add real value.
• Finance gets clearer visibility into future commitments, so they can make more informed choices.

The top-level takeaway here is that contracts are becoming more valuable for everyone. They’re being treated as strategic assets, not admin headaches.

Do you see Finance taking a more active role in contracts at your org? What’s your experience?