Within 72 hours of becoming CFO at Elance, Steve Sutter uncovered that thousands of customer account balances were commingled with corporate cash—an oversight with serious compliance risk. He immediately convened the board, secured nearly $20 million to correct the issue, and implemented proper segregation—restoring financial integrity and safeguarding the company’s future transactions.
Made Possible By
Now Watch the Complete Episode of CFO Steve Sutter of Celigo
Celigo’s finance chief views AI not as disruption but as acceleration. Steve Sutter tells us finance must design sustainable business models grounded in unit economics—understanding every dollar of new ARR and the cost to deliver it. Partnering with go-to-market leaders, he uses metrics like quota-to-OTE ratios to guide efficient scaling. When growth experiments stall, he moves quickly to shut them down and redirect resources. Across Celigo’s automation platform, Sutter sees AI as pervasive and enabling—simplifying the mundane, sharpening execution, and allowing finance to lead where technology and human performance converge.
| CFO’s Strategy Playbook |
|---|
| • Build Growth on Proven Unit Economics |
| • Coach GTM Through Measurable Efficiency Ratios |
| • Fail Fast and Redeploy Capital Wisely |