6JANUARY 2026CFO TECH OUTLOOKManaging EditorSarah DawsonAaron Pierce Ann Bennis Antony MosesVisualizersKevin ParkerSarah DawsonManaging Editoreditor@cfotechoutlook.comEditor's NoteEmail:sales@cfotechoutlook.comeditor@cfotechoutlook.commarketing@cfotechoutlook.com JANUARY 2026, Vol - 11, Issue - 06 (ISSN 2644-2841)ValleyMedia, Inc. To subscribe to CFO Tech OutlookVisit www.cfotechoutlook.com Editorial StaffAva GarciaJoshua Parker Paul BarberJoy ParkerCopyright © 2026 ValleyMedia, Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or part of any text, photography or illustrations without written permission from the publisher is prohibited. The publisher assumes no responsibility for unsolicited manuscripts, photographs or illustrations. Views and opinions expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the magazine and accordingly, no liability is assumed by the publisher thereof.In an environment defined by heightened financial scrutiny, operational risk, and rapid digital acceleration, this edition of CFO Tech Outlook examines how financial leaders are strengthening governance, protecting value, and restoring confidence across the enterprise. The focus is clear: disciplined oversight, data-driven decision making, and accountability in financial operations.The cover story examines CPRS, recognized as the Top Accounts Payable Recovery Audit Solution 2025, and its role in reshaping a function long treated as financial afterthought. For more than three decades, the firm has operated at the intersection of accounting, operations, vendor management, and data integrity, identifying errors that persist even in sophisticated AP environments. CPRS has helped move recovery audits away from slow, retrospective exercises toward a more continuous and preventative discipline. By combining deeply trained, industry-specific audit teams with its proprietary PearlTM machine-learning platform, the company enables faster analysis, lower spend thresholds, and earlier detection of systemic issues. The result is not only recovered dollars, but stronger controls, clearer operational insight, and fewer errors entering the system in the first place.Risk management features prominently across this issue. Jacqueline Breslauer, Executive Vice President and Chief Audit Executive at Valley Bank, argues that internal audit functions have moved beyond assurance into strategic partnership. As reputational, liquidity, and technology risks intensify, audit teams are expected to collaborate more closely with business leaders, aligning control frameworks with organizational objectives. Adaptive audit models, she notes, are no longer optional but essential.Growth, meanwhile, remains a parallel priority. Jack M. Jacobs, Senior Vice President of Commercial Banking at WesBanco Bank, Inc., describes how customized banking solutions and relationship-led strategies are helping banks compete for middle-market clients. As these companies become more sophisticated, banking relationships are judged less on products and more on insight, trust, and long-term alignment.Together, the stories in this issue underscore a central truth: sustainable financial leadership is built on precision, partnership, and foresight. We invite readers to explore these perspectives and engage with the strategies shaping the future of financial management.PRECISION, OVERSIGHT, AND THE NEW MANDATE FOR FINANCE LEADERSDisclaimer: *Some of the Insights are based on our interviews with CIOs and CXOs
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