From Numbers to Narrative: Why Storytelling is Every CFO's Superpower

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It was a quick turnaround. Home from a short holiday in Greece on Wednesday, back on a plane to Jozi on Thursday. I had the privilege of speaking at the CFO South Africa conference, and I was pumped. Standing in front of a room full of finance leaders from across the country, I couldn’t help but reflect on the irony of it all.

You see, I’m a numbers guy by training - I studied accounting - but I never became an accountant. Somewhere along the way, I ended up in operations. And during my corporate years, I found myself constantly butting heads with our CFO, Gavin. He was sharp, stubborn, and frustratingly correct most of the time. He was also, for a season of my life, my nemesis. These days we get along famously, but it’s hanging out with our dogs at the beach.

So to find myself in a room full of CFOs, not in conflict but in conversation - not opposing, but invited - was a full-circle moment. And to be talking not about cash flow or EBITDA, but about rugby? Even more so.

But of course, it wasn’t just about rugby. It was about what we can learn from it, specifically from Rassie Erasmus and the Springbok story. Because what Rassie did wasn’t just about winning matches. It was about using clarity, alignment, and story to unite a fractured system and lead it to world-class performance.

After our 57-0 loss to the All Blacks in 2017, something had to change. That number didn’t just live on the scoreboard. It became a story - a painful one. But it was also a call to action, an emergency number that led to Rassie being brought back from a comfortable role in Ireland to fix what was broken. And what he did from there was remarkable.

He started with vision. Not just short-term performance metrics, but a five-year picture of where the team needed to go. He reverse-engineered that vision into clear milestones, broken down by quarter, by camp, and ultimately by individual player. Every squad member - from starter to bomb squad to water carrier - knew their scorecard. No politics. No entitlement. Just clear expectations, communicated consistently.

But what made the difference, and what I tried to share with the audience on Thursday, was how he turned those numbers into narrative. He didn’t just say, “We need to win.” He said, “We need to beat the All Blacks away.” That became the organising story. It was simple, focused, and powerful. And once they did it, it unlocked belief.

From there, he aligned the stakeholders - not just the players, but the referees, the politicians, the sponsors, and most importantly, the fans. Each audience got the same message, but delivered in language they could relate to. Underdog. Unity. Equal treatment. Purpose beyond self. It resonated because it was human.

As I shared with the CFOs, that’s what leadership through numbers looks like. Not just reporting results, but engineering outcomes. Not just blocking bad decisions, but guiding better ones. Not just saying “no,” but asking “how.” The CFO’s role has evolved. Today, you’re not just the reporter or the translator. You’re the guide.

And like Rassie, you have your own Siya Kolisi. Your own COO or CMO or CEO who needs belief, clarity, and a plan. Your job is to help them win. And you do that by knowing their why, giving them the right plan, and telling the right story - with the right numbers to back it.

If you want to truly align your organisation, you’ve got to go from spreadsheets to storytelling. From isolation to alignment. From gatekeeper to guide. It’s not enough to know the end or allocate the metrics… the important piece is framing the outcomes in terms of what’s important to your audience. We all need to become better storytellers!

To help with that, we’ve built a private GPT that does exactly what I described on stage. You enter the problem you’re facing and who you're trying to align with - and it gives you a custom StoryBrand framework and talking points to guide that conversation.

Become a Storyteller!

It was an honour to share that space with such sharp minds last week. Thanks to Gwen Sparks for teeing it up, and to the entire CFO SA community for the warm welcome.

Here’s to telling better stories with your numbers.…

PG’s Pro Tip:

If you want influence at the decision-making table, stop reporting on what happened. Start shaping what’s possible, and become a better storyteller. Become the guide your CEO, client, supplier, or stakeholder needs - and make the numbers mean something.

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