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The general counsel and chief financial officer roles and their relationships to each other may be changing.

Both are taking on more strategic and operational responsibilities, certified public accountants who regularly work with GCs and CFOs said. Todd Rahn, a CPA and senior managing director at FTI Consulting, said the roles’ “fundamental shift” from service provider to strategist is in part a “healthy byproduct of [the] stigma” that accounting and legal are cost centers.

“The general counsel and CFO are saying, ‘Hey, we can do that. Meaning I’m not just a cost center. I’m not just a ‘no’ person. I’m somebody who has a tremendously strong professional background, leadership skills. I’m in the C-suite for a reason,’” Rahn said.

He’s increasingly seeing human resources or facilities management report to GCs and CFOs. More are also handling investor communications, he said, and serving as the chief executive officer’s right-hand adviser on general business matters.

Greg Regan, a CPA and partner at Hemming Morse, said it’s crucial there isn’t “friction between those two offices.” In his experience, companies operate best when the “information exchange … causeway between the GC and CFO’s office that [is] opened without traffic.”

“It’s very important that they work very closely with each other. … In case it’s implied that there might be any type of competition, I don’t see that,” Rahn said. “I think in fact, the backgrounds are so distinct, they very much see each other as a really critical resource.”

Their mutual expansion into operations and business strategy have placed GCs and CFOs in “a very fluid, open … closely coordinated role, and that to me is a great step for both,” he added.

Last month, Ideaya Biosciences Inc. named its general counsel to its chief financial officer role.  Blackboard Inc. made the same move in June, a sign the two roles have become more closely aligned. The CFO and GC of Boston-based Allied Minds became co-chief executive officers in July.

There are skills general counsel can bring into their collaborations with the CFO to push the business forward and help both execs in their often expanded new roles.

GCs can provide context for regulatory expectations, Regan said, and insight on industrywide best practices developed through their networks. Rahn noted GCs with “empathy,” a “proactive mindset” and a “rock-solid understanding of the business” are likely to have stronger relationships with their CFO.

General counsel can also help CFOs understand changing privacy rules as the CFO role becomes increasingly data-driven. Both CPAs, who are members of the California Society of Certified Public Accountants, said the California Consumer Privacy Act and future similar state privacy laws could lead to more collaboration between the execs.

“I think it’s deepened the relationship. CCPA is a very important change,” Regan said. “[It's] the tip of the spear. … It’s important for the GC’s office to educate the financial personnel and be able to implement appropriate internal controls.”

Read More: 

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Ideaya General Counsel Takes on Additional Role of Chief Financial Officer

General Counsel, Chief Financial Officer Take Over as Co-CEOs of Allied Minds

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