Corporate finance doesn’t have to be the team people avoid. For two decades, Virginie Costa has shown how it can unlock growth at some of the world’s best-known consumer brands in luxury, fragrance, apparel, and food. She has served as both CFO and CEO at public companies in North America and abroad, overseeing revenue bases of more than $11 billion regionally and $2 billion globally. Today, she brings that operator’s lens to the boardroom as a non-executive director and audit committee chair.
Finance Is An Engine, Not The Brake
There’s a common belief that finance exists to shut things down. They are the people who say no, tap the brakes, and complicate plans. Virginie Costa sees it differently. “Many think of finance as the brake pedal or the people who say no, managing risk and tightening controls,” she says. “Real strategic finance is the engine that drives performance.” She proved it at a company where departments barely spoke to one another. Finance worked on its own, IT stayed in a separate lane, and supply chain and legal operated in isolation. Costa pulled them into a single, coordinated operation. The effect was immediate. Decisions moved faster, data quality improved, and leaders across the business felt more ownership. When finance stops acting like a brake pedal and starts working as a force for alignment, the whole company accelerates.
M&A Is Where Leaders Show Up
People love the theater of a deal: the announcement, the press release, the handshakes. Virginie Costa has seen enough acquisitions to know that is not where the value is created. “In the M&A world, the deal is just the beginning. The true value gets unlocked after the announcement,” she says. Most companies wait until closing to think about integration. That is already behind schedule. In one global acquisition, Costa began the integration plan during due diligence. She pulled legal, IT, and operations into the same room early and built playbooks before anyone signed. The payoff was immediate. “Day one felt equivalent to month six. That is what separates acquiring a business from unleashing its potential.” Buying a company is the easy part. Making it work is where leadership shows up.
Governance Is Not Just About Control, It’s About Creating Confidence
Nobody gets excited about governance. It sounds like paperwork, committees, and extra hoops. Costa has spent enough time in boardrooms to see something different. Good governance creates the confidence that lets leaders take bigger swings. As an audit committee chair, she has pushed for risk management that opens doors rather than closes them. Whether the topic is ESG, cybersecurity, or compliance, the goal is the same. “We cannot lead without trust. When governance is strong, ambition becomes a possibility,” she says. Governance is not about control. It is about building trust so people feel comfortable pushing boundaries.
Her approach is straightforward. Finance should drive strategy, not slow it down. M&A needs leadership from day one, not only at the announcement. Governance provides the foundation that makes bold moves possible. These ideas are simple and hard to execute. She has tested them across markets and industries while managing billions in revenue. The lessons stick because they work. Finance does not have to be the bad guy. “CFOs must think beyond the ledger. We shape the future,” she says. The numbers matter, but what you do with them matters more. Costa continues to work with companies as both an executive and a board member. Her advice to other leaders comes down to three words: courage, clarity, and conviction. The rest follows.
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