{"id":12951,"date":"2026-02-17T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-02-17T07:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.digital-chiefs.de\/cfo-transformationstreiber-reboot-finanzierung-siemens-sap-2026\/"},"modified":"2026-07-02T19:02:38","modified_gmt":"2026-07-02T17:02:38","slug":"cfo-transformationstreiber-reboot-finanzierung-siemens-sap-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.digital-chiefs.de\/en\/cfo-transformationstreiber-reboot-finanzierung-siemens-sap-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"The CFO as a Driver of Transformation: How Finance Chiefs are Funding the German Reboot"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"display:inline-block;background:#d65663;color:#fff;padding:4px 14px;border-radius:20px;font-size:0.85em\">9 min read<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"line-height:1.8;margin-bottom:20px;\"><strong>In autumn 2025, Siemens CFO Ralf P. Thomas announced a record free cash flow of \u20ac10.8 billion. Meanwhile, SAP CFO Dominik Asam warned that companies slow to adopt AI would pay a steep price. Two CFOs, two messages &#8211; and both signal that in Germany, the CFO is no longer just the numbers person. Today, the CFO is the engine of corporate reinvention.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Image source: Pexels \/ Vlada Karpovich (px:74<\/strong><\/p>\n<div style=\"background:#f6f1e6;border-left:4px solid #d65663;border-radius:0 8px 8px 0;padding:22px 26px;margin:28px 0 34px;\">\n<p style=\"margin:0 0 14px 0;font-size:0.76em;font-weight:700;text-transform:uppercase;letter-spacing:0.16em;color:#c0414e;\">Key Takeaways<\/p>\n<ul style=\"margin:0;padding-left:22px;color:#23303f;line-height:1.6;\">\n<li style=\"margin-bottom:8px;\"><strong style=\"color:#0d1b2a;\"><strong>CFO Priorities 2026:<\/strong><\/strong> 50 percent of North American CFOs name digital transformation as their top priority, while 87 percent see AI as essential for finance operations (Deloitte CFO Signals Q4 2025)<\/li>\n<li style=\"margin-bottom:8px;\"><strong style=\"color:#0d1b2a;\"><strong>Investment Hesitation:<\/strong><\/strong> Over half of German CFOs now consider Germany a less attractive investment location than it was two years ago (Deloitte CFO Survey Autumn 2025)<\/li>\n<li style=\"margin-bottom:8px;\"><strong style=\"color:#0d1b2a;\"><strong>Cloud Migration:<\/strong><\/strong> 90 percent of German companies use cloud applications, with 47 percent of all IT applications already running in the cloud (Bitkom 2025)<\/li>\n<li style=\"margin-bottom:8px;\"><strong style=\"color:#0d1b2a;\"><strong>KfW Digital:<\/strong><\/strong> Since July 2025, KfW has been offering loans of up to \u20ac25 million plus grants of up to \u20ac200,000 to fund digitalization projects<\/li>\n<li style=\"\"><strong style=\"color:#0d1b2a;\"><strong>Infrastructure Fund:<\/strong><\/strong> A \u20ac500 billion infrastructure package has been approved, yet only \u20ac24 billion had been disbursed by the end of 2025<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<h2 style=\"margin-top:32px;margin-bottom:16px;\">Why the CFO is suddenly the transformation leader<\/h2>\n<p style=\"line-height:1.8;margin-bottom:20px;\">For years, the division of roles was crystal clear: the CEO set the direction, the CTO built, and the CFO kept the books. That hierarchy will be obsolete in Germany by 2026. Why? Transformation costs money &#8211; and the money isn\u2019t where it needs to be. Or rather, it\u2019s locked up in the wrong places. The debate over <a href=\"https:\/\/www.digital-chiefs.de\/en\/made-for-germany-why-105-companies-are-investing-735-billion-in-the-location\/\">Germany as a business hub and the \u20ac735 billion Made-for-Germany initiative<\/a> lays this bare: the capital exists, but it\u2019s not flowing to where it\u2019s needed most.<\/p>\n<p style=\"line-height:1.8;margin-bottom:20px;\">In manufacturing, the investment index stands at minus 11 percent, according to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.deloitte.com\/de\/de\/our-thinking\/economic-thinking\/blogs\/2025\/cfo-survey-herbst-2025.html\">Deloitte CFO Survey Autumn 2025<\/a>. Mechanical engineering and automotive firms are planning job cuts &#8211; over three-quarters of surveyed companies expect to reduce headcount. Meanwhile, transport and logistics are investing at plus 56 percent, and technology at plus 33 percent. The gap is widening. And the CFO sits at the center of it all: they must decide where the money for the future will come from while the core business contracts.<\/p>\n<p style=\"line-height:1.8;margin-bottom:20px;\">This isn\u2019t just a theoretical challenge &#8211; it\u2019s existential. Deloitte reports that 49 percent of German CFOs face rising costs due to delayed transformations. Moving too slowly means paying twice: once for the postponed transition and again for the competitive disadvantage. The question is no longer *whether* companies will transform, but *who* will finance and steer that transformation. And that person is the CFO.<\/p>\n<div style=\"background:#1a1a2e;border-radius:12px;padding:32px;margin:40px 0;\">\n<div style=\"display:flex;justify-content:space-around;text-align:center;flex-wrap:wrap;gap:20px;\">\n<div style=\"flex:1;min-width:140px;\">\n<div style=\"font-size:2.2em;font-weight:800;color:#d65663;\">\u20ac10.8bn<\/div>\n<div style=\"color:#d65663;font-size:0.85em;margin-top:4px;\">Siemens Free Cash Flow FY2025<\/div><\/div>\n<div style=\"flex:1;min-width:140px;\">\n<div style=\"font-size:2.2em;font-weight:800;color:#d65663;\">-11%<\/div>\n<div style=\"color:#d65663;font-size:0.85em;margin-top:4px;\">Investment index manufacturing sector<\/div><\/div>\n<div style=\"flex:1;min-width:140px;\">\n<div style=\"font-size:2.2em;font-weight:800;color:#d65663;\">87%<\/div>\n<div style=\"color:#d65663;font-size:0.85em;margin-top:4px;\">CFOs see AI as critical for finance<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p style=\"color:rgba(0,0,0,0.5);font-size:0.8em;text-align:right;margin-top:-30px;margin-bottom:30px;\">Sources: Siemens Q4 FY2025 Earnings, Deloitte CFO Survey Autumn 2025, Deloitte CFO Signals Q4 2025<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"margin-top:32px;margin-bottom:16px;\">The Siemens Case: How a CFO Rewired an Entire Corporation<\/h2>\n<p style=\"line-height:1.8;margin-bottom:20px;\">Siemens CFO Ralf P. Thomas delivered a line every finance chief should pin to their wall: *\u201cCash generation is the ultimate yardstick for business performance.\u201d* What sounds straightforward carries radical implications. When cash is the benchmark, every investment is measured by its payback horizon &#8211; and that reshapes portfolio strategy from the ground up.<\/p>\n<p style=\"line-height:1.8;margin-bottom:20px;\">In <a href=\"https:\/\/press.siemens.com\/global\/en\/pressrelease\/earnings-release-and-financial-results-q4-fy-2025\">fiscal 2025<\/a>, Siemens put that principle into action. The results speak volumes: \u20ac10.8 billion in free cash flow (a record), \u20ac11.8 billion in industrial profit (up 3 percent), net income of \u20ac10.4 billion (up 16 percent), and a dividend increase to \u20ac5.35 per share.<\/p>\n<p style=\"line-height:1.8;margin-bottom:20px;\">Behind those numbers lies a strategic bet placed nearly two decades ago. Since 2007, Siemens has invested over $10 billion in digital acquisitions. Cloud annual recurring revenue now stands at nearly 50 percent &#8211; an original year-end 2025 target achieved well ahead of schedule. More than 1,200 digital offerings now run on the Siemens Xcelerator Marketplace.<\/p>\n<p style=\"line-height:1.8;margin-bottom:20px;\">The lesson for other CFOs? Shifting from CapEx-heavy industrial logic to cloud-based recurring revenue is possible &#8211; but it requires endurance and a finance chief who optimizes not just quarterly results but decades-long value creation. To see how this ripples through <a href=\"https:\/\/www.digital-chiefs.de\/en\/how-german-cios-are-financing-the-reboot-245-billion-and-the-question-of-where-t\/\">CIO priorities<\/a>, look closer: the CFO and CIO must share ownership of the same investment thesis.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"margin-top:32px;margin-bottom:16px;\">SAP: When the CFO Demands Disruption<\/h2>\n<p style=\"line-height:1.8;margin-bottom:20px;\">Dominik Asam, SAP\u2019s CFO, speaks a different language than his counterpart at Siemens. In an <a href=\"https:\/\/fortune.com\/2025\/09\/24\/sap-cfo-dominik-asam-320-billion-software-firm-ai-allow-workforce-reduction-but-if-done-wrong-could-be-business-catastrophe\/\">interview with Fortune<\/a> last fall, he didn\u2019t mince words: for SAP &#8211; and every other software company &#8211; AI is a massive catalyst that can be \u201ca game-changer\u201d or \u201ca disaster.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"line-height:1.8;margin-bottom:20px;\">What\u2019s striking is that CFOs are usually the voice of caution. Asam flips the script: he isn\u2019t pushing for cost control; he\u2019s pushing for speed. Get it right and move faster than rivals, and the upside is enormous. Lag behind, and the downside is inevitable. \u201cWe\u2019re working around the clock,\u201d he said, \u201cto avoid falling behind.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"line-height:1.8;margin-bottom:20px;\">The numbers back him up. SAP Cloud revenue climbed 24 percent in Q2 2025; its Cloud ERP suite surged 26 percent in Q3 to \u20ac4.59 billion. The cloud backlog hit \u20ac77 billion at year-end 2025 &#8211; a record &#8211; up 30 percent in constant currencies (reported: +22 percent). This isn\u2019t just financial fine-tuning; it\u2019s a business-model transformation the CFO is driving because he understands the numbers better than anyone else on the board.<\/p>\n<div style=\"background:linear-gradient(135deg,#fff0f1 0%,#ffe4e6 100%);border-left:4px solid #d65663;border-radius:8px;padding:24px 28px;margin:40px 0;\">\n<p style=\"font-size:1.1em;font-style:italic;line-height:1.6;color:#1a1a2e;margin:0;\">In his own words, SAP CFO Dominik Asam: \u201cFor SAP &#8211; and every other software company &#8211; AI is a massive catalyst. It can be wonderful or a catastrophe. We\u2019re working around the clock to avoid falling behind.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-size:0.85em;color:#666;margin:8px 0 0 0;\">Source: Fortune, September 2025<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h2 style=\"margin-top:32px;margin-bottom:16px;\">Three Levers for Germany\u2019s Corporate Revival<\/h2>\n<p style=\"line-height:1.8;margin-bottom:20px;\">German CFOs have three key levers in 2026 to fund transformation &#8211; and none works in isolation. The real skill lies in combining them.<\/p>\n<h3>1. Shifting from CapEx to OpEx via the cloud<\/h3>\n<p style=\"line-height:1.8;margin-bottom:20px;\">According to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bitkom.org\/Presse\/Presseinformation\/Wirtschaft-ruft-nach-deutscher-Cloud\">Bitkom Cloud Report 2025<\/a>, 90 percent of German companies now use cloud applications. Forty-seven percent of all IT applications run in the cloud &#8211; up from 38 percent a year ago. Sixty-two percent of companies say: without the cloud, they would grind to a halt. This is no longer a strategy; it\u2019s a necessity.<\/p>\n<p style=\"line-height:1.8;margin-bottom:20px;\">For CFOs, this shift fundamentally changes balance-sheet dynamics. Instead of large upfront investments in servers and data centers (CapEx), funds flow as recurring operating expenses (OpEx). That boosts free cash flow in the short term and makes investments easier to plan. The trade-off: recurring costs rise permanently. And 78 percent of companies see Germany as too dependent on US cloud providers. The debate over <a href=\"https:\/\/www.digital-chiefs.de\/en\/digital-sovereignty-2026-gaia-x-delos-cloud-and-europes-response-to-the-cloud-ac\/\">digital sovereignty and European cloud alternatives<\/a> is therefore heating up for every CFO who must factor long-term supplier risks into the equation.<\/p>\n<h3>2. Public Grants: KfW and Special Funds<\/h3>\n<p style=\"line-height:1.8;margin-bottom:20px;\">Since July 2025, KfW has launched a three-tier grant programme for digitalisation. The basic grant offers loans of up to \u20ac7.5 million for standard digitalisation projects. The LevelUp tier provides up to \u20ac25 million with a 3% grant on the loan amount (capped at \u20ac200,000). For complex AI projects, the HighEnd tier includes a 5% grant. Target group: companies with annual turnover of up to \u20ac500 million. For SMEs in the basic tier, the mandatory KfW Digitalisation Check &#8211; a free digital maturity assessment that documents the current state and identifies areas for action &#8211; is required.<\/p>\n<p style=\"line-height:1.8;margin-bottom:20px;\">The \u20ac500 billion special fund for infrastructure has been available since October 2025. For CFOs, however, it is only indirectly relevant: \u20ac300 billion flows into federal investments, \u20ac100 billion into the Climate and Transformation Fund, and \u20ac100 billion to states and municipalities. Companies benefit through induced demand &#8211; broadband rollout, administrative digitalisation, and transport infrastructure create contract volumes for B2B providers. But: these are not subsidies; they are contracts. CFOs must position themselves to win the tenders.<\/p>\n<p style=\"line-height:1.8;margin-bottom:20px;\">Reality is putting the brakes on progress: by the end of 2025, only \u20ac24 billion had been disbursed &#8211; just 4.8% of the total. The IW K\u00f6ln institute criticises that 86% of the funds were misallocated. The Ifo Institute even estimates that 95% of the new debt was not used for additional investment. CFOs should therefore not wait for a major state push but build their own financing routes.<\/p>\n<h3>3. Green Bonds: Sustainability as a Gateway to Capital<\/h3>\n<p style=\"line-height:1.8;margin-bottom:20px;\">Green bonds are becoming a cornerstone financing tool for German companies. The federal government issued green bonds worth \u20ac17.5 billion in 2024 and \u20ac14.5 billion in 2025, with plans for another \u20ac16\u201319 billion in 2026. By the end of 2025, the Green Bund curve included eight different securities with maturities ranging from 2027 to 2053. This creates a benchmark market that corporate issuers can use as a reference.<\/p>\n<p style=\"line-height:1.8;margin-bottom:20px;\">Siemens Energy demonstrated how it works in 2023: a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.siemens-energy.com\/us\/en\/home\/press-releases\/siemens-energy-successfully-places-eur-1-5-billion-green-bond.html\">\u20ac1.5 billion green bond<\/a> split into two tranches (\u20ac750 million each, with 3- and 6-year maturities and coupons of 4.0% and 4.25%) was oversubscribed more than three times. The order book reached \u20ac5.5 billion. The takeaway for other CFOs: sustainable financing instruments attract investors &#8211; provided the framework is robust and governance is transparent.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"margin-top:32px;margin-bottom:16px;\">Why German CFOs Must Rethink Their Strategy Compared to US Peers<\/h2>\n<p style=\"line-height:1.8;margin-bottom:20px;\">In the US, the CFO Confidence Score stands at 6.6 according to Deloitte &#8211; the highest since late 2021. Sixty-three percent report increased M&#038;A interest. The mood is aggressive. In Germany, the picture is starkly different: more than half of CFOs consider the business environment less attractive than two years ago. Inflation expectations average 2.5% over the next twelve months &#8211; moderate, but not a game-changer.<\/p>\n<p style=\"line-height:1.8;margin-bottom:20px;\">This isn\u2019t due to a lack of skill but structural differences. German CFOs face a triple challenge: regulatory density (CSRD, NIS2, AI Act), energy costs, and a shortage of skilled workers. Forty-two percent report declining employee engagement, while 39% cite resistance to digital technologies. In the consumer goods sector, 69% of staff actively resist digitalisation.<\/p>\n<p style=\"line-height:1.8;margin-bottom:20px;\">Many CFOs are responding &#8211; correctly, but not ambitiously enough: two-thirds plan to automate knowledge-work processes. This cuts costs and reduces reliance on hard-to-fill roles. Yet it doesn\u2019t address the core issue: without investment in new business areas, automation remains an efficiency play, not a transformation lever. That\u2019s why <a href=\"https:\/\/mybusinessfuture.com\/reboot-germany-735-milliarden-mittelstand-investitionen-2026\/\">mid-sized firms are increasingly charting their own course<\/a> &#8211; often outside the strategies of corporate CFOs.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"margin-top:32px;margin-bottom:16px;\">50 Percent Cloud, 87 Percent AI: How Finance Is Reinventing Itself<\/h2>\n<p style=\"line-height:1.8;margin-bottom:20px;\">This transformation isn\u2019t just for the companies CFOs lead &#8211; it\u2019s for the finance function itself. Half of North American finance chiefs cite the digital transformation of their own department as a top priority for 2026. A staggering 87 percent expect AI to be extremely or very important for finance operations by then. Only 2 percent consider it irrelevant.<\/p>\n<p style=\"line-height:1.8;margin-bottom:20px;\">54 percent plan to embed AI agents into finance processes, fundamentally reshaping the CFO\u2019s role &#8211; from guardian of historical data to architect of future scenarios. When AI takes over accounting, reporting, and cash-flow forecasting, CFOs gain bandwidth for strategic decisions: portfolio allocation, M&#038;A valuations, and capital-structure optimization.<\/p>\n<p style=\"line-height:1.8;margin-bottom:20px;\">The question is whether German CFOs will seize this opportunity or get bogged down in regulatory red tape. SAP\u2019s Asam doesn\u2019t mince words: work relentlessly to avoid falling behind. This isn\u2019t just a warning for software firms &#8211; it\u2019s a call to action for every CFO who wants to not just navigate this reboot, but lead it.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"margin-top:32px;margin-bottom:16px;\">What CFOs Should Do Now: Four Actionable Steps<\/h2>\n<p style=\"line-height:1.8;margin-bottom:20px;\"><strong>Step 1: Reinvent the finance function first.<\/strong> If you want to transform others, start with your own team. AI-powered forecasting, automated reporting, and real-time cash-flow monitoring aren\u2019t futuristic &#8211; they\u2019re baseline requirements. Those still relying on manual Excel consolidations are wasting CFO time on routine tasks instead of strategic oversight.<\/p>\n<p style=\"line-height:1.8;margin-bottom:20px;\"><strong>Step 2: Systematically leverage funding opportunities.<\/strong> Apply for the KfW Digitalization Check (free of charge), identify the right funding tier, and assess whether a Green Bond Framework aligns with your company\u2019s goals. Lead time for a Green Bond is 6 to 12 months &#8211; if you plan to issue in 2027, start now.<\/p>\n<p style=\"line-height:1.8;margin-bottom:20px;\"><strong>Step 3: Take control of cloud costs.<\/strong> The shift from CapEx to OpEx doesn\u2019t happen automatically. Without FinOps discipline, cloud costs can spiral within 12 to 18 months. Dedicated cloud-cost management pays for itself within the first quarter. Siemens has proven that cloud ARR and cash flow aren\u2019t mutually exclusive &#8211; only with rigorous governance.<\/p>\n<p style=\"line-height:1.8;margin-bottom:20px;\"><strong>Step 4: Define your investment thesis.<\/strong> Every CFO should have a clear, documented investment thesis: Why invest in Germany despite headwinds? What\u2019s the return horizon? Which metrics define success? Siemens\u2019 Thomas adhered to this principle for 18 years. The result: \u20ac10.8 billion in free cash flow.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"margin-top:32px;margin-bottom:16px;\">The Flip Side: What Could Go Wrong<\/h2>\n<p style=\"line-height:1.8;margin-bottom:20px;\">Not every CFO-led transformation succeeds. The cautionary tales are real: companies that migrate to the cloud too early and too aggressively, only to become dependent on U.S. providers &#8211; 78 percent already see this as a problem. CFOs who issue green bonds but fail to meet sustainability targets risk more than reputational damage. And finance chiefs who over-invest in automation at the expense of innovation are optimizing their way into irrelevance.<\/p>\n<p style=\"line-height:1.8;margin-bottom:20px;\">Geopolitical risks add another layer of complexity: 50 percent of German cloud users are rethinking their strategies in response to U.S. policy shifts. The IW K\u00f6ln and the Ifo Institute warn that the special fund is generating little additional investment. Margins in manufacturing remain stagnant &#8211; only the service sector is seeing modest relief.<\/p>\n<p style=\"line-height:1.8;margin-bottom:20px;\">A transformation without a CFO at the helm won\u2019t happen. But a CFO who ignores the risks merely delivers a more expensive version of the status quo. The most effective CFOs of 2026 will be those who can do both: recognize the opportunity and understand the cost of failure.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"margin-top:32px;margin-bottom:16px;\">Frequently Asked Questions<\/h2>\n<details style=\"margin-bottom:12px;padding:16px 20px;background:#f9f9f9;border-radius:6px;\">\n<summary style=\"cursor:pointer;font-size:15px;font-weight:600;\"><strong>Why is the CFO taking the lead in driving transformation?<\/strong><\/summary>\n<p style=\"margin:8px 0 4px 8px;\">Transformation requires capital &#8211; and in Germany in 2026, capital is scarce. The CFO controls investment priorities, financing tools, and portfolio management. Without their buy-in, every transformation strategy risks becoming just another PowerPoint presentation collecting digital dust.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n<details style=\"margin-bottom:12px;padding:16px 20px;background:#f9f9f9;border-radius:6px;\">\n<summary style=\"cursor:pointer;font-size:15px;font-weight:600;\"><strong>Which funding programs support digital transformation?<\/strong><\/summary>\n<p style=\"margin:8px 0 4px 8px;\">Since July 2025, KfW has offered the ERP Digitalization Promotional Loan in three tiers: Basic (up to \u20ac7.5 million), LevelUp (up to \u20ac25 million plus a 3% grant), and HighEnd (up to \u20ac25 million plus a 5% grant). The program targets companies with annual revenues of up to \u20ac500 million.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n<details style=\"margin-bottom:12px;padding:16px 20px;background:#f9f9f9;border-radius:6px;\">\n<summary style=\"cursor:pointer;font-size:15px;font-weight:600;\"><strong>What does the shift from CapEx to OpEx in the cloud mean for businesses?<\/strong><\/summary>\n<p style=\"margin:8px 0 4px 8px;\">Rather than locking in large upfront investments in on-premises IT infrastructure (CapEx), companies now pay recurring cloud service fees (OpEx). This boosts short-term cash flow and makes costs more predictable. The trade-off? Permanently higher operating expenses and the risk of vendor lock-in with cloud providers.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n<details style=\"margin-bottom:12px;padding:16px 20px;background:#f9f9f9;border-radius:6px;\">\n<summary style=\"cursor:pointer;font-size:15px;font-weight:600;\"><strong>How do green bonds work for businesses?<\/strong><\/summary>\n<p style=\"margin:8px 0 4px 8px;\">Companies issue bonds whose proceeds must be allocated to sustainable projects. A Green Bond Framework defines the criteria. In 2023, Siemens Energy issued a \u20ac1.5 billion green bond that was oversubscribed more than threefold.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n<details style=\"margin-bottom:12px;padding:16px 20px;background:#f9f9f9;border-radius:6px;\">\n<summary style=\"cursor:pointer;font-size:15px;font-weight:600;\"><strong>Why is the special fund being rolled out so slowly?<\/strong><\/summary>\n<p style=\"margin:8px 0 4px 8px;\">Of the \u20ac500 billion allocated, only \u20ac24 billion had been disbursed by the end of 2025 &#8211; just 4.8%. Critics such as IW K\u00f6ln and the Ifo Institute estimate that 86% to 95% of the funds have been misallocated or failed to stimulate additional investment. Bureaucratic hurdles and a lack of planning capacity are throttling progress.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n<h2 style=\"margin-top:32px;margin-bottom:16px;\">Read more<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.digital-chiefs.de\/en\/how-german-cios-are-financing-the-reboot-245-billion-and-the-question-of-where-t\/\">How German CIOs are financing the reboot: \u20ac245 billion and the question of where the money goes<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.digital-chiefs.de\/en\/digital-sovereignty-2026-gaia-x-delos-cloud-and-europes-response-to-the-cloud-ac\/\">Digital sovereignty as a boardroom priority: GAIA-X and Europe\u2019s response to the cloud oligopoly<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/mybusinessfuture.com\/reboot-germany-735-milliarden-mittelstand-investitionen-2026\/\">Reboot Germany: \u20ac735 billion, three mid-sized companies, and the question of whether the crisis is really that dire<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"font-style:italic;text-align:right;margin-top:40px;\"><think><\/p>\n<h3>Further reading<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.digital-chiefs.de\/en\/ki-als-digitalisierungsmotor-was-die-deutsche-wirtschaft\/\">AI as a digitalization catalyst: What\u2019s truly powering the German economy now<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.digital-chiefs.de\/en\/the-invisible-bottleneck-role-why-pmos-often-derail-the-ai-rollout-in-2026\/\">The invisible bottleneck: Why PMOs often derail AI rollouts in 2026<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.digital-chiefs.de\/en\/sovereignty-beats-price-the-new-procurement-signal\/\">Sovereignty over price: The new procurement signal<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Siemens-CFO Thomas meldet Rekord-Cashflow, SAP-CFO Asam treibt den Cloud-Umbau. Wie Finanzchefs den deutschen Reboot finanzieren.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":70,"featured_media":12950,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_yoast_wpseo_focuskw":"CFO Transformationstreiber","_yoast_wpseo_title":"The CFO as a Driver of Transformation: How Finance Chiefs are Funding the German Reboot","_yoast_wpseo_metadesc":"CFOs driving transformation in 2026: Record free cash flow at Siemens, SAP's cloud growth, KfW funding & green bonds. 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