Alan Tachikawa's Path to CFO at Aflac Global Investments

Alan Tachikawa, CFO at Aflac Global Investments, has had a remarkable career journey that spans from his early days in accounting to leading strategic initiatives at Capital One and MetLife. His diverse experiences have significantly shaped his approach to leadership and decision-making, ultimately preparing him for his current role.

Reflecting on his career, Alan emphasizes the invaluable guidance he received along the way, stating, "I was blessed with great leaders and managers." Their influence has been instrumental along his career journey.

In this article, Alan discusses some of the greatest advice he’s received from insightful leaders, his leadership philosophy, approach to finance transformation, and how he stays “ahead of the curve” in the evolving business landscape. 
 

Pivotal Moments that Guided Alan's Path to CFO

Alan began his career where he says most professionals with accounting degrees do – at a CPA firm. He enjoyed his eight years at the firm, as his manager and mentor recognized his strengths and placed him in roles that allowed him to succeed. Afterward, he moved to Capital One to “get his feet wet” in the corporate world. Alan credits his time there with helping him learn critical lessons about himself and his professional capabilities.

One thing I learned during that period is that I am actually very comfortable under pressure.”
 

Soon after joining Capital One, the banking crisis occurred, and his boss left the company. Alan became responsible for leading their Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) application, working closely with the CFO, CAO and legal executives as a lower-level manager. He reflects, “It sounds like it would be a harrowing experience, but rather for me, it was more of a learning experience in terms of how I dealt with pressure.”

Alan’s early successes paved the way for him to be hand-selected for their inaugural – and highly competitive – manager rotational program. This opportunity allowed him to break out of accounting and move into an FP&A role. Alan jokes that he did not perform very well at this first stint in FP&A, as he struggled to shift his mentality from financial reporting to forecasting. “My thought process for accounting was just very different. FP&A is a different lens and a different mindset that I was just not used to,” he explains.

Through these challenges, Alan’s boss gave him advice that he still lives by today: to display more intellectual curiosity. His boss told him, “You come to an answer too quickly. I need you to dig several layers deep.’” Alan adds, “When you're predicting the future, you need to develop this intellectual curiosity. It was great, great advice.”

After Capital One, Alan spent twelve years at MetLife in various roles. Here, he was given the opportunity to head FP&A in Asia, which he says "really jump-started my career." However, Alan almost did not take the position due to his reluctance to leave New York. His boss advised him, "There are moments in your life where you have to be selfish about your career, and this might be one of them." Alan says, "Those words and advice really stuck with me, and that takes me to where I am today – where I was willing to take a chance."

Although he had an established career at MetLife, Alan took the leap to become the CFO of Aflac Global Investments in 2022. He shared, "The guidance that people gave me really manifested itself here."
 

Alan’s Leadership Philosophy and the Impact of Culture on Performance

Alan describes his leadership philosophy as "tough, but very fair," a characterization he attributes to feedback from his team. He emphasizes the importance of treating people with respect, ensuring that everyone is treated as professionals. Alan explains, "I believe in treating people fairly and with respect. That's a very big thing for me." 

Alan says he maintains high standards for his team in terms of his goals and vision, but he also has clear expectations and fosters a culture of open communication. This approach has led to a positive and collaborative culture within his department.

Open communication and respect are very important, because they ultimately lead to people wanting to work for you.”
 

Alan was complimented when one employee shared with him, “You are a tough person to work with, but because of that, you made me a much better employee than I ever imagined I could be.” Alan added, “What I ask for may be a stretch for them, but as long as they continue to deliver, that's what I'm going to keep asking.”

At Aflac, Alan has seen firsthand how a strong organizational culture, centered around respect, open communication, and teamwork, motivates employees to work hard and achieve common goals. "It creates a very strong culture and a sense of team. It's about all of us accomplishing a common goal together," he notes. This culture not only drives performance, but also fosters a sense of belonging and motivation among employees.
 

Prioritizing Finance Transformation and Strategic IT Investments

Finance transformation has become a buzzword for CFOs, and it is the top priority for CFOs within Evanta’s communities. Alan says that finance transformation, along with data and efficiency, are three things that he constantly thinks about. “There's no perfect data, and efficiencies are always something you could work towards, and finance transformation just kind of puts that together in my mind.”

Alan recently led a boardroom discussion at the New York CFO Executive Summit on prioritizing finance transformation and IT investments and how CFOs can approach making these difficult decisions. He says, “Every organization has resource constraints, and every IT investment probably has a strong return and tangible benefits. But we as CFOs need to help businesses quantify those things financially, as well as help them to pick and choose which ones really drive the organization forward.” He gave insight into his process, which includes partnering with IT and categorizing IT investments into mandatory (i.e., regulatory reasons, software updates, necessary enhancements) versus discretionary.

Generative AI is another buzzword for CFOs, and for Alan, it falls into that discretionary category. He shared how he approaches investments in emerging technologies, saying that some businesses are open to exploratory investments, such as GenAI, but they need to ensure they are not giving a “blank check” to these efforts. He says, “Allocate X so you can have the freedom to experiment. But, you want to make sure that's a conscious choice, not something that just happened.”
 

The Importance of Building a Peer Community for CFOs

As the business landscape rapidly changes, Alan expressed that it is critically important for CFOs to build a peer community. He says, “Having peers that you can check in with is a very powerful way for CFOs as a group to stay ahead of the curve.”

Alan joined his Evanta community to stay up-to-date on topics and learn what other CFOs are facing, and he is now a Governing Body Member of the New York CFO Community. He described his initial experience, “What was striking to me was how many CFOs at different organizations in different industries face the same problems, and that was so comforting. You realize we're on this journey together.”

Alan says he didn’t connect with peers enough prior to joining his community, and it has been a pleasure for him to get to know other CFOs and discuss their critical priorities. He added, “Connecting to other CFOs and just talking about issues has really helped me center my thoughts and also understand that we're not the only organization suffering through particular challenges. It helps in your day-to-day and the way you think.”

In Alan’s words, “I would encourage you, if you're on the fence about joining, come to a gathering, reach out to the peers and just have conversations. You'll be surprised at what you can get out of it.”

To make connections with CFO peers and participate in discussions on CFOs’ mission critical priorities, join your local Evanta community. If you are already a member, sign in to MyEvanta to register for your community’s upcoming community gathering.
 

Special thanks to Alan Tachikawa and Aflac Global Investments.

by CFOs, for CFOs
 

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