For organizations that have a Chief of Staff to the CFO, what has made that role effective?  What were the primary responsibilities?  Any pitfalls?

Some of the big VC firms now have CFO in-residence roles... and then transition them to portfolio company...I could see the CoS to CFO moving in that direction as well.

We have had a Chief of Staff to the Finance Leadership team for several years. It is a role filled by top talent who are typically in the succession plan for the Leadership Team to provide them with exposure and experience of operating at this level. We think it has been a successful talent development strategy that other teams have also adopted. It is a rotating role for about 15-18months and is in addition to their current responsibilities (typically represents up to 20% of their time depending on how involved they want to become). They have a full voice at the LT meetings. The minimum role is primarily involved in shaping Finance strategy and developing / tracking transformation roadmap. They also support some change, communication and education activities eg townhall meetings, LT agenda development, all finance learning sessions etc. They can also take on transformation work if they have capacity and desire.

It may depend on where the need is the greatest. There are 3 main frames of focus for the Chief of Staff: the leader (their presentations, their communications, their time management / optimization), the Finance leadership team (this is where most probably spend the bulk of time; ensuring this is Team One for members) and, last but definitely not least, the Finance organization at large (training, development, charter/culture, recognition), 

Responsibilities include partnering with the Finance executive team to develop Finance strategy, transformation roadmap and governance; leading strategic projects for Finance and overseeing communication and change management for Finance. Pitfalls - if the Chief of Staff also leads Finance teams/functions, it can be difficult to manage Chief of Staff responsibilities and Finance functions.

Project management skills, strong communications skills, an ability to negotiate effectively between stakeholders, and alignment with the CFO in order to have the authority to move initiatives forward independently.