The Modern CFO is the Product Owner of Data

The Modern CFO is the Product Owner of Data

From Don't Panic! It's Just Data by EM360Tech

January 13, 2026 · 23 min · Season 1 · Episode 55

About this episode

The episode discusses the evolving role of the CFO as a product owner of data in the context of modern finance and AI.

In the recent episode of the Don’t Panic It’s Just Data podcast , Shubhangi Dua, Podcast Producer and B2B Tech journalist at EM360Tech, reports on the podcast shot live in London. Guest speakers, Pavel Dolezal, the CEO at Keboola , sit down with Vineta Bajaj, Group CFO, Holland & Barrett. They get specific about how modern finance leaders move faster: start with one governed source of truth, then layer automation, and only then AI. They explore how the CFO role is evolving. From reporting numbers to also owning the non-financial “whys” behind them. In the age of the AI boom, that shift turns every CFO into a product owner of data. But as Pavel Doležal puts it, without a clean, connected foundation, AI is just noise. According to Vineta Bajaj, Group CFO of Holland & Barrett, the role of the CFO has fundamentally changed. Today’s CFO must act as a product owner for data, not just owning the numbers but also determining how data is defined , structured, and used throughout the business. Finance and Data: A Complete Product Drawing on her experience with Ocado Group, Rohlik Group (one of the fastest online grocery businesses in the world), and now Holland & Barrett, Bajaj…

People in this episode

Host: Shubhangi Dua

Guests: Pavel Dolezal, Vineta Bajaj

Topics covered

  • CFO
  • data ownership
  • automation
  • AI
  • finance

Keywords

  • data governance
  • financial leadership
  • business intelligence

Mentioned in this episode

Products: Keboola

Places: London

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