When Peter Ssenyange, Chief Finance Officer of PostBank Uganda Limited—now rebranding to Pearl Bank Uganda Limited—walked up to receive the coveted CFO of the Year Award at the 9th Uganda CFO Awards on October 17, 2025, it was more than a personal triumph. It was the culmination of a journey defined by resilience, transformation, and a steadfast belief that the CFO’s true calling is far greater than managing numbers.
Organised by ACCA Uganda and Deloitte Uganda, the awards—held at the Kampala Serena Hotel—celebrated excellence and legacy-driven leadership in financial management. For Ssenyange, who has been at the heart of PostBank’s remarkable turnaround since 2020, this recognition cemented his reputation as one of the country’s most influential finance leaders.
But long before this win, he had already articulated his vision of what makes a great CFO. In September 2024, a year before his latest accolade, CEO East Africa Magazine sat down with Ssenyange on The CFO Playbook to discuss leadership, transformation, and purpose. The conversation, rich with insights and candour, now reads almost prophetically in light of his new title.
From Number Cruncher to Chief Advisor
The first thing Peter Ssenyange wants every aspiring CFO to understand is that the role has evolved dramatically.
“The CFO role has evolved from a transactional one to a value-creating strategic role,” he told me during the interview. “Essentially, you are an advisor to the CEO. Your job, in short, is to make sure whoever sits in the CEO role succeeds.”
To him, the modern CFO is no longer just a gatekeeper of budgets and compliance; they are a strategic partner, a co-pilot who ensures that financial stewardship and business vision move in tandem.
“The CEO determines the strategic direction of the organization,” he explained. “So the CFO’s role has changed to mirror that. You’re the chief advisor to the CEO and the custodian of how the organization creates value.”
That philosophy—seeing finance not as a policing function but as a value-creation engine—has defined Ssenyange’s leadership approach at PostBank and, earlier, at United Bank for Africa (UBA), where he led the institution from an eight-year loss streak back to profitability.
The Art of Saying No—and Knowing When to Say Yes
While he acknowledges that “a few no’s get said once in a while,” Ssenyange insists that the modern CFO must balance control with courage. Great financial leadership, he says, lies in discernment—the ability to know when to stop and when to go.
“The fundamental role of the CFO is financial control—to ensure the survival of the organization. But the CFO must also be bold enough to invest in the future,” he said. “Sometimes you must move away from championing a ‘no’ from a point of financial caution, to actually saying ‘yes’ for the sake of strategic investment.”
This pragmatic duality—the discipline to protect value and the foresight to create it—anchors his philosophy of adaptive finance leadership.
At PostBank, that has meant supporting investment in digital innovation while maintaining tight cost controls, ensuring every shilling spent contributes to long-term impact.
Never Waste a Good Crisis
Ssenyange’s leadership style thrives on turning adversity into opportunity. Reflecting on the global shocks that have rippled through Uganda’s financial sector—from the pandemic to geopolitical disruptions—he recalled a defining moment.
“When the Russia-Ukraine war started, we thought it was a European war; it didn’t affect us,” he recounted. “Then one of our vendors told us the price of paper had gone up because Ukraine makes newsprint. Suddenly, what was happening globally was affecting our cost structures locally.”
Rather than lamenting, he turned the crisis into a catalyst for change.
“A good crisis is usually the best part for the CFO to showcase innovation and growth,” he said. “That’s when you start a journey—not necessarily of cost reduction, but of cost optimization.”
His approach underscores a central lesson: the best CFOs see disruption as an invitation to innovate, not a threat to avoid.
Building Teams that Make the Leader
Asked about his leadership philosophy, Ssenyange didn’t hesitate.
“The team makes the leader,” he said firmly. “The demands on the CFO role today are so big that you can’t deliver without a very good team.”
He describes himself as both a “brutal executor” and an “astute planner”, but above all, a collaborator. His management creed is built on three pillars: discipline, delivery, and development.
“We don’t sacrifice deliverables for anything. We get the tasks done. But we also have to enjoy what we do,”he shared. “Finance is a very pressurized environment. When that young person leaves the role, they must be better than they found it—personally and professionally.”
Under his watch, several members of his finance team have risen to senior roles, including CFO positions elsewhere. For him, that’s the truest measure of leadership.
Culture, People, and the Long Game
Ssenyange often returns to the role of culture in shaping organizational success. His time at UBA Uganda offered a hard but transformative lesson.
“When I walked in in 2016, the bank had an eight-year loss-making streak,” he recalled. “What we were struggling with wasn’t money—it was culture.”
Turning the bank around meant reshaping the team’s mindset and restoring confidence.
“The culture you walk into will affect your delivery and your strategic plans more than the plans themselves,” he said. “If you don’t invest in your people, you’ll never deliver on strategy.”
It’s an insight that has guided his work at PostBank, where he and his team have invested heavily in people, systems, and processes to support the bank’s mission of “fostering prosperity for Ugandans.”
Technology and the Future of Finance
Few CFOs speak of technology with the passion that Ssenyange does. He sees it not as an add-on but as central to modern financial leadership.
“Technology is your best ally; it frees up your team to think,” he said. “We’ve automated most of our mundane tasks so the finance team can focus on insight, not spreadsheets.”
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“Data today is a huge minefield,” he explained. “Whatever drives the numbers has behavior behind it—and technology helps you understand that behavior.”
At PostBank, the rollout of digital platforms like Wendi—a fintech-powered mobile solution—has demonstrated how finance and innovation can intersect to expand inclusion and efficiency.
Sustainability as a Financial Imperative
Long before ESG became a buzzword, Ssenyange was already advocating for sustainable finance.
“Let’s first demystify sustainability,” he said. “Every organization has an impact—on society, the environment, and the economy. The CFO’s job is to manage that value.”
He argues that true value creation extends beyond profits to include the brand’s credibility and the trust it earns from the communities it serves.
“At PostBank, I lead the sustainability journey,” he noted. “The value that an organization delivers for its stakeholders—and how it manages that value—comes from the CFO’s office.”
In his view, the finance function is best placed to integrate ESG performance into core business metrics, ensuring sustainability isn’t a side report but a strategic commitment.
The Relentless Pursuit of Learning
Ssenyange’s own rise—spanning Stanbic, UBA, and now PostBank—reflects a lifelong commitment to learning. His advice to young finance professionals is both stern and fatherly.
“Don’t waste your young years,” he said. “Your journey to the CFO seat is a combination of technical, behavioral, and business acumen.”
He cautions that technical mastery alone is no longer enough.
“You must understand the business you’re in. Accounting cannot exist outside of business,” he emphasized. “Be humble enough to learn—and find mentors who highlight your blind spots.”
To him, professional growth demands intentional learning, humility, and service.
“Learning always involves a bit of humiliation,” he quipped. “So you’ve got to be humble enough to learn.”
The Human Side of Leadership
Despite his reputation for precision and performance, Ssenyange is candid about the personal cost of leadership—and the importance of balance.
“There’s no such thing as work–life balance unless you’re deliberate about it,” he admitted. “I have a young family, and spending time with them brings down the pressure of the job. But you have to be intentional.”
He unwinds by watching rugby and credits his wife—herself a cybersecurity professional—for keeping him grounded.
“The job never stops,” he reflected. “So you must choose to pause, or it will choose for you.”
It’s a reminder that leadership, no matter how demanding, must remain anchored in humanity.
Legacy and the New CFO Creed
As Uganda’s newly crowned CFO of the Year, Ssenyange’s reflections on leadership have found renewed resonance. His message to fellow finance leaders is simple yet profound: build legacy, not just ledgers.
“A CFO sits in a position of privilege,” he said in the original interview. “No other office in an organization sits at the pinnacle of the convergence of information. Every decision—HR, marketing, operations—converges in finance.”
With that privilege comes responsibility.
“There’s going to be accountability for impact,” he added. “You must ask yourself: where are you adding value?”
That mindset—seeing finance as a moral as well as managerial calling—explains why his peers and judges continue to hold him in such high regard.
The Custodian of Value
Looking back, it’s no surprise that the very principles Peter Ssenyange shared a year ago would later define his recognition as Uganda’s CFO of the Year 2025.
His vision of the CFO as chief advisor, custodian of value, and builder of people is now not just theory—it’s a lived example of leadership in action.
For Uganda’s next generation of finance leaders, his story offers both a map and a mirror: proof that excellence lies not just in mastering the numbers but in shaping the narrative that gives them meaning.
Watch the Full Interview: You can watch the full 37-minute conversation with Peter Ssenyange on The CFO Playbook—available now on the CEO East Africa YouTube Channel: https://youtu.be/2AY6A-dA7Zw?si=q6dH2YXii4OVwlkV
