Name:

• Jeff Henley

School:

• California-Santa Barbara

Career highlights:

• Vice Chairman, Oracle (Current)
• CFO, Oracle
• Executive Vice President & CFO, Pacific Holding Company
• Executive Vice President & CFO, Saga
• Finance Director, Memorex
• Controller, Fairchild

As a young man, Jeff Henley, California-Santa Barbara ’66, knew he wanted to work in corporate finance, but never expected his drive to take him to the C-suite of one of the world’s largest software companies.

“I knew I wanted to become successful and to be financially secure, but I had no idea I’d be a CFO someday,” Henley stated.

Thanks to his track record of successfully reversing downturns at other companies, Henley was tapped in 1991 to help Oracle navigate huge losses that had Wall Street analysts and investors losing faith in the company.

As chief financial officer, Henley rooted out inefficiencies and put new protocols in place that enabled the company to rebound. “The scale of what we fixed at Oracle was pretty significant,” he said. “It was the biggest turnaround, financially, of anything I’d done before.”

Now, nearly 35 years later, Oracle remains fiscally strong, with more than $53 billion in revenue. Henley has been vice chairman of the company since 2014, having previously served as CFO for 13 years and chairman for a decade.

While his financial acumen is undeniable, Henley humbly insists that a major part of his success boils down to simple grit and hard work.

His determination to succeed was evident even as an undergrad. Henley, who cut his financial teeth early on as treasurer for California Gamma, was serious about his studies. “I was motivated in college to get good grades to set the stage for myself to be successful in life,” he explained.

“If you think you want to be a CFO, you can’t wait until you’re 30,” Henley advises. “You’ve got to figure out how to find an area that you really like and once you’re there, you have to outwork everyone and push yourself to do more.”

In addition to working hard, the 2005 SigEp Citation recipient took risks in his career, changing jobs when new opportunities arose. On the surface, it might seem like Henley aggressively plotted his career course, but it’s more the opposite. As he built a reputation as a turnaround artist, other companies sought out his expertise. It was flattering — and a little bit scary.

“When I started with some of these companies, they were broken. There were challenges with cash flow, and they needed more help than I realized.”

When those challenges left him uncertain about the best path forward, Henley relied on a proven business strategy. “I networked,” Henley explained. “I would call people and ask them how they handled similar things. In the early days, I was constantly reaching out, but you also have to be prepared to roll up your sleeves and get the job done.”

Despite the nerves he always felt going into a new job, Henley believes taking on more responsibility and doing well were the keys to proving himself. “Every job I got, I wanted to do well so I could be promoted.”