Ask a room full of treasury professionals how they started their careers in corporate treasury, and you might be surprised by how often you hear the same answer: “By accident.”

Most studied finance, economics, business administration, or accounting. Some aspired to careers in investment banking, consulting, M&A, or investment management. Others saw the Big Four as the ideal starting point for a successful finance career.

But corporate treasury? For many graduates, it was barely on the radar.

And yet, somewhere along the way, they found themselves working in a treasury department. Perhaps through an internship, an unexpected job opportunity, or a finance manager who needed additional support with cash forecasting.

What happened next was often unexpected: they discovered just how fascinating treasury can be.

Corporate treasury brings together international business, financial markets, technology, risk management, banking relationships, liquidity, funding, and strategic decision-making. It is a function that connects financial expertise with the operational reality of running a business.

Many of those who entered the profession accidentally stayed, eventually building entire careers in treasury.

But if corporate treasury offers such diverse and rewarding career opportunities, why are we still relying on accidental discoveries to attract the next generation of treasury professionals?

The Gap Between University Education and Corporate Treasury Practice

Universities provide students with a valuable foundation in financial theory. Finance graduates typically learn about capital structures, derivatives, interest rates, financial markets, corporate finance, and risk management.

These subjects are essential for a successful career in finance, including treasury. However, the connection between academic knowledge and the daily responsibilities of a corporate treasurer is not always obvious.

Consider a few questions:

• Can a finance graduate explain how a multinational corporation manages liquidity across 30 countries?
• Do students understand why a profitable company can still experience a liquidity crisis?
• Have they worked with an actual cash flow forecast or explored the challenges of implementing a treasury management system (TMS)?
• Do they understand the operational consequences when a bank freezes payments because of a compliance issue?
• Could they evaluate which payments to prioritise when a company faces temporary liquidity constraints?

Some graduates may have encountered these topics through internships, case studies or specialised courses. Others may have little exposure to them.

The problem is not necessarily what universities teach, but how financial theory is connected to practical business decisions.

Students learn how financial instruments work, but not always how companies use them. They study financial models without necessarily understanding the operational challenges those models are designed to address.

They understand the formulas. But do they understand the decisions?

That is where the gap between finance education and corporate treasury practice becomes visible.

Corporate Treasury Education Exists, But Often Comes Later

It would be unfair to suggest that treasury education is unavailable. There are several well-established professional qualifications that help treasury professionals develop their expertise.

Examples include:

• Certified Treasury Professional (CTP): A professional certification focused on corporate treasury, cash management, liquidity, risk, and financial operations.
• Association of Corporate Treasurers (ACT) qualifications: Professional education pathways covering treasury management, corporate finance, funding and financial risk.
• Registered Treasurer (RT) programme: A specialised executive treasury education programme in the Netherlands designed for professionals seeking to deepen their knowledge and capabilities.

These qualifications play an important role in developing treasury expertise and strengthening professional standards.

However, there is an interesting pattern in how many people approach them.

Professionals often discover treasury, begin working in the field, and only afterwards decide to pursue formal treasury education.

In other words, they gain practical exposure first and return to structured education later.

There is nothing inherently wrong with this approach. Practical experience can make professional education much more relevant. But it raises an important question: Why should someone have to become a treasurer before discovering that treasury is a profession worth studying?

While some universities incorporate treasury into their finance programmes, treasury remains relatively less visible than banking, accounting, consulting and investment management.

And that limited exposure has consequences for the future treasury talent pipeline.

Is the Treasury Talent Shortage Also Our Responsibility?

It is easy to point towards universities and argue that they should place greater emphasis on corporate treasury.

But perhaps the treasury profession should also look in the mirror.

How many corporate treasury teams actively engage with universities? How many companies offer treasury internships? And how often do treasury professionals volunteer to share real business experiences with students?

Consider how actively other financial professions promote themselves:

• Investment banks organise campus recruitment events, internships and graduate programmes.
• Consulting firms invest in university partnerships, case competitions and student networking events.
• Accounting firms offer structured graduate recruitment pathways and extensive opportunities for student engagement.
• Corporate treasury departments, by comparison, are often less visible and may lack equally established routes for attracting graduates.

This is not necessarily because treasury departments are less interesting. It is often because treasury teams are smaller, recruitment occurs less frequently, and the function does not have the same public visibility as banking or consulting.

However, the consequence is significant.

We frequently discuss the shortage of qualified treasury professionals, the difficulty of finding experienced treasury talent, and the growing complexity of the skills required.

But how can we expect students to choose a treasury career if they barely know the profession exists?

If the treasury community wants to build a sustainable talent pipeline, it needs to become more actively involved in creating one.

Five Ways to Connect Treasury Education With Real-World Practice

Improving the transition from university to treasury does not necessarily require entirely new degree programmes or major educational reforms.

In many cases, relatively small initiatives could make a meaningful difference.

1. Bring Corporate Treasury Professionals Into University Classrooms

Universities already teach financial theory. What students often need is a clearer understanding of how that theory translates into business decisions.

Guest lectures from experienced treasury professionals could provide exactly that.

Instead of focusing exclusively on the valuation of derivatives, students could explore real treasury challenges involving:

• Liquidity shortages and cash flow forecasting
• Foreign exchange exposure and hedging decisions
• Banking relationships and payment disruptions
• Cash management across multiple entities and countries
• Treasury technology implementation and automation
• Acquisitions, funding requirements and financial risk management

Hearing how an actual treasurer approaches these situations would help students understand the role of corporate treasury within a business.

It would also demonstrate that treasury is not always about complex financial instruments.

Sometimes, simply moving cash from one country to another can be complicated enough.

2. Introduce Practical Corporate Treasury Modules

Not every university needs a dedicated master’s degree in treasury management.

However, a practical corporate treasury module within an existing finance, economics or business programme could significantly improve awareness of the profession.

Such a module could introduce students to:

• Cash and liquidity management: Understanding cash positions, liquidity structures and cash pooling.
• Cash flow forecasting: Anticipating cash inflows, outflows and future funding needs.
• Financial risk management: Managing exposure to interest rates, currencies and other financial risks.
• Corporate funding and working capital: Understanding how companies finance operations and manage short-term financial requirements.
• Treasury technology: Exploring treasury management systems, automation, AI and digital payments.
• Treasury operations and governance: Understanding internal controls, banking processes and treasury policies.

The objective would not be to turn every finance student into a fully qualified treasurer.

It would be to ensure that graduates understand what corporate treasury does, why it matters and how it could become a career option.

3. Let Students Solve Real Treasury Problems

One of the most effective ways to connect theory and practice is through real-world business cases.

Imagine presenting students with the following scenario:

A multinational company operates in 20 countries, holds cash in several currencies, faces significant upcoming debt maturities and struggles with unreliable liquidity forecasts.

Students would need to evaluate the situation and develop recommendations.

Questions could include:

• How should the company organise its cash and liquidity?
• Would cash pooling or centralisation improve efficiency?
• Which foreign exchange exposures should be hedged?
• How should approaching debt maturities affect funding decisions?
• What data would be required to improve forecasting?
• Which risks should be addressed first?

The students could then present their recommendations to experienced treasury professionals, who would challenge their assumptions and explain the practical implications of different decisions.

Importantly, there would not necessarily be one perfect solution.

Welcome to treasury.

Unlike textbook exercises, treasury decisions often require balancing financial efficiency, operational constraints, risk appetite, and imperfect information.

The earlier students experience this complexity, the better prepared they will be to enter the profession.

4. Expand Treasury Internships and Graduate Opportunities

Graduate recruitment is one area where corporate treasury could become significantly more visible.

Not every company has the resources to establish a dedicated treasury graduate programme. But there are smaller initiatives that could create valuable opportunities for both students and employers.

For example:

• Three-month treasury internships
• Treasury rotations within broader finance graduate programmes
• University thesis projects based on real treasury challenges
• Junior treasury analyst placements
• Mentoring opportunities with experienced treasury professionals

These initiatives do not always require large investments. Yet they can introduce students to treasury while helping companies identify potential future employees.

They also create opportunities to develop junior talent internally rather than relying exclusively on the recruitment of experienced professionals.

Perhaps the next successful treasury manager is currently studying accounting and does not yet know what a cash pool is.

The opportunity lies in giving that student a reason to find out.

5. Strengthen Partnerships Between Universities and the Treasury Community

Universities cannot close the gap between education and practice on their own.

Professional associations, corporate treasury departments, independent treasury consultants and treasury networks all have a role to play.

Collaboration could take many forms:

• Joint university and industry case competitions
• Guest lectures and practical treasury workshops
• Mentoring programmes connecting students with experienced treasurers
• Research partnerships focused on treasury challenges
• Local junior treasury communities and networking events
• Collaboration on treasury internships and graduate placements

Some initiatives already exist. The ACT, for example, has established relationships with universities and educational institutions.

The opportunity is to build on these efforts and make them more accessible across local and regional treasury communities.

And this should not be limited to the largest multinational corporations.

Mid-sized companies often face equally interesting treasury challenges, sometimes with significantly fewer resources and smaller teams. These environments can provide particularly valuable exposure because junior professionals may gain insight into several aspects of treasury rather than one highly specialised area.

By involving a broader range of organisations, we can introduce students to the diversity of corporate treasury careers.

Treasury Skills: Why Theory and Practical Experience Must Go Together

The argument for more practical treasury education should not be confused with an argument against financial theory.

A successful treasurer needs a strong understanding of finance, accounting, financial markets, risk management, and corporate funding.

Without that foundation, it becomes difficult to evaluate financial risks or make informed decisions.

However, theoretical knowledge becomes much more valuable when it is connected to real operational challenges.

Consider two examples.

Interest rate risk management

A finance student may understand how an interest rate swap is valued, how its cash flows are calculated and how changing interest rates affect its market value.

A corporate treasurer must go further.

They need to determine whether the company should enter into the swap at all, how it fits within the company’s risk management policy, what accounting implications it may have, and whether the transaction actually addresses the company’s financial exposure.

Working capital management

A student may understand the formulas behind the cash conversion cycle, days sales outstanding and days payable outstanding.

A treasurer needs to understand why customers are paying late, why suppliers are demanding earlier payments, how these developments affect liquidity and whether additional short-term funding is necessary.

The distinction is not between knowing the theory and understanding the practice.

It is between understanding financial concepts in isolation and knowing how to apply them when real business decisions must be made.

The goal should therefore be to connect theoretical education with practical treasury experience much earlier in a student’s career.

The Future of Treasury Depends on the Talent We Develop Today

The treasury profession spends considerable time discussing its future.

Artificial intelligence, automation, real-time payments, digital assets, predictive cash flow forecasting and the changing strategic role of the treasurer are all important developments.

But alongside the discussion about technology, there is another question that deserves equal attention:

Who will become the treasury professionals of tomorrow?

As treasury functions become more complex and technology-driven, the skills required will continue to evolve. Future treasury professionals will need to combine financial expertise with analytical capabilities, technological understanding, communication skills, and sound business judgement.

Developing those capabilities takes time.

And it becomes much harder if people only discover the profession several years into their careers.

Universities have a role to play in introducing treasury concepts. Professional education providers can help build specialised knowledge. Companies can offer practical experience and opportunities for junior professionals.

But the treasury community itself also has a responsibility to make the profession more visible.

The first step does not need to be complicated.

Reach out to a university. Offer a guest lecture. Share a business case. Take on an intern. Mentor a graduate.

Show students what corporate treasury looks like beyond the textbooks.

Because perhaps the real problem is not that students are uninterested in treasury.

Perhaps most have simply never been given the opportunity to become interested.

Building the Next Generation of Treasury Talent

At Pecunia Treasury & Finance, we see how important the right expertise is to building effective treasury functions. Through our network of experienced interim treasury consultants and our support for permanent treasury recruitment, we work with organisations facing changing treasury needs, from operational challenges to strategic transformation.

While experienced treasury professionals remain essential, we also believe that the long-term strength of the profession depends on making treasury careers more visible and creating opportunities for future talent.

Whether your organisation needs experienced treasury expertise today or is considering how to strengthen its treasury team for the future, we would be happy to explore how Pecunia can support you.

Looking for treasury expertise or planning your next treasury hire? Contact us.

Over to You: Did You Become a Treasurer by Accident?

We would particularly love to hear from treasury professionals who found their way into the profession unexpectedly.

• Did you know what corporate treasury was when you graduated?
• Did your university prepare you for the practical realities of treasury?
• What encouraged you to pursue a career in this field?
• And what could universities, employers, and treasury professionals do differently to attract the next generation?

Share your experience and perspective.

Perhaps it is time we stopped asking where to find treasury talent and started asking how to create it.