Ever since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, treasury teams have been under senior management's magnifying glass. Liquidity was key to survival early in the pandemic: As revenues fell, access to credit was drying up for many businesses. Markets were volatile, and the future felt wildly uncertain. Still, some treasury teams were able to leverage that challenging environment to improve their standing within their broader organization.

This year's Alexander Hamilton Award winners in the category Treasury Transformation undertook major, transformative initiatives that gave treasury a new, higher profile within the organization. That respect and inclusion in strategic decision-making will likely continue, even as the effects of the pandemic begin to fade.

"In most companies, the people in sales and marketing and manufacturing think of treasury primarily as a support function," says Sassan Parandeh, global treasurer and director of risk management for nongovernmental organization (NGO) ChildFund International. "But because of our involvement in this [award-winning] initiative, we are no longer thought of as just a back-office unit. We are part of the organization's strategic thinking."