Increased Demands Require Better Financial Technology

Today’s CFOs are expected to do it all: lead strategic initiatives, manage relationships with investors and other stakeholders, and help identify and capitalize on new opportunities — all while maintaining accountability for all finance, IT, treasury, tax, internal audit and risk management functions.

As a CFO, there’s a good chance you are saddled with existing legacy financial applications that are incapable of efficiently processing the increasing real-time demands of your business. Legacy systems often rely on manual processes that are prone to data entry errors. You are not alone; many of your finance and business colleagues in a recent survey identified the following as their top everyday challenges:

• Importing and entering data efficiently and accurately from technology silos
• Deciphering model formulas and inaccessible data sources
• Obtaining timely and comprehensive data from across the organization
• Accessing models and data simultaneously, as well as controlling iterative processes and version changes.

Research also shows that:

• 40% of senior finance executives say their current information systems can’t analyze financial and performance data “very well,” and that management can’t access the information they need in a timely manner.
• 74% of best-in-class companies cite automation of core business operations, functions and controls as their top strategic action.
• Over 75% of CFOs are considering upgrading their existing enterprise systems within a twoyear period, a strong indication of the need for improvements.

Long story short? Identifying and implementing best-ofbreed enterprise-level finance applications that improve process efficiencies and data accuracy is increasingly critical to success. These applications can:

• Integrate comprehensive financial metrics from diverse business units
• Accelerate decision-making by facilitating enterprise-wide collaboration
• Improve data accuracy and timeliness by eliminating manual processes
• Reduce fraud and risks through automated monitoring
• Reduce the time required to perform functions like the close process and budgeting
• Free finance professionals to focus on valueadded analysis and strategic initiatives versus rote tasks like data collection and administration

Best Practices For Identifying And Utilizing Modern Financial Applications

The good news? CFOs and their teams are increasingly able to pick and choose from a broad range of superior financial applications. Multiple surveys indicate that best practices for determining the right applications include the following:

1. Clean house regularly. Regular assessments of legacy inhouse systems and financial practices are imperative. Far too many CFOs discover patchwork structures, shadow systems, redundant databases, and process gaps that actively prevent smooth, efficient flows of information.

2. Focus on automation and integration. There is no way around it; a single version of the truth requires integrated, standardized processes. Automated applications can provide optimal ERP and BI integration, improved web access and visualization, better mobile connectivity and integration, real time reporting, and greater data accuracy.

3. Consider the cloud.

• It’s estimated that over 60% of U.S. companies used some form of cloud platforms in 2013, with most reporting that cloud deployment improved their bottom lines.
• Cloud adoption has become integral to business, with 45% of U.S. companies in 2014 saying that they already, or plan to, run their company from the cloud.
• Current prevailing wisdom holds that reputable cloud providers can actually provide enhanced security, compared to what most companies can achieve independently.

4. Think single systems. A single integrated application for budgeting, planning, and forecasting can result in a fully automated process that also provides you with a single system of record. It allows for far greater flexibility in budget methodologies (e.g., inclusion of performance based and driver–based budgeting) while reducing erroneous data and allowing comprehensive data utilization. Integrated streams of data and the application of predictive analytics allow CFOs to provide new insights into operational, market and customer trends. Companies following this approach have seen dramatic results in terms of both efficiency and cost savings

5. Banish spreadsheets from the close. Your financial close should be automated, centralized, and standardized. Modern applications allow you to monitor and control the entire close process and dramatically increase efficiency by automating tasks such as reconciling transactions, posting journals, and consolidating data from disparate systems. The result? A faster close with fewer errors and simplified reporting.

Conclusion: Modern Finance Applications Can Make a Demonstrable Difference

Businesses today require CFOs and their teams to handle an ever broader and more complex range of financial functions. In order to successfully meet these increasing demands, finance departments require modern applications that can improve process efficiencies and ensure data accuracy. The identification and implementation of appropriate financial applications can result in almost immediate impacts, including accelerated ROI; greater productivity; better business reporting, analysis, and insights; stronger financial controls; improved risk and fraud reduction; and a more agile and responsive financial team. The net result? You, your team and your company can all profit handsomely.