Can Your Analytics Program Handle a Downturn?

“Here are two thoughts that are useful for calibrating analysis: (1) An analytics system is only as good as the analysts and the sophistication of the toolsets they employ. (2) A truly next-gen analytics program must encourage analysts to take advantage of the technology tools they now have at their disposal.”

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CFOs See Technology as Growing Share of Smaller Budgets

“Our data shows strong growth in the adoption of cloud-based core finance applications,” said Nilly Essaides, senior research director, finance & EPM, The Hackett Group. “And the encouraging news is that more than 70% of the finance functions that have adopted cloud-based solutions have been able to realize or exceed their business [objectives].”

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The 12 Key Principles of Financial Planning and Analysis

The Institute of Management Accountants has developed a list of 12 key principles of FP&A based on learnings from a recent survey of 700 organizations that identified the best-run companies — those that both consistently meet or exceed targets they set for themselves, and consistently meet or exceed their competitors’ results. Principles include developing a long-range plans and specific initiatives, understanding plan-to-actual variances, holding people accountable, and monitoring results and KPIs.

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The Future of Finance is Digital

A recent McKinsey study found that more that 40% of a typical CFOs time is spent on activities that “fall firmly outside the traditional role of accounting, controlling, and budgeting. CFOs are dedicating more time to strategic leadership, organizational transformation, and performance management.”

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Gartner’s Top Five CFO Initiatives for $1B+ Companies

The recent Gartner for Finance survey shares the top five initiatives CFOs of $1B+ companies are prioritizing in 2020: Finance analytics, Finance organization strategy and structure, Finance technology optimization, Growth investments, and Cost structure. Digging deeper into finance analytics, survey respondents felt that insufficient skills for advanced analytics was their top challenge.

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Analytics = Preparedness

Is your organization ready for a downturn?

“In today’s analytics landscape, details are less important than trends. A trend line allows prediction and, ultimately, the foresight to act. Analysts must be coached to assign confidence to a trend line and recommend action early. One might posit that a timid analyst with a modern-day toolset is as unfortunate as a Ferrari with a driver riding the brake.”

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Cost Management: The Key to Sustainable Profitability

“Companies that achieve “efficient growth” focus on building scale, not scope, into their cost structures.”

Controlling costs is not a new priority for modern CFOs, but today’s competitive pressures have finance leaders determined to translate their long-term growth plans to sustainable profitability. Finance leaders today distinguish themselves by the cost management practices they implement in their organization, because those decisions can have a tangible impact on shareholder returns and build the foundation for profitable growth.  However, most CFOs are struggling to create the conditions for efficient growth due to widespread missteps in their cost management practices. Companies that successfully grow their top line while reducing costs focus on building and reinforcing the necessary scale in the cost structure to secure long-term profitable growth.

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Three Ways CFOs Can Be a Catalyst For Change

Largely driven by advancements in technology, today’s corporate finance leaders are expected to work more collaboratively with functional areas in their companies and are well-positioned to positively support enterprise-wide performance and strategy. In order to influence business outcomes, CFOs need to be a catalyst for change by playing a much bigger role in shaping corporate strategy, implementing key initiatives, and providing data, guidance and insight.  Modern finance leaders are driving performance in three areas – operations, technology, and talent – and can impact all areas of the business as they continue evolving from finance and accounting managers to strategic business partners.

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What Makes a Future-Focused Finance Organization?

The systems used by many companies for important business insights have many inconsistencies. They lack integration, automation, and a single version of the truth about their business. Additionally, many lack the ability to view their data in real-time to really understand what their data is trying to tell them. Today’s volatile marketplace requires more flexible finance, and modern finance leaders have leveraged intelligent technologies to provide the real-time data and reporting capacity that empowers them to drill-down to the most detailed level of information. Having one universal truth from one set of data available in real-time is extraordinarily powerful for finance leaders because it empowers the business to be faster and more agile.

Read More at The Digitalist by SAP >