3 trends reshaping Finance function...and Digital is not one of those!
Talking about trends, and ignoring ‘Automation’ is considered a sacrilege. It is like you talk about a recipe for a cheeseburger….just without the cheese, which one can argue will make it a hamburger.
Ok, coming back to the topic, in every single podcast or webinar I have listened to, things like automated reporting, predictive analytics, and business intelligence covers 80% of the content. Principally I am 100% aligned with that and a firm believer that data and automation are going to revolutionize the Finance & accounting world. In fact, what we have seen till now is only a small proportion of where we will be in the next 10 years.
Having said that, the VUCA world (I sometimes just use acronyms as it sounds cool!) we live in, automation is just one of many ways impacting Finance functions of the future. One need to look beyond digital to understand what other key imperatives are re-shaping the finance functions and how we can get ourselves ready for that change.
Here are the top 3 trends in Finance that will change the very nature of our profession we know it today (and No…Automation is not one of those).
1. Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG):
No longer just Corporate Social Responsibility, ESG is estimated to generate $12 trillion in business opportunities by 2030, once United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals are realized.
Why impact on Finance: Business-wide strategic partnership, ability to generate actionable insights, and access to decision-affecting data puts Finance professionals in a great place to take ESG as an opportunity for growth themselves.
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2. Operating Models:
As data become more democratized and available for self-serve reporting, Finance functions will become leaner (not smaller!) and agile. The finance workforce will comprise wider disciplines including Data Scientists, Strategists, and Transformation specialists. New and innovative service delivery models will enable finance to focus on core business partnering and strategic planning across the organization.
3. Risk management:
New tech, legislation, consumer awareness, data privacy, investor requirements, and ever-changing global economics will require organizations to transform their risk management approach. It will no longer just be an internal audit function collating testing or filling risk control matrices. A comprehensive, enterprise-wide risk management framework will enable continuous monitoring and mitigation of risks. Organizations will have it as part of their strategy.
Why impact on Finance: Being already considered a custodian and gate-keeper of controls, Finance will play a critical role in partnering across the business to enable enterprise-wide risk management. This will involve an overlap of existing deep business intelligence with risks emerging from areas like competitor intelligence, category insights, and supply chain.
Here are some of the resources I have used to write this article. Please feel free to reach out on LinkedIn if you would like to discuss any of these or other transformation trends happening in finance over a coffee (albeit a virtual one if you are not in Sydney).
Manager | F&A Ops | Record to Report | Finance Reporting | Business Analysis | Transition & Transformation | Controls | Automations | Agile |
1yA very informative article Tariq…
ACCA
1yDefinitely we have to come out of the box and look around as our environment is changing every day and every way......
Seasoned CFO | Financial Strategist
1yGreat insights Tariq 👍