The Future of Strategic Finance

In the quickly-changing era, it can be difficult for companies to look ahead as many simply struggle to keep pace with the rapid transformation. Executives make changes based on current knowledge of their financial environment. These decisions often rely on lagging indicators. For the average company, 85% of measures are internal, and 75% of indicators are lagging. This is problematic for leaders striving to be proactive and future oriented. Rather than create value, most financial professionals only compute and measure value. They are stuck in the world of transactions and compliance versus the future of strategy and innovation.

A study of nearly 600 global CFOs revealed that nearly 95% of financial professionals consider measuring and monitoring business performance as their most prominent duty. Driving cost reduction, providing strategic insights, powering information integration, and executing on process improvements all fell below transactional items in prioritization. Despite the many changes in the financial world, the responses to the most pertinent CFO concerns (gathered in 2010 and 2013) remained. Though most CFOs acknowledge business’s transformation in recent years, few have shifted their focus to different activities. While the market continues to change due to a mix of regulation, digitization, and globalization, the finance and accounting departments remain stagnant.

 To effectively manage the future of strategic finance, professionals require new skills and training. The role of the CFO is expanding. Those who wish to cultivate value and instill a competitive advantage must move beyond the traditional responsibilities of a financial professional and develop into strategic financial innovators. Follow this link to read the entire white paper on the future of finance or to watch a video on our strategic financial leadership program.