Planning business finances is a complex task, much more so today than in the past. Today there are many new variables to take into account that in the past did not bear as much weight, or simply didn’t exist.
In recent years, retail has witnessed a major upheaval. Increases in consumer choice, online shopping, and greater competition have caused major changes and challenges within the industry. These changes have resulted in retailers shifting the way they function and rate success.
Executives should be aware of the overarching generational differences that exist so they can take them into account and plan for them. Not doing so will have organizations missing out on each generations’ strengths, inadvertently reinforcing their weaknesses, or worse yet-seeing top talent walk out the door as a result of being misunderstood.
Finance leaders know their numbers inside and out. The Board, however, does not. Even more than that, they don’t care to know the numbers as intimately as finance leaders do. Instead, what they want is a perfect summary of everything they need to know in as few words as possible.
The financial planning and analysis (FP&A) function has undergone a dramatic transformation and re-modelling around the globe over the last decade to help it to provide these predictive capabilities. New technologies and ‘big data’ software interrogation tools mean that numbers can be crunched and accurate scenarios run thanks to the rise of cheap ‘big computing’ power.
Like every other industry today, finance is evolving. Rising expectations of the function mean that finance leaders must find ways to deliver more with less, all while maintaining stricter controls and keeping up with a changing and turbulent environment.
Despite its powerful capabilities, for finance teams working with Excel is far from perfect. Here are some things that can go wrong, and what you can do about it.
We are no longer in an era of change, but a change of era.
– Andy Stalman
For many organizations, reporting has become a challenge. Globalization, regulatory change, and rapidly increasing requests for information by decision-makers result in a high-demand environment. This is where connected reporting comes in.
What do younger generations expect, what are the characteristics of the modern workplace, and what do employers- including finance executives- need to know and take into account?
