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CFOs' New Year resolutions

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17th Dec 2015
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As we gear up for the New Year, Mario Spanicciati, chief strategy officer of BlackLine outlines the top priorities for F&A in 2016.

The question of what businesses will look to improve once again comes to front of mind. This year saw a huge uptake in cloud-based technologies to streamline business processes and ensure efficiency, with around 90% of businesses now claiming to employ some form of cloud since 2014. One sector in which cloud adoption is continually on the rise is finance and accounting, but what’s the next step for this crucial area of business?

BlackLine spoke to financial decision makers across the UK to find out what their top priorities, or New Years’ resolutions, are for their departments in 2016.

Resolution 1: driving further efficiency

Unsurprisingly, the need to drive efficiency is still a key focus for F&A departments, and the CFO’s biggest concern for 2016. More than two in five (45%) financial decision makers told us that this would be an ongoing priority for the year ahead, especially when it comes to analytics and reporting. With new regulations, such as the converged revenue recognition standard, on the horizon for 2017, early action is vital.

Resolution 2: accuracy is everything

Of the 250 financial decision makers we spoke to, 45% said they were making accuracy a top priority for 2016. This is compared to just 38% the previous year – following some high profile accounting scandals over the past year, CFOs are finally beginning to realise just how important accuracy within financial reporting really is. Other big priorities for 2016 are increasing financial automation and improving visibility and access to financial data (both 40%), which pave the way for greater accuracy.

Resolution 3: greater investment in automation

Building on the surge in the number of businesses taking up cloud technologies to automate and control core finance and accounting processes in 2015, a key priority for financial decision makers in 2016 is to invest further in automation technologies, streamlining back-office processes and giving accountants in particular more time to take a strategic business role.

We expect to see more companies investing heavily in automation for their finance and accounting processes as we go into 2016, ensuring greater efficiency and accuracy.

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