Updated 16th May 2022
In a post-Brexit, Covid-19 aware economy the role of the finance professional has become ever more important. Todays’ financial leaders are no longer merely the ‘number crunchers’, ‘book-keepers’, or ‘reporting arm’ of the business, but rather are now instigators of “…. smart” and “business insights”.
Financial Performance Management has played a vital role during the Coronavirus Covid-19 pandemic. Office-based tasks, of necessity, swiftly pivoted to being undertaken by staff working from home. Organisations continued with their monthly management reporting, annual statutory accounts, and daily cash management despite the challenges presented by “lockdowns” and “social distancing”.
Government Furlough Schemes forced businesses to evaluate true ‘cost benefits of headcount’, particularly within the finance teams. Whilst, revenues were restricted, businesses learned how to achieve more with fewer resources. In many cases IT technology contributed to this success.
Whether, it was simply the provision of equipment (laptops, screens, and printers) enabling staff to work from home, or engaging in video conferencing and use of data-sharing applications (MS Teams), digital advances were made throughout 2020. And none less than within finance departments, and specifically as used by those involved with managerial accounting.
The buzz phrase 'financial digital transformation' often is the ‘end-goal’ rather than a ‘step solution’ along a roadmap towards a more automated, and frequently cloud-based, Business Insights Solution.
Finance professionals have been key to this journey, as the persons with the skillsets, not only to be able to oversee, i.e. ‘manage’ and ‘control’, any process of delivering “the numbers”, but also to interpret and assist end-Users with business understanding, trend analysis, and monitoring of future planning. Management accountants are needed to guide organisations through the maze of Financial Performance Management (FPM, CPM, EPM) offerings from the many different software Vendors.
LSA Solutions are engaged with leading vendors of agnostic Financial Performance Management tools that can ‘bridge the gap’ between the underlying transactions-based ERP systems and latest forecasting software that utilises AI or which are built upon machine-learning capabilities. Speed, Accuracy, Robustness, and Agility are all key elements alongside the User-friendly interfaces. Accredited Partners for select vendors, LSA do recognise that it is not a “one-size fits all” marketplace and therefore do promote ‘point solutions’ alongside ‘enterprise-wide, single platform’ .. Financial Performance Management Solutions.
Making the right choice between various FPM Software solutions is not necessarily merely a matter of available budget (cost) or timeframe (project implementations) but also needs to reflect existing circumstances (routines, systems and skillsets) alongside any future aspirations to become leaders within your particular industry. Whilst, some vendors, namely VENA Solutions are Microsoft Excel (and MS SQL) centric, whereas others like BOARD or Unicom Finance utilise proprietary databases and unique features/functionality to deliver targeted performance management software solutions.
LSA Solutions recognise the requirements of Managerial Accountants and offer expertise in FPM Solutions. Whether, it’s on-premise or cloud-based Solutions you prefer, there needs to be a proper assessment of the existing financial and operational forecasting processes.
For more information please contact Alan Sutton.
If you found this post useful, please share it using any of the social media links below.