As a CFO, you are faced with daily challenges when it comes to meeting the needs of your organization – this, of course, is well known. The need, across almost every industry, to become end-to-end digital enterprises means that change is unavoidable. Unsurprisingly, this change brings with it distinct challenges. With the end of 2016 fast approaching, we thought we’d look back at 2016 and see what common CFO challenges are still prevalent and on the table for the year ahead.

Common CFO challenges:

• Optimizing planning, budgeting and forecasting. This has a lot to do with the processes in place in your organization. One of the biggest challenges comes with Excel use (though not with Excel itself), and the sheer number of spreadsheets that flow through an organization at any given time. A simple solution here is to streamline the Excel process, automating much of the data analysis and merging of data, is a great way to optimize your budgeting and forecasting with a corporate performance management system.

• Keeping data contained. Security, especially with the growing use of cloud-based technology, has become a major concern. This is partly to do with access (who has access to the data contained in the above mentioned spreadsheets) as well as keeping data contained within a secure network. Hackers have at their disposal so many new techniques for acquiring sensitive data that CFOs are dealing with developing new ways to avoid leaks on a daily basis.

• Finding and developing finance talent. Keeping up with the constant evolution of technology and the increasing demands on finance departments, your team needs to be able to adapt quickly. Mastering Big Data, keeping an eye on analytics, and using the most recent technology and processes is crucial. Of course the Millennial vs. Baby Boomer discussion remains highly relevant here, as does the continued need to merge the talent existing separately within these two groups. Having each learn from the other is, while sometimes difficult, integral.

• Quantifying IP, customer data, and brand reputation. As a recent Forbes article noted, “traditional performance metrics simply can’t capture or quantify the true value of intangible assets, such as intellectual property, customer data, and brand reputation. That creates huge exposure for businesses today because of the soaring value of those intangible assets.” CFOs need to be able to measure and monitor these new value drivers, and digital KPIs that provide the tools to do so are vital.

These days, CFOs really do need to boost their investment in digital technologies — or they risk being left behind. A corporate management system that addresses many of the aforementioned issues is a great place to start. By eliminating some of the unnecessary steps in your processes, especially with regard to your financial planning and budgeting, you can reduce the amount of back-and-forth and streamline your organization’s working system.

At True Sky, we can help you adapt to those challenges inherent in change. Want to find out more? Contact us today by calling 1 855 878 3759.