Data is the new global currency and now stands at the centre of business operations.[1] In fact, organisations that have learned how to effectively harness their financial and non-financial data are more likely to be market leaders. For example, digital accelerators are early adopter organisations who have already learned how to capture, consolidate, and automate organisational data for real-time insights that drive business success, regardless of market conditions.
In the digital, data-led economy, companies have new opportunities to transform and drive greater levels of productivity[2]. There are four key ways CFOs can leverage data to manage disruption and improve business results:
- Real-time analytics. The use of real-time data analytics helps organisations identify business risks, opportunities, and emerging challenges in the market. For example, real-time analytics helps CFOs identify and anticipate supply chain vulnerabilities to mitigate the risk of business disruption. A recent survey of 13,000 CFOs worldwide found that 87 percent regarded data as a strategic asset, with analytics empowered by artificial intelligence resulting in significantly improved profitability and margin analysis, financial planning and budgeting, and management reporting and performance.[3]
- Data that drives automated processes. CFOs can use unified financial and non-financial data to automatically track unfolding events and act quickly. For example, automated, data-led processes could identify an area of the business that is underperforming and alert teams before it becomes a problem. This can also be applied to manufacturing processes, where automated data analysis can sense changes in demand patterns and automatically reallocate resources to the highest-demand areas to optimise customer service. In Australia, organisations that have adopted data-driven automation now have 98 percent lower costs to process their expense reports, and a 30 percent overall increase in employee productivity.[4]
- Data that drives predictive analytics. Unified financial and non-financial data can be used to predict mid-and long-term business scenarios, and potential impact to the business. It can also be used for modelling scenarios that show alternative outcomes for the business when different actions are taken. This helps the organisation build greater levels of agility and resilience across different market environments. Predictive analytics can deliver exceptional return on investment. A Deloitte survey has found that 82 per cent of companies that made all employees responsible for analytics insights exceeded goals.[5]
- Active planning. Dynamic active planning empowers finance teams to conduct rolling forecasts and optimise operations based on consolidated, real-time data. Organisations that have adopted active planning are almost twice as able to forecast earnings accurately to between plus-or-minus five percent than those businesses that rely on static planning.[6]
For CFOs to gain the greatest value from data into the future, they must shift to active planning that is supported by real-time analytics across both financial and non-financial data. The best way to achieve this is through a unified, cloud-based platform that supports the business by delivering real-time data analysis, automated processes, and predictive tools.
To learn more about how CFOs can leverage data to manage disruption and improve business performance, read our white paper Building a business case for finance digital transformation, or contact the Tridant team today.
Michelle Susay