Enabling the Corporate Controllers Role as a Strategic Contributor
Throughout the history of accounting, the first role of the Corporate Controller has been ensuring corporate financial controls and, as a very distant second, making strategic business contributions. That gap widened mightily near the end of the 20th century. The installation of on-premise ERP and accounting software corralled even the most business-minded controllers into the demanding role of financial software aficionado, or at the very least, caretaker.
Today, when controllers arent installing, adjusting, or adding to their software deployments, they are mentoring and monitoring their on-premise staffs to coax needed reports out of these systems. The goal, of course, is to facilitate operations to close the books, produce audit-ready reports and be ready to deliver whatever numbers their CFOs, CEOs or auditors want whenever they want them.
With so many responsibilities to address, finance transformation (the process of realigning and streamlining finance functions) for routine accounting would be logically a top priority for controllers. However, guidance and practical strategies to achieve finance transformation has been sorely lacking.
In fact, many finance stakeholders and related parties -- CFOs, accountants, auditors, service providers, consultants, and software vendors -- recognize the value in enterprise finance transformation, but the infrastructure/methodologies just havent been there in an economically viable way. Today there are now practical options coming from a new breed of vendor which enable finance transformation and, in the process, can help elevate the role of controller to strategic enterprise contributor.
WHAT FINANCE TRANSFORMATION ACCOMPLISHES AND HOW TO GET THERE
Efficient and cost-effective finance processes that are dependable, risk adverse and consistent are always necessary for an enterprise to truly thrive. But in todays economy, with mounting pressure for performance improvements, finance transformation is even more of an imperative for all businesses. The process of finance transformation is distinct for each enterprise. What will remain constant are the major elements that are a combination of redefined business processes, supplemental professional services, and IT solutions that support and define a transformed finance landscape. The perfect combination of elements in a successful finance transformation will accomplish three main goals:
* Optimize the financial business processes of an enterprise
* Create a framework to lower the total cost of finance processes
* Increase marketplace competitiveness of an enterprise
From a broader financial perspective, finance transformation addresses various issues, such as maintaining stability during non-routine business periods (e.g., mergers, divestitures, down economic cycles); addressing talent shortages; assuring internal stakeholders, such as the CEO and CFO, that regulatory and financial processes are defensible; and/or delivering more insightful data environment for financial decision making.
However, the one missing link in most finance transformation models is providing the Corporate Controller with a fresh approach to less time-intensive, people-heavy paradigms for delivering routine accounting information.
Addressing the Controllers Needs in Finance Transformation
To make a finance transformation project valuable to the Controller as well as other financial stakeholders (such as the CFO or accounting personnel) basic tactical requirements and problems must be addressed. Processes and solutions included in the finance transformation project must include those that impact the role of Controller such as:
* Monthly and annual financial reporting
* Financial regulatory and compliance issues
* Tax planning and annual audits
* Global tax compliance
* Financial planning and analysis (e.g., budgeting, forecasting, variance analysis)
* Internal controls and corporate governance
Many enterprises that have not undergone finance transformation still depend solely on basic ERP systems to supply the Controller with data and controls to address these issues. This is regardless of whether the ERP system can support budgeting, tax processes, internal controls or any of the crucial elements that falls under the controller responsibility umbrella.
Throughout the history of accounting, the first role of the Corporate Controller has been ensuring corporate financial controls and, as a very distant second, making strategic business contributions. That gap widened mightily near the end of the 20th century. The installation of on-premise ERP and accounting software corralled even the most business-minded controllers into the demanding role of financial software aficionado, or at the very least, caretaker.
Today, when controllers arent installing, adjusting, or adding to their software deployments, they are mentoring and monitoring their on-premise staffs to coax needed reports out of these systems. The goal, of course, is to facilitate operations to close the books, produce audit-ready reports and be ready to deliver whatever numbers their CFOs, CEOs or auditors want whenever they want them.
With so many responsibilities to address, finance transformation (the process of realigning and streamlining finance functions) for routine accounting would be logically a top priority for controllers. However, guidance and practical strategies to achieve finance transformation has been sorely lacking.
In fact, many finance stakeholders and related parties -- CFOs, accountants, auditors, service providers, consultants, and software vendors -- recognize the value in enterprise finance transformation, but the infrastructure/methodologies just havent been there in an economically viable way. Today there are now practical options coming from a new breed of vendor which enable finance transformation and, in the process, can help elevate the role of controller to strategic enterprise contributor.
WHAT FINANCE TRANSFORMATION ACCOMPLISHES AND HOW TO GET THERE
Efficient and cost-effective finance processes that are dependable, risk adverse and consistent are always necessary for an enterprise to truly thrive. But in todays economy, with mounting pressure for performance improvements, finance transformation is even more of an imperative for all businesses. The process of finance transformation is distinct for each enterprise. What will remain constant are the major elements that are a combination of redefined business processes, supplemental professional services, and IT solutions that support and define a transformed finance landscape. The perfect combination of elements in a successful finance transformation will accomplish three main goals:
* Optimize the financial business processes of an enterprise
* Create a framework to lower the total cost of finance processes
* Increase marketplace competitiveness of an enterprise
From a broader financial perspective, finance transformation addresses various issues, such as maintaining stability during non-routine business periods (e.g., mergers, divestitures, down economic cycles); addressing talent shortages; assuring internal stakeholders, such as the CEO and CFO, that regulatory and financial processes are defensible; and/or delivering more insightful data environment for financial decision making.
However, the one missing link in most finance transformation models is providing the Corporate Controller with a fresh approach to less time-intensive, people-heavy paradigms for delivering routine accounting information.
Addressing the Controllers Needs in Finance Transformation
To make a finance transformation project valuable to the Controller as well as other financial stakeholders (such as the CFO or accounting personnel) basic tactical requirements and problems must be addressed. Processes and solutions included in the finance transformation project must include those that impact the role of Controller such as:
* Monthly and annual financial reporting
* Financial regulatory and compliance issues
* Tax planning and annual audits
* Global tax compliance
* Financial planning and analysis (e.g., budgeting, forecasting, variance analysis)
* Internal controls and corporate governance
Many enterprises that have not undergone finance transformation still depend solely on basic ERP systems to supply the Controller with data and controls to address these issues. This is regardless of whether the ERP system can support budgeting, tax processes, internal controls or any of the crucial elements that falls under the controller responsibility umbrella.
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