Technology is the servant not the master – despite what the accounting software and AI developer community would have you believe.
However, if you’re a CEO and you want to upgrade your finance function to match the needs of your business, the thought process to follow is refreshingly simple and as old as the hills:
- Figure out what you’re trying to achieve
- Find ways of making it happen
Figure out what you’re trying to achieve
The questions to ask will include:
- what information does your business need? (P&L, cashflow, margins, receivables etc.)
- who needs it?
- how often?
- what outcomes and improvements do you expect will come from the information?
Find ways of making it happen
We do a lot of work with business on Finance Transformation which we think about as aligning your finance function with the current and future needs of your business.
Whatever the current size and composition of your finance team there are typically three areas to look at:
- people
- technology
- workflows
Technology is a key part of the mix but it’s only part of the mix.
Technology is the servant not the master – but it can serve you well
Most businesses already have a lot of technology floating around so the first question to ask is:
Are you using the tech you have as effectively as it can be used?
Cloud accounting software is very powerful but I’m often astonished that businesses simply don’t use their chosen software to its full potential – Why don’t businesses make better use of accounting software?
How efficient are your processes and workflows?
Technology can certainly do a lot of the heavy lifting for you which will save a lot of time and money.
There are some excellent apps that handle document management and accounting (such as Dext and AutoEntry) and it’s usually possible to link e-commerce and payment sites to your cloud software.
Find the right mix of technology and people that ensures all of the data that needs to be processed is processed accurately and on time.
Additional insight
Sometimes you can’t get all of the financial information you need from your finance system – there maybe reports and analyses you’d like to see which require data sets to be compared, merged or re-organised to give you the insight you need.
At a simple level, a spreadsheet will often be more than adequate for creating a cashflow model and pivot tables and Microsoft’s Power Query are worth investigating for combining and analysing data.
Do you want a clearer view of the financial information your business needs and how to generate it?
Call Michael Austin on 020 7125 0270 or email info@bluedotconsulting.co.uk and let’s have a free-of-charge chat about your business.
Michael – @bluedotmichael
Related links:
AI for accountants – what does it all add up to?
Accounting apps – less is more
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