<img src="https://secure.365-bright-astute.com/792771.png" style="display:none;">
Skip to the main content.

2 min read

Beyond the balance sheet with tech-forward CFO leadership

Beyond the balance sheet with tech-forward CFO leadership

 

The role of CFO has significantly changed from traditional financial oversight to a strategic leadership position, driving organisational growth. This shift is fuelled by the strategic embrace of advanced technology.

A new breed of CFO

Today’s CFO must be a forward-thinker, leveraging technology to propel strategic initiatives. A recent Sage report found a strong majority of CFOs are embracing new technology with 87% using AI, while 88% are adopting cloud technology, and 86% utilising automation. This highlights technology's rapid reshaping of finance.

This strategic use of technology is empowering CFOs, providing a competitive edge, fostering departmental collaboration, and boosting employee satisfaction. Platforms like Sage Intacct are central to this transformation. By integrating financial and operational data, providing real-time insights, and improving decision-making, Sage Intacct helps businesses cut costs, boost revenue, and close more business.

Tech-powered leadership

AI and automation aren't just about efficiency; they're fundamentally reshaping financial management by boosting precision and influencing strategic decision-making. These technologies enable CFOs to make faster, more data-driven choices, allowing greater contribution to corporate strategy.

74% of finance processes are automated, freeing CFOs from routine tasks to focus on strategic growth. 

AI and automation provide foresight and enable proactive leadership, offering a comprehensive and predictive view of finances. This positions the CFO to anticipate market shifts and take data-driven actions, ensuring real-time, holistic insights for intelligent, collaborative decisions.

A faster, smarter financial close

One of the most impactful areas of technological improvement is the financial close process. AI automates routine tasks like accounts payable and receivable, reducing errors, boosting efficiency, and ensuring compliance. Crucially, it transforms the financial close through continuous automation.

A survey found that 81% of finance professionals felt bogged down by traditional accounting duties. Adopting a continuous close shifts the finance team's focus from manual operations to strategic initiatives.

Continuous automation offers key benefits. AI-driven automated data capture for invoices: 

  • Reduces manual input, saving time and reducing margin for error.
  • Ensures enhanced data integrity through precise detail capture and outlier detection.
  • Provides continuous insights from real-time data, improving cashflow.

Ultimately, it enables strategic finance, allowing teams to focus on analysis and significantly accelerating the monthly close, with systems like Sage Intacct potentially halving closing times. 

Powering the growth driven CFO

Cloud-based financial management platforms, such as Sage Intacct, that offer streamlined AP automation with AI, are vital for CFOs facing new demands. AI is helping financial leaders to minimise errors, reduce processing times, cut costs and freeing up teams to focus on strategic tasks.

Proactive outlier detection uses machine learning to identify unusual financial data patterns, allowing CFOs to swiftly address potential errors or fraud and protect financial integrity.

Beyond these operational efficiencies, Sage Intacct provides dynamic multi-dimensional reporting, enabling analysis of financial data across various dimensions like projects or departments without complex spreadsheets, which deliver granular insights. With immediate data access, CFOs gain real-time performance insights for agile, timely, strategic decisions. Furthermore, for businesses with multiple entities, seamless multi-entity consolidation simplifies intercompany transactions and currency conversions, offering a unified view of financial health.

Five key advantage of technology in finance

Research highlights five compelling benefits of integrating technology into finance:

  1. Competitive advantage: 78% of finance leaders emphasise technology’s importance. AI and analytics provide immediate, accurate information for swift strategic decisions.
  2. Operational efficiency: 74% of finance leaders automating over half their processes report improved efficiency and focus on higher-value tasks.
  3. Robust risk management: 86% of finance leaders prioritise cybersecurity and cloud. Advanced analytics and AI tools offer sophisticated risk assessment.
  4. Innovation and growth: 86% of CFOs believe AI and automation will significantly change their roles. Technology supports new business models and revenue streams.
  5. Strengthened collaboration: A 30% increase in cross-departmental collaboration highlights how technology fosters teamwork by providing real-time data and shared insights.

The path forward for the CFO

The future of finance is here, and the modern CFO is at its helm. By fully embracing advanced technologies, modern CFOs not only drive organisational growth and foster greater collaboration but also transform their own roles from traditional oversight to innovation catalysts, ultimately achieving a more holistic and impactful leadership position.

For a deeper understanding of these transformative strategies and actionable insights on leveraging technology like Sage Intacct, download the full eBook, "The CFO’s Guide to Driving Growth".

 

Latest

Keep up to date with CPiO's latest blogs, news and events

AI: The Golden Opportunity for Modern CFOs

AI: The Golden Opportunity for Modern CFOs

If you're a CFO in today's rapidly evolving business landscape, you're acutely aware that your role is no longer confined to just reporting on past...

Read More
How to breathe new life into your healthcare finance management

How to breathe new life into your healthcare finance management

Transforming financial management for healthcare The healthcare landscape is a financial minefield. Ever-evolving regulations, soaring costs, and...

Read More
Ten reasons customers choose Sage for Manufacturing

Ten reasons customers choose Sage for Manufacturing

Discover how Sage expertise, ERP solutions, and industry insights can streamline operations, eliminate complexity, and pave the way for...

Read More