Finance Digitization: It Starts—and Ends—with People (OCBJ)
October 22, 2021
< 1 Minute Read
When people talk about digital transformation these days, they’ll usually mention cloud migration, SaaS or PaaS platforms or the latest AI bot. All true, but that’s only part of the story, writes Jenn Ryu, RGP CFO for the Orange County Business Journal.
There’s also a quiet revolution going on with automation profoundly impacting the roles of CFOs and other finance and accounting leaders.
For those who’ve already made the digital transition, the benefits are clear” greater efficiencies, lower operating costs, improved EBITDA, more time on strategic business priorities, and most important—a greater ability to attract top talent. But according to a recent Hackett Group survey, only 10-15% of leading finance organizations are considered “finance-digital world-class.”
That means two things. First, there’s a lot of greenfield opportunity out there for CFOs. Second, too many organizations just aren’t moving fast enough.
My advice to organizations just getting started: Start now and double-down on the human element side of the equation. Yes, automation can not only help finance professionals do their job better, but it can also help them earn a strategic seat at the table previous CFOs never had. It’s time to make the digital revolution in finance not so quiet anymore.
