Functionality Of The CFO Hybrid In An Entrepreneurs World Prevalence of technology has fundamentally sparked new models of doing business.
By ACCA
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What entrepreneurs and accountants value and prioritise may differ widely, and the accountant will typically adopt a more conservative role – that of steward. However, CFO's are no longer traditional bean-counters. They are transgressing more into strategic positions, assuming leadership roles in their organisations and taking on additional responsibilities that are not limited to pure finance and accountancy.
The Business Strategy is an overall plan that guides businesses in maximising long term profitability while navigating short term challenges. The finance however is the functional logic of a business, dealing with all business decisions while considering the economic benefit.
Consequently, the transformation of a strictly finance person in a business to a well-rounded inter-skilled entrepreneur is not only an important step towards business sustainability, but helps companies stick to long term financial planning.
Due the amount of time available to CFO's to conduct the required work, technology has become a core technicality in the finance function.
Automated manual processes now require CFO's to carry out their tasks digitally. Prevalence of technology has fundamentally sparked new models of doing business. An example of this would be the use of a Distributed or Shared Ledger, a digital database of records where all participants are looking at a common view, anytime any place.
Entrepreneurs staying ahead of the pack would need a CFO that is well equipped to work digitally while remaining an active partner in the business. This indicates that it is ever more crucial for finance professionals to work closely with businesses to ensure that their support is fit for purpose and tailored to the business's needs.
Why all the data?
Financial data describes the figures that a company holds, such figures become valuable information after they have been processed and attuned to add relevance. Finance persons have to be able to translate day to day information into an insightful analysis that can be used to evaluate the business on the go. It really is a game of rush, rush and rush.
Accurate up-to-date financial figures have to be used as a frame-work by entrepreneurs to make financial decisions that are aligned with the business strategy.
Overall, planning sensibly is a vital business function. It not only enables the entrepreneur to experiment with new ideas and to steady the firm for rapid growth. But it is also important to make astute on-the-go decisions about when, where and how a business should acquire and use revenue and for this you are going to need the CFO 2.0. A digital savvy, fast paced unconventional bean counter, with ear to the ground global experience.
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