Opinion
The past few years have witnessed significant changes to the traditional role of the chief financial officer (CFO). Their expertise in cost management and operational efficiency management has been instrumental in ensuring the survival of their organization during tough economic times.
Those CFOs who successfully navigated the challenging landscape undoubtedly helped elevate the role of CFO from financial steward, to corporate strategist and change agent.
As businesses aim to get their recovery underway, the CFO is being asked to evolve again. In light of their growing influence, the CFO is required to not only manage the disruptions caused by rapid technological change, emerging markets, government intervention, and empowered consumers and employees, but also identify and invest in the business models, products, and services that will lead to sustainable, profitable growth. It’s a significant challenge and one we’re sure the CFO is more than capable of.
However, key to fulfilling their strategic potential and driving transformational change will be the willingness of CFOs to embrace disruptive technologies, such as big data, cloud computing, mobile, and social media, in a changing marketplace.
Today, consumers expect to interact with brands at a time and place that suits them, across a variety of touch points, whether in-store, online or via the telephone. While this is a challenge, it’s also an unprecedented opportunity.
Increased interaction provides businesses with more customer data, which if used properly will empower organizations to offer enhanced and tailored services capable of growing the bottom line. It’s encouraging to see that most CFOs already recognize this, with three quarters viewing access to information as a driver of organizational agility, according to a recent study from Oracle and Accenture titled “The CFO as Catalyst for Change”.
The same study also found that 57 per cent of CFOs believe investments in big data and analytics as a key source of competitive advantage.
Emerging technologies, like cloud computing, have a crucial role as CFOs look to fulfill their traditional role of cost management.
Cloud computing, for example, offers CFOs opportunities to drive additional efficiencies by reducing the need for up-front capital expenditure on hardware and software licenses, and because it minimizes the uncertainty associated with investing in new technologies. Additionally, it frees up capital that CFOs can allocate elsewhere.
CFOs also rank improved technological knowledge second only to industry knowledge as a critical enabler to improving their current skillset.
The growing importance of technology to the CFO is further supported by the finding that 82 per cent of CFOs have noted their cooperation with their CIOs has increased over the past three years.
This does not necessarily mean CFOs require in-depth technical knowledge on a day-to-day basis, but rather they need the know how into how can this technology can help the business continue to grow.
We’re sure that if CFOs continue to embrace new and traditional technologies in the workplace their strategic influence will only grow.
Given their experience in managing change and their unique oversight of the company, no C-Level executive is better placed to drive recovery.
By following the CFO’s lead, organizations can remove the organizational siloes that have hindered businesses for too long, empowering them to identify new opportunities and better respond to market conditions.
Without question, growth has never been as important to businesses as it is today. CFOs recognize what’s needed to achieve this, and now is time for the business to look at the CFO’s proven track record and follow their lead.
Adebayo Sanni is Country Manager Oracle Nigeria.