CFO Whitepaper - 8 Signs

01 Your team is spending too much time manipulating data in spreadsheets and legacy planning systems Do you and your team end up frustrated every time a colleague asks for a different cut of the data? If yes, then that frustration likely stems from wasting too much time doing work-arounds in spreadsheets or inflexible legacy planning solutions. The issues of using spreadsheets for anything other than personal productivity are well-documented elsewhere.vi Spreadsheets weigh down core financial processes, such as planning, budgeting, and financial consolidation. According to analyst group Ventana Research, “[Spreadsheets] are fast [and] easy to set up, but when they’re used in collaborative, repetitive enterprise processes, they become time wasters.”vii Additionally, if you use legacy planning systems or newer versions of legacy systems that have been repackaged as cloud-based solutions, your team is most likely finding that these are also laborious to work with. Legacy systems often have inflexible and aging architecture that require time and expert skills to do simple tasks, such as adding a new dimension or generating a new report. As a result, you may find yourself as one of the 89 percent of companies reported by the Aberdeen Groupx that still uses spreadsheets in their planning, budgeting, and forecasting processes to overcome the limitations of their chosen software. FP&A process efficiency assessment: 3 Yes, that’s us No, that’s not us Don’t know 02 Your system lacks enterprise level security If your plans are becoming increasingly granular due to incorporating compensation and benefits packages, organizing employees, or anticipated customer sales details, the importance of security and access control in financial systems also increases. If your customer and employee records are not secure, your company could be non-compliant with certain laws such as The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act,viii resulting in hefty fines. Although passwords can be applied to spreadsheets and cells may be protected, spreadsheets were never intended to be shared among multiple users where access rights and authorization are imperative. Enterpriselevel planning solutions attempt to address this issue with access controls that allow users to safely participate in planning processes; however, keep in mind that although corporate firewalls provide a modicum of protection, they are still vulnerable to hacking. FP&A process efficiency assessment: Yes, that’s us No, that’s not us Don’t know It is widely recognized that cloud vendors today adhere to security and encryption standards beyond the level of which a vast majority of traditional organizations can afford. You may feel you have less control with a cloud solution, but there is strong evidenceix that your data is more secure when it is being stored in the cloud by a vendor that adheres to security and encryption standards— which they are required to share with you. 4
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