In the ever-evolving landscape of business technology, staying ahead is not just an advantage – it’s a necessity. As businesses grow and adapt to new challenges, upgrading to modern, scalable, and efficient financial management solutions becomes crucial. Sage Intacct, a cloud-based financial management platform, stands out as a transformative choice. In this article, we’ll explore why businesses should consider upgrading to Sage Intacct for a future-proof and streamlined financial management experience.

1. Real-Time Visibility and Decision-Making:

Sage Intacct offers businesses a real-time view into their financial health. Unlike traditional systems, where data updates may be delayed, Sage Intacct provides up-to-the-minute insights, empowering decision-makers to respond swiftly to market changes and make informed strategic choices. Real-time visibility is not just a luxury but a competitive edge in today’s fast-paced business environment.

2. Scalability for Growing Businesses:

As businesses expand, their financial requirements become more complex. Sage Intacct is built with scalability in mind, seamlessly growing alongside your business. Whether you’re a startup experiencing rapid growth or an established enterprise, Sage Intacct adapts to your evolving needs, ensuring that your financial management system remains robust and capable of handling increased data and user demands.

3. Automation for Increased Efficiency:

Manual financial processes are not only time-consuming but also prone to errors. Sage Intacct automates routine tasks, from data entry to reconciliation and reporting. This automation not only enhances the accuracy of your financial data but also frees up valuable time for your finance team to focus on strategic initiatives that contribute directly to the success of your business.

4. Comprehensive Reporting and Analytics:

Sage Intacct goes beyond basic financial tracking. It provides robust reporting and analytics tools that allow businesses to dig deeper into their financial data. Create custom reports, visualize key performance indicators, and gain actionable insights to drive your business forward. The platform empowers you to make data-driven decisions with confidence.

5. Enhanced Security Measures:

In an era where data security is paramount, Sage Intacct prioritizes the protection of your sensitive financial information. The platform is built on a secure cloud infrastructure, incorporating advanced security measures to safeguard against potential threats. Upgrading to Sage Intacct not only modernizes your financial management but also ensures that your data is handled with the utmost security.

6. Adaptability to Changing Regulations:

The business landscape is subject to regulatory changes, and compliance is non-negotiable. Sage Intacct is designed to adapt to evolving financial regulations, reducing the compliance burden on your organization. Stay ahead of regulatory requirements and minimize the risk of non-compliance with a financial management solution that evolves with the changing business and regulatory environment.

Upgrading to Sage Intacct conclusion:

In the digital era, upgrading to Sage Intacct is more than just a technological shift – it’s a strategic move to future-proof your business. Real-time visibility, scalability, automation, comprehensive reporting, enhanced security, and adaptability to changing regulations are all compelling reasons to make the switch.

Elevate your business with Sage Intacct and experience the transformative power of modern, cloud-based financial management. Don’t just manage your finances; excel in them.

Wholesale distribution is expected to be significantly disrupted by 2024 due to digital transformation. This industry will be shaped by several key trends, and distributors must adapt to these changes in order to stay competitive.

Seven trends that will drive change in 2024

1. Increased Competition

Wholesale distributors face unprecedented competition. Direct-to-customer commerce (D2C), which is growing rapidly, has put them in direct competition with their own suppliers. B2B marketplaces, led by online giants such as Amazon and Alibaba, are also disrupting the industry. Distributors must improve their ecommerce capabilities to stay relevant. This includes improving product pricing and AI-driven personalised search.

2. B2B personalisation

Personalisation of B2B will be a key trend in 2024. Modern B2B customers expect personalised, convenient and fast experiences, similar to those of their consumer counterparts. Distributors must provide a tailored customer experience, which includes communicating through preferred channels, providing customised pricing and managing individual segments.

3. Supply chains disruption

Wholesale distributors are affected by economic challenges, global conflicts and disruptions in the supply chain. Prices are rising, shipping costs are increasing, there is a shortage of labour and inventory problems. Distributors invest in intelligent business processes management to improve supply chain efficiency and sustainability . The focus will be on improving the visibility of supply chains in real-time and improving logistics.

4. Differentiation is a driving force

Wholesale distributors need to differentiate themselves on a market that is highly competitive. Wholesale distributors can do this by providing high-value services that go beyond the standard product catalogs. They can also improve delivery via digital channels and streamline operations.

5. Evolution of tech

The pace of technology change is increasing. Distributors need to keep up with the latest technology trends including cloud computing and ecommerce. It is important to develop expertise in new areas and implement change management practices.

6. Talent crunch: How to tackle it

The industry of wholesale distribution continues to struggle with the labour shortage. This is especially true for frontline roles and those that are customer-facing. In 2024, employee recruitment and retention will be a top priority. Improved employee experience, automation and chatbots, as well as highlighting social and environmental initiatives can help attract and retain talent.

7. Sustainable distribution

Wholesale distribution is becoming more environmentally friendly. Distributors are adopting eco friendly practices such as retrofitting refrigerator trailers with electric motors and designing recyclable shipping and packaging materials. Sustainability initiatives are not only beneficial to the environment, but they also improve a distributor’s reputation.

In 2024, wholesale distribution will be characterised by increased competition, a need for differentiation through innovation, talent-management, and a growing emphasis on sustainability. Distributors that adapt to these trends have a greater chance of success in a changing landscape. Wholesalers who embrace innovation, personalisation, and sustainability can make a lasting impression on the industry and stay ahead of their competition.

Find out how technology can facilitate change in your business, read the future of wholesale distribution E-book by clicking here.

On this page you can scan release highlights to get a quick understanding of what’s new, or review a list of all the changes organised by category.

Sage Intacct 2023 R4 Release highlights

Below is a list of highlighted features in Sage Intacct 2023 Release 4 for the United Kingdom.

All changes

Company and Administration

Accounts Payable

Accounts Receivable

Cash Management

Consolidation

Contracts

General Ledger

Inventory Control

Lease Accounting 

Nonprofit

Projects

Reporting – Advanced

Reporting – Financial

Time and Expenses

User Experience

Web Services

© 2023 The Sage Group plc or its affiliates (“Sage”) or its licensors. All trademarks mentioned are the property of their respective owners. Use of non-Sage trademarks is not an endorsement of any person or product.
These release notes are a work in progress until our official release. Check back regularly for additions, changes, and refinements.

As companies digitise their financial processes, they are accumulating enormous amounts of data about operations and customers. The point of collecting this information is to provide insights that leaders and teams can use to make better decisions.

As a result, visual reporting is gaining momentum. Foundry’s 2021 Data and Analytics survey found that 69% of organisations are piloting or using visual dashboards and data visualisation tools to consolidate and share information. By 2025, data stories will be the most widespread way for organisations to consume analytics, according to Gartner.

“Portraying financial data in a user-friendly way allows people to discover connections they wouldn’t have seen otherwise,” says Scott Freedman, director of marketing at Sage Intacct. “With that information, they can make decisions that improve the business.”

But at many organisations, this new type of reporting has yet to gain traction: Over half of finance departments struggle to provide data and reports stakeholders can rely on to inform their decisions, according to Gartner.

Data is only useful when people can easily find it, understand it, and put it to work. When it’s buried in spreadsheets and scattered across departments, teams often don’t know where to look for it. Searching takes up valuable time, and the numbers teams find often lack context. “Data is too often siloed and represented in ways that don’t allow people to slice and dice it the way they need to,” says Freedman.

In addition, spreadsheets can’t keep up with real-time operations. “They are stuck in time,” Freedman says. “They show recent or long-term past performance, but not the real-time reporting you need to predict the future.”

Frustrated by the inability to use their data effectively, management teams are turning to new solutions that collect data across the business and present it in customised dashboards. The dashboards don’t just display facts and figures. Instead, they create a narrative that places the data in context, along with graphical depictions that help bring it to life. Finance leaders and teams can easily filter the information to learn what’s working and what’s not, and thenuse these insights to improve operations or find new revenue opportunities.

For example, Quicksilver Express Courier, a “last mile” delivery service, collected all kinds of data about its fleet, but lacked visibility about individual vehicle profitability. After adopting Sage Intacct, Quicksilver’s finance executives were able to drill down into the profit and loss for each truck. As a result, the company learned it was overpaying for workers’ compensation insurance, and subsequent adjustments saved £100,000 a year. Other changes based on insights Quicksilver gained from the platform helped the company increase total profitability at some of its locations by 5% to 25%.

In addition to improving business results, sharing information through customisable dashboards helps executives better communicate with their teams. Reports don’t necessarily show why results are important, but presenting them in a narrative with visual illustrations explains them more effectively and makes leaders’ recommendations more meaningful and convincing.

Teams can experiment with their dashboards, using real-time information, charts, and graphs to try out ideas for improving processes or services. “You can look backward or forward and use real-time insights to predict future results,” Freedman says.

You can download the modern the too fast too furious info graph to see the top frustrations of finance teams, read the Ebook on how you can perform at your best using technology or the white paper to find out what finance leaders are utilising to modernise their finance function.

Click the link below to access these FREE resources.

 

Learn more.

Organisations have long been in search of the Holy Grail of financial management: A single source of truth they can use for accurate reporting and budget planning. But the reality is that financial information is too often scattered among spreadsheets and other applications that don’t communicate with one another, making data management unwieldy and time- consuming.

Part of the challenge is the lack of a holistic approach to data management. Fewer than half of business and technology leaders have a clearly defined data and analytics strategy, the Foundry 2021 Data and Analytics study found. A haphazard approach can lead to data silos that impede sharing and collaboration and create inconsistencies, since information is formatted differently among applications and updates occur at different times. “Siloed dataoperates on different schedules, making processes like revenue recognition difficult,” says Scott Freedman, director of marketing for Sage Intacct.

In addition, financial leaders and teams who manually transfer data into spreadsheets and reports may make errors along the way. In the Foundry survey, leaders identified data- quality problems as the No. 1 roadblock for organisations adopting data-driven initiatives.

Integrating financial data into a single cloud-based platform improves data quality and accuracy and makes sharing information easier. Instead of individuals “owning” their own set of data, an integrated solution provides everyone with a common, updated, and accurate set of numbers to work with across the business.

Improving data accuracy can have a tangible impact on business performance. A recent Gartner study found that breaking down silos and sharing data boosts business outcomes. Gartner predicts that by 2023, organisations that promote data sharing will outperform their peers on most business metrics.

By shifting to Sage Intacct, a unified cloud solution for financial data, courier service Quicksilver Express reduced the time for doing its monthly close by 50%. Credit card and bank reconciliations are now done daily, reducing errors and eliminating a week’s worth of manual work. And overall accounting efficiency is up by 75%.

Family-owned investment firm Halstatt experienced similar benefits after switching to Sage Intacct. In the past, because valuation reporting took over 100 hours, the company only had time to do it annually.

Now the process takes just a few hours and is done quarterly, giving executives a detailed view of asset value and costs throughout the year.

Data is projected to play a greater role in business strategy in the future, as leaders gain new insights from advanced analytics. 78% of leaders expect data and analytics to fundamentally change the way they do business over the next 3 years, according to the Foundry study. The cloud, along with advanced capabilities enabled by AI and machine learning, will help companies get more proactive in mapping the best path forward.

“When you have an accurate view of what’s going on today, you can use AI and analytics to project that data out and determine future needs and capacity,” Freedman explains. “That helps companies deal with unanticipated surges in demand, or make adjustments to marketing campaigns based on their performance. Connecting systems throughconsolidated reporting makes the whole business run more smoothly.”

You can download the modern the too fast too furious info graph to see the top frustrations of finance teams, read the Ebook on how you can perform at your best using technology or the white paper to find out what finance leaders are utilising to modernise their finance function.

Click the link below to access these FREE resources.

 

Learn more.

 

A checklist for all new CFO’s to empower decisions

Being a new CFO can be thrilling and empowering—but also sometimes a bit overwhelming, especially if it’s your first time in a senior leadership role.

With our handy checklist in hand, you’ll know what to expect, so you can prepare yourself to handle everything from the intricacies of your financials to your first board meeting.

It’s worth noting that this is a guide, and you may want to tweak and adapt this to meet your needs—but this provides a starting point for you.

Here’s what we cover:

1. Define your top CFO priorities in your new role

2. Do your research

3. Find an external mentor

4. Define what success looks like

5. Meet with your finance team right away

6. Understand your finance team’s relationship with other departments

7. Understand your CEO’s vision and long-term strategy

8. Build a picture of your company’s current financial health

9. Understand current cash flow

10. Know your company’s accounting practices

11. Review your financial reporting

12. Audit issues

13. Review budgets

14. Understand your key financial metrics with benchmarking

15. Meet important external stakeholders

16. Get involved with strategic planning

17. Build your long-term vision and plan

18. Get input and buy-in on your vision

19. Make an impact at your first board meeting

20. Understand potential CFO challenges and roadblocks

21. Don’t try to tackle everything at once

22. Tap into the power of tech

23. Place confidence in yourself and why you were hired

24. Summary

There will be a lot on your to-do list and in your inbox, so we suggest focusing on these three areas.

1. Define your top CFO priorities in your new role

Understand your financial performance and challenges

You’ll want to deeply understand your organisation’s financial performance and identify any challenges you must address.

Look at:

• Analysing financial statements, budgets, and key performance indicators (KPIs) to evaluate your company’s financial health.
• Identifying areas of strength and weakness to form the basis for future strategies.
• Determining any operational or strategic challenges that may impact financial performance.

Build vital relationships

Building strong relationships from the start is essential if you want a successful tenure as a CFO.

Aim to:

• Immerse yourself in the company’s culture, values, and priorities to understand it better.
• Collaborate with other executives and stakeholders to develop a vision for your company’s financial future.
• Prioritise building a strong relationship with the CEO and fostering effective communication and collaboration.
• Meet with your direct reports and key finance team members to establish open lines of communication and gain a deeper understanding of their roles and responsibilities.

Develop a long-term vision and plan

The business might expect you to map out a long-term financial vision and plan, so spend some of your first 90 days creating a great one.

Make sure you:

• Collaborate with the CEO to understand their vision for the organisation and align your financial strategies accordingly.
• Work together to develop a comprehensive long-term financial plan that aligns with the organisation’s strategic priorities.
• Outline key financial objectives, initiatives, and performance metrics to guide decision-making and measure progress.
• Continuously evaluate and refine the long-term plan based on evolving business needs and market conditions.

You may have your own priorities but it’s vital to set them upfront and use them to communicate with your team and across the business.

DOWNLOAD THE MANAGING MODERN FINANCE REPORT HERE.

2. Do your research

Work should begin before you even start in your new role, so you have some context and understanding before day one.

You could research your company’s history, mission, and values. This’ll help you better understand your business and what it stands for.

Think about other preparatory steps, such as reviewing financial statements and reports, and other company documents.

There’s no harm in getting early insight into your processes; you might even identify some potential improvement areas.

Consider setting up early meetings with the CEO, executive leaders, and finance team members. Use these meetings to introduce yourself and learn more about the organisation.

Attend company events such as town hall meetings, team-building activities, and other social events.

Meet other employees informally and get a sense of your culture.

3. Find an external mentor 

Searching for valuable guidance and support as you navigate your new role is always helpful.

An external mentor can offer a fresh perspective and provide insights into your challenges and opportunities as a new CFO.

They can also offer advice on building relationships with key stakeholders, developing a leadership style, and managing the role’s demands.

Similarly, connecting with other CFOs or financial leaders in similar roles could give you insights into best practices, industry trends, and potential challenges. These peers can also offer a sounding board to discuss your ideas and plans.

4. Define what success looks like

Ultimately, success in the first 90 days will depend on your company’s goals and objectives and your strategic focus as a CFO.

Here are some suggestions for goals that can help act as your north star—make sure you add some relevant metrics.

• Develop a financial plan that aligns with the company’s strategic objectives and ensures financial stability and growth.
• Establish effective financial controls and processes to ensure compliance and mitigate risks.
• Build strong relationships with key stakeholders, such as investors, lenders, and the board of directors.
• Develop a high-performing finance team aligned with your company’s goals and objectives.
• Implement digital transformation initiatives that prime your business for growth, improving operational efficiency and reducing costs.
• Communicate effectively with the CEO and other business leaders to ensure financial insights and recommendations are factored into their decision-making.

5. Meet with your finance team right away

As a new CFO, meeting with your finance team straight away is critical to establishing relationships, understanding their roles and responsibilities, and identifying any challenges or opportunities.

Schedule individual meetings with each team member to introduce yourself and learn their roles and responsibilities. Ask questions to understand your existing financial processes and systems better.

By talking to your people, you’ll get a feel of team dynamics and how team members interact with each other.

Identify any areas where you can make improvements to enhance collaboration and communication.

Understand where to prioritise initiatives and allocate resources effectively. Set expectations for your team regarding performance, communication, and collaboration.

Look at how you can establish a culture of accountability and teamwork.

6. Understand your finance team’s relationship with other departments

As a CFO, you must understand what other departments think of your finance team to identify areas for improvement and enhance collaboration.

Schedule meetings with department heads to introduce yourself.

Learn about different perspectives and concerns regarding your finance department, and ask questions to understand better how you can interact with other departments daily.

Review past interactions between finance and other departments to identify any areas of tension or misunderstandings. Identify areas for improvement and where you can work with other departments to enhance communication and collaboration.

Understand and prioritise any issues you see that need fixing and allocate resources properly.

Communicate effectively with other departments to build trust and credibility. Make your comms are clear and concise, focusing on giving the most important and relevant financial information and insight with the right context.

Develop a plan to improve finance’s reputation and relationships with other departments. Include specific initiatives and timelines to address any areas of tension or misunderstandings.

7. Understand your CEO’s vision and long-term strategy

As a new CFO, you’ll want to align your financial goals and initiatives with your CEO’s vision and long-term strategy.

Schedule enough meetings with the CEO to get on the same page. Come armed with questions to help you better understand the CEO’s priorities and goals and where you can help.

Once you’ve satisfactorily engaged with your CEO, review your strategic plans and initiatives to understand how they align with their vision and long-term strategy.

Identify areas where you must allocate financial resources to support their big ideas.

Understand the competitive landscape.

It’ll benefit everybody if you understand your competitive landscape and how the CEO’s vision and long-term strategy fit and position you in the market. You might be quickly able to identify financial risks and opportunities.

You could also think about reviewing your company’s previous investor presentations to understand how your CEO communicates their vision and long-term strategy to external stakeholders.

Support them with financial information and insights that are easy to understand.

8. Build a picture of your company’s current financial health

As a CFO, you’ll want a comprehensive understanding of your company’s financial health, including its revenue, expenses, profits, and cash flow.

High-level, this knowledge will help you to identify areas for improvement where you can reduce costs, increase revenue, or improve cash flow.

You will want enough insight to make informed decisions about your company’s financial strategies and initiatives, such as ones related to investments, financing, and risk management.

A solid understanding of your basic financials can help you communicate internally within the business and externally.

Show control and understanding of your financial performance, risks, and opportunities to investors, board members, and other key stakeholders.

9. Understand current cash flow

While reviewing your cash flow, you may spot concerns such as cash shortages. You may want to fix inefficiencies in your cash management processes, such as slow collections or excessive inventory levels.

If you’ve got good financial management software, you may want to identify patterns and trends in cash inflows and outflows over time.

Once you’ve grasped your cash position, you can create a comprehensive plan to improve inflows, reduce outflows, and optimise your cash balance.

Examples of strategies to implement include:

• Improving your cash conversion cycle
• Negotiating better payment terms with suppliers
• Accelerating customer collections.

10. Know your company’s accounting practices

As a CFO, reviewing your accounting policies and procedures is crucial to ensuring compliance with standards and best practices.

Keep up with your industry’s latest accounting updates and ensure your business is ready to handle them.

You may want to look at areas where you can make improvements to streamline processes or improve accuracy—whether automating processes to reduce errors or improving data quality.

Again, financial management can certainly help here.

Think about how you can strengthen internal controls. It’s better to do the work to fix potential problems before they happen.

Ensure you have appropriate segregation of duties and effective fraud prevention measures.

11. Review your financial reporting

As well as making sure financial statements are accurate and complete and that you have the appropriate disclosures, you’ll want to present your financial information in a timely, clear, and understandable manner that meets the needs of stakeholders.

Your financial statements should be free from errors or inconsistencies.

Financial management software can often support this, as it offers a fast and accurate way to reconcile your accounts and get clean, trustworthy data.

Ensure that your financial statements are timely by setting deadlines for each step of the financial reporting process.

Put in the time to ensure your books are closed on time, financial statements are prepared and reviewed, and that you meet any regulatory reporting requirements when you should.

Make sure you’re meeting stakeholder needs.

By understanding their reporting requirements and expectations, you can create financial statements that meet their requirements.

Communicate with your board of directors, investors, lenders, and other stakeholders to ensure your financial statements are formatted correctly, presenting information meaningfully and usefully.

Think about how you can continuously improve.

Since financial reporting is so important, you will want to spend time identifying areas for improvement. If you’re still using spreadsheets, for example, you may well want to get automation quickly in place to get the books closed much more quickly.

12. Audit issues

Looking at independent reviews of your company statements in the form of audits could be very helpful, as they might provide some insights you can act on quickly.

You can identify strengths and weaknesses and where you stand financially.

You may discover areas where you need to improve your internal controls or financial reporting processes—it’s particularly important to follow legal and regulatory requirements.

If you see problems, you’ll want to address any issues or concerns raised by the auditors. Identify responsible parties and build timelines for completing each action item.

13. Review budgets

Reviewing your budget is the first step in understanding your financial goals and priorities for the upcoming year.

Focus on revenue and expense projections and any capital expenditures or investments to align with your strategic objectives.

A thorough budget review can help identify areas that may need adjustment. These could include areas where you may need to reduce expenses, increase revenue, or reallocate resources to support your strategic initiatives.

With the identified areas for improvement, develop an action plan to address any issues or concerns. Define the responsible parties and timelines for completing each action item.

Technology, such as automated reporting, forecasting, predictive analysis, expense tracking, and performance dashboards, can aid this ongoing process.

Regular reviews will help you determine whether you’re on track to achieve your financial goals and priorities.

14. Understand your key financial metrics with benchmarking

Financial metrics in isolation could tell you about the status or health of your business. However, they have relatively limited worth without benchmarking or a comparative context.

So, to help you understand how you are performing, benchmarking your finance department’s performance against peers can be an extremely useful exercise in the first 90 days.

Identify the key metrics you want to benchmark against other finance departments.

These could include the finance cost, staff productivity, finance cycle time, and other relevant metrics aligned with your company’s strategic goals and objectives.

Then, identify peer organisations that are similar in size, industry, and complexity.

You can find this information internally or through industry associations, conferences, or other networking opportunities.

Gather data from peer organisations. Use surveys, public financial reports, or other sources. Collect data for the most recent period.

Analyse data to identify areas where your finance department is performing well and where there’s room for improvement.

Identify the gaps between your company’s performance and peer performance, and determine the root causes of these gaps.

Use data insights to prioritise initiatives and allocate resources effectively.

Develop a plan to improve your finance department’s performance based on the benchmarking analysis. Include specific initiatives and timelines to address any areas of weakness.

Align the plan with your company’s strategic goals and objectives, and communicate it to your finance team and relevant stakeholders.

15. Meet important external stakeholders

It’s worth speaking to investors, customers and suppliers to build a network of support and collaboration.

Aim to establish relationships based on trust and credibility, understand perspectives and concerns, and identify areas where you can work together.

You may see financial risks and opportunities, as well as areas of possible collaboration.

Be open to feedback and listen to what others have to say.

16. Get involved with strategic planning

As a CFO, your financial insight is invaluable.

By the 90-day mark, you’ll want to take an active seat at strategic planning sessions to provide a clearer understanding of your financial abilities and constraints when setting wider strategic business objectives.

Introduce strategic planning sessions if they’re not yet a part of your company’s regular process. Facilitating such sessions can help you bake financial realities and goals into strategy from the start.

Build or update financial models to project your company’s future under various scenarios.

You and your colleagues will better understand potential outcomes, helping you make informed decisions about the strategic direction.

Analyse your current capital structure and consider if it aligns with your long-term goals. Address questions such as whether you should take on more debt, issue equity to fund growth, or if you’re over-leveraged.

Use scenario analysis to understand how different situations could impact your company’s financial health and ability to achieve its strategic objectives.

Include potential opportunities such as a new market entry, and threats such as economic downturns or disruptions in the supply chain.

17. Build your long-term vision and plan

This is the big one.

The majority of your time in the first 90 days will be spent collecting information and building a picture of the current state of finance in the company.

As you do so, you’ll start forming a long-term plan for what needs to happen and what you want to achieve in the future, particularly after talking with the CEO.

Sometimes this can take less than 90 days, other times significantly longer than this. It all depends on the information you collect and the current state of the company.

At some point, though, you’ll need to document your long-term vision and plan as you form it.

Keep it concise and tangible.

You could think about building a five-year plan, aligned to your company’s goals – whether that be an initial public offering (IPO), mergers and acquisitions (M&A), growth targets, or something else.

A one-page vision, with the information behind it, could be easier to communicate.

It may also be that the company or CEO has a long-term vision or plan, therefore you build the finance plan around that.

Either way, don’t get lost in the detail as you onboard into your new company. Before your first 90 days are up, consider what your long-term plan, vision, and goals are – and get them down on paper.

18. Get input and buy-in on your vision

As a new CFO, we’ve already established that you need a clear vision for your role and have it aligned with your business’s and CEO’s strategic objectives.

But how do you get your message across?

Here are some key steps to drive support.

Clearly articulate your vision and how it aligns with your organisation’s strategic objectives. Communicate your priorities and goals. Set expectations for how your team will contribute to achieving them.

Encourage open and honest communication with stakeholders to get their input on your vision.

This includes seeking feedback from your team, board members, investors and key stakeholders to ensure your vision meets their expectations.

Address any concerns or questions that stakeholders may have. Be open to feedback and adjust as needed to build that coalition of support.

Develop a detailed plan for making your vision a reality, incorporating feedback where necessary.

Set clear objectives, identify key milestones, and allocate resources effectively.

Let the business know where you are, celebrating successes and addressing challenges transparently. You’ll want to provide regular updates to stakeholders on the progress of your vision and any challenges or obstacles that arise.

19. Make an impact at your first board meeting

Making a good impression at your first board meeting is crucial to establishing credibility as a new CFO. It’s a golden opportunity to build trust with board members that will be essential for achieving your goals and objectives.

Prepare thoroughly.

Before the meeting, review the agenda, board materials, and any relevant documents. Ensure you understand the issues and come prepared with thoughtful questions and insights.

Take the time to introduce yourself to the board members and other executives. Establish a personal connection and build rapport.

Be concise and to the point.

When presenting to the board, focus on the key issues concisely. Provide clear and actionable recommendations and avoid getting bogged down in details or technical jargon.

Use your business and industry knowledge to show you know where the problems and opportunities are. Support your recommendations with insight and be prepared to answer questions.

Communicate transparently and honestly with the board.

If there are issues or challenges, be upfront and provide a plan for addressing them.

After the meeting, follow up with board members to answer any questions or provide additional information. Show your commitment to working collaboratively to achieve your goals.

20. Understand potential CFO challenges and roadblocks

As a new CFO in the first 90 days, you’ll be lucky if everything is plain sailing.

Here are some specific challenges you’ll come across and tips on how to overcome them.

Understanding your business culture

Adjusting to your new company’s culture and dynamics is not always easy.

To navigate this, investing time to learning about the company’s history, values, and operations will be invaluable.

However, interacting with a broad range of employees will provide the insight you won’t be able to get from marketing materials and internal communication.

Managing change

CFOs often need to implement changes to improve financial business health, something that can often lead to resistance.

It’s important to communicate the rationale behind the changes and take feedback from disgruntled people or teams.

You could even involve them in the process.

Data inaccuracy and unavailability

Accurate, timely financial data is crucial for your decision-making process.

If your existing financial management system isn’t up to the job, prioritise putting a more reliable system in place.

Compliance issues

As you dig deep into your financial work, you may find regulatory non-compliance a bigger headache than expected.

You may have to work closely with your legal and compliance teams to understand issues and plan corrective action.

Stakeholder management

Building relationships with key stakeholders, both internal and external, is crucial for success.

However, it will be challenging, especially if you’re gifted more with handling numbers than handling people.

Regular communication and natural transparency will help in building trust.

21. Don’t try to tackle everything at once

It’s important to remember that time is precious, and you’ll feel that you’ll never have enough of it.

As a CFO, it’s essential to prioritise critical issues to maximise your impact.

Here are some strategies to help you do just that.

Focus on key areas

Start by identifying the most pressing needs and challenges facing your organisation. Focus your efforts on the areas that require the most attention.

Once you’ve identified your most pressing needs and challenges, prioritize the initiatives that will significantly impact performance.

Remember to delegate and collaborate

Delegating tasks and empowering others can help free up time to focus on critical issues.

Aim to build a strong team around you and foster a culture of collaboration. Collaborating with other departments can help you gain a broader perspective on critical issues and identify new solutions.

Be ready to change course

As new information emerges or priorities shift, be prepared to adjust your plan.

Being flexible and adaptable is essential to achieving your goals. It’s important to communicate any changes to your plan to whoever needs to know.

Ensure everyone is on the same page and working towards the same objectives.

22. Tap into the power of tech

A CFO isn’t traditionally responsible for creating a digital transformation plan, but your role is evolving. Digital transformation is a critical part of every business operation, including finance.

Given this, you should involve yourself in any digital transformation strategy, particularly where it impacts financial operations.

Modern financial consolidation, reporting and analysis involve automation, and you’ll want to identify the areas where it’ll fit.

And with the rise of big data, AI, and machine learning, you have more information to draw insight than ever before.

By understanding the value of digital transformation, you can harness data to make more informed decisions, drive strategy, and steer the company towards its goals.

Here are some ways you could contribute to a digital transformation plan.

• Financial planning: You can help plan investment in digital transformation, balancing the costs and benefits and ensuring your business invests wisely in technology.
• Risk management: As with any major change, digital transformation brings risks. Your finance team can identify, assess, and manage some of them.
• Change management: Digital transformation often involves significant changes to business processes. You can contribute to managing this change.
• Data governance: Digital transformation often involves large amounts of data. You can help ensure you manage data appropriately, mitigating possible privacy and security issues.
• Skill development: Digital transformation often requires new skills. It’s your job to ensure that your finance function has the necessary skills for the digital age, including data analysis and digital literacy.

23. Place confidence in yourself and why you were hired

The first 90 days as a CFO are crucial for establishing credibility, building relationships, and setting a clear direction for your finance team.

Thoroughly assess your finance function, understand your business’s strategic objectives, and develop a finance strategy aligning with them.

Building strong relationships with key stakeholders, including the board, business leaders, and employees, will be critical for gaining support and buy-in for your financial strategy.

Of course, using the right financial technology can also help to drive efficiency and improve the accuracy of financial reporting as part of a digital transformation programme.

Most importantly, however, is to remember the skills and expertise you bring.

You were hired for the role for a reason and although the first few months in a new job can be daunting, you are the right person for the job and it’s vital to remember that during tough times at the start whilst you’re still new in the role.

Tapping into that mindset will also help project confidence in yourself that will benefit you in how you present yourself to others.

Summary

With a clear vision, strong relationships, and the right technology, you can make a strong impact in your first days and set the stage for long-term success as CFO.

Source: information from Sage