Finance & Performance

The finance functions that underpin an organisation’s success can be complex. Today’s finance professionals need the smart tools and guidance to manage these complexities and provide insights to drive profitability and growth—and Deloitte’s Finance & Performance services deliver the industry-leading knowledge and cloud-based solutions to do just that.

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Carbon-intelligent decision-making

Sustainability has become a global priority. But the pathway to sustainable operations is not marked. Finance has the skills to measure, evaluate, inform and support carbon-intelligent decision-making. How will you guide your business towards a sustainable future?

Be ready for change

Who could have predicted a global pandemic, geopolitical unrest, the emergence of climate change and sustainability, revolutionised worker expectations and major supply chain disruption —all at the same time? Finance needs to respond and adapt. The ever-increasing need for agility has led many CFOs to consider how their organisations can become more streamlined, responsive, and faster to deliver. As a Finance leader, how can you set up the organisation to thrive amid incessant change?

This agility can become a competitive and strategic advantage. It requires simplified and standardised processes, a foundation of innovative and enabling technologies and a highly skilled workforce, fluent in its different areas of expertise. A dynamic Finance capability evolves to win and sees every disruption as an opportunity.
Imagine a future in which your data and reporting capabilities enable you to respond to inflationary pressures by immediately assessing purchasing choices. What if, in the face of economic uncertainty, Finance can monitor costs along every step of the production line, using sensing technologies that provide insight into cost-reduction opportunities? Imagine a future in which any disruption, internal or external, becomes an opportunity for Finance to act with greater agility and flexibility, playing a vital role in achieving the business’s overall goals. To be successful Finance must build a resilient, integrated organisation that quickly adapts to change. It must meet the challenge of dynamic change by becoming dynamic itself.

Business is dynamic. Economic shocks, digital acceleration and the climate imperative drive incessant change. Finance can prosper amid the dynamism by becoming dynamic itself. Future success depends on being streamlined, resilient and faster to change. How can you shift Finance from traditional function to dynamic capability.

Jon Bailey, Offering Lead, Finance Strategy
jonlbailey@deloitte.ch | +41 58 279 7414

Enabling a data-driven enterprise

Five reasons why the CFO should govern enterprise data

Historically the CFO and Finance function have been associated with accounting and reporting, not data governance. But given increasing market pressures and business expectations, Finance has developed beyond being a mere data cruncher. We explain below why, in our view, the CFO should govern enterprise data.

Latest insights

A future-proof target operating model for Finance

What does a future-proof operating model look like?

Rapidly evolving trends in workforce, technology and markets are increasing the pressure on Finance to provide actionable insights to the business. Additionally, there is growing demand for Finance to become more adaptable and quicker to respond to internal and external requests for financial and non-financial information.

Where to start?

Cloud-based Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems, artificial intelligence (AI), advanced analytics – these are just a few examples of what has emerged as the new reality in Finance operations. The opportunities to digitise are versatile, as are the strategic choices for Finance leaders. What is the best way to design a digital Finance service delivery model, embracing new technology? Where is it best to start in an environment that is continuously changing? These are questions we want to help you address.

Establishing the roadmap

• Given the high pressure on Finance to steer the business whilst processing high volumes of transactions, digitisation can be challenging. This is how we would seek to help support your thinking about this challenge:
• Explore: Comprehend the trends which we see in the market for your industry, delve into what is possible with digital solutions and define your organisation’s digital appetite.
• Assess: Get a perspective on your digital maturity, examine the gaps you would like to address and derive digital initiatives.
• Prepare: Prioritise the initiatives and conclude on a digital Finance roadmap.
• Apply: Do all it takes to bring the roadmap to life – ranging from defining project governance and mobilising the team to the digital implementation.

Finance is done better when it’s done digitally. That’s true in part, and yet there are also roles for which machines need not apply. Scale, efficiency and accuracy are vital. So is the human connection. Where is your digital optimum, and how will you get there?

Nicole Osiecki, Offering Lead, Digital Finance
nosiecki@deloitte.ch | +41 58 279 6966

Latest insights

Finance Innovation Survey 2023

How Finance executives in Switzerland see the current state of AI and its potential in Finance

This year's Deloitte Finance Innovation Survey addresses the question of AI adoption in Finance. We explore the opportunity for the application of digital technologies generally, and AI in particular, within Finance, highlight the continuing importance of human talent and skills, even as automation advances, and explore the challenges of successful AI implementation.

Nowadays, business leaders expect Finance to be their co-pilot, helping them to steer the organisation using forward-looking insights, advanced analytics and effective performance management. Rethinking the role of Financial Control is best approached with a focus on value-adding activities such as proactive business partnering and the use of cutting-edge technology.

We are living through a period of drastic change affecting companies around the world – Covid, the supply crunch, inflation, tightening liquidity, just to name a few of the challenges. In order to keep up with the resulting pace and demand of the business, your Control and FP&A teams need to upgrade skills and tools and accelerate the speed of delivery. How far advanced are you on this journey?

Miriam Hirs, Offering Lead, Business Finance
mhirs@deloitte.ch | +41 58 279 6727

Latest insights

Build a competitive edge with Finance Business Partnering

Robust business decisions in challenging times

Finance has great potential to take a more active role in the business decision process and become a partner in building a competitive edge. In a close-knit collaboration with business leads, Finance Business Partners can provide actionable insight and improve performance all-round.

Effective Finance Business Partnering

Success stories from leading companies in Switzerland

Finance Business Partnering is a challenging topic for CFOs, as the expectations for finance functions to deliver meaningful and actionable insights keep growing. However

Finance Decision Intelligence

How a CFO can benefit from cognitive decision intelligence

Leverage cognitive capabilities that enhance predictive and prescriptive analytics to empower Finance to make augmented and automated decisions.

Advanced analytics for financial planning & analysis (FP&A)

Key considerations in designing next generation FP&A processes

Business stakeholders are making new demands of financial planning and forecasting. They are looking for relevance, timeliness and actionability: business steering requires up-to-date financial plans. The global pandemic exposed the weaknesses of traditional planning processes and forced Finance teams to revert to spreadsheets and financial modelling to provide support for decision-making at a volatile time.

Mastering Cost of Goods complexity in multinational manufacturing

Five key aspects of Supply Chain Business Finance transformation

Cost of Goods Sold (COGS) and product costing do not have to be pain points of the finance function. There is an opportunity to turn them into a competitive advantage – whereby an agile and technology-enabled Supply Chain Business Finance function adds value to the business through upgraded analytical capabilities, and supports corporate controlling by connecting business steering and accounting “worlds”.

The future of office space can create financial opportunities

Remote work post-pandemic can reduce facility needs and costs

By rethinking how employees work, companies could reduce the amount of office space they need, driving lower costs and a better employee experience.

Making Finance autonomous

The cornerstone of the Finance function has always been operational processes related to keeping the books. How these necessary tasks can be performed is changing fast as technology advances and efficiency and effectiveness rise, autonomous Finance processes are becoming a reality. We assist you in navigating the changes that are needed.

Assisting the transition

Our operational Finance practice focuses on the optimisation for efficiency and effectiveness of core Finance processes in every business, with the ultimate goal of helping clients achieve autonomous running of processes such as Order to Cash, Procure to Pay, and Close, Consolidate and Report.

Standardisation and automation of transactional finance processes is happening in organisations across industries. Automation is being introduced by Finance leaders who see the potential in autonomous business processes that allow their people and their business to do more, partnering more strategically across the business, while focusing less on the transactional processes that pay the bills and close the books.

The goal is clear – but how to get there? The journey to autonomous operational Finance starts with streamlined processes and standardised data, and employs cutting edge technologies. Our team is perfectly placed to help clients map the path to their future state of Finance operations and does so in partnership with some of the leading technology providers in the market.

More and more, Finance is being pushed to execute a greater volume of transactional processes while also delivering more forward-thinking, strategic insights. Key to delivering this is implementing automated processes and embracing technologies that allow Finance to partner with the business in deeper ways— without adding resources and costs to the back office.

Marwan Kosbah, Offering Lead, Operational Finance
mkosbah@deloitte.ch | +41 58 279 6978

Latest insights

Financial steering of agile functions

How Finance can guide the business while supporting an agile transformation

Today’s organisations are facing a more rapidly changing environment than ever before, in which fast and effective reactions are critical success factors. Agile methodologies have therefore become increasingly compelling, but the financial steering of fast-paced agile teams poses a challenge. Finance has to be transformed so that its role and that of an agile functional area can be aligned.

ERP transformation vision and road map for the finance functionI

Get started on the right path

ERP-enabled finance transformation can elevate the strategic value of the finance function. But how you define the journey is key. Discover how to develop a finance transformation vision and road map that can help the finance function deliver greater impact for your business.

The power to thrive: insights for leaders in Finance

Innovate to shape the new Finance now

The pandemic has accelerated the urgency to re-shape Finance. Evolutions in workforce and talent are driving the demand for Finance to adapt, and digital technology is now available to enable Finance to innovate and leap. In this article series we share our insights to help our Swiss clients better position their Finance functions for the new reality. The market won’t wait, should you?

Service delivery transformation

Global Business Services (GBS) bring an organisation’s disparate locations and businesses together, serving as a single enterprise network that can drive efficiency and insights in the kind of operational harmony that transforms outcomes.
How can you accelerate your service delivery transformation and lay the foundation for future growth and digitisation ?

Responding to the business’s fast-evolving needs

Global Business Services encompass centralised service delivery models, including shared services (captive), outsourcing, and centres of excellence (CoEs) to serve multiple business units across disparate locations. The scope of GBS can typically include Finance, IT, HR, and procurement, as well as other functions, and can be delivered onshore, near-shore, or offshore.

There is ever greater demand to manage disruptions and shift to more global, multifunctional models that are equipped to provide higher value at lower cost. Leading global businesses are looking into opportunities to do more with less by leveraging data and knowledge from across multiple businesses, functions, and geographies to drive ultimate value through digital capabilities. When human intelligence, combined with a range of industry experience, meets digital strategy and execution, companies can accelerate their growth through highly effective GBS.
Our specialists’ partner with you to understand the organisation’s strategic vision and assess how GBS can accelerate and drive results and synchronise governance and business practices across the globe to enhance collaboration and drive efficiencies. We advise our clients throughout the GBS journey, from initial strategy definition through to design and implementation, optimisation and further refinement. At a time when uncertainty is the new normal, we help you to future-proof your service delivery model by becoming agile and resilient in processes, talent, and technology.

Global Business Services are not only a transactional processing hub but a valuable partner, responding to today’s quickly evolving business needs. GBS can be your powerhouse, unlocking growth and insights and providing economies of scale, with the benefits of access to highly skilled specialists.

David Reiner, Offering Lead, Global Business Services
dreiner@deloitte.ch | +41 58 279 7843

Latest insights

Becoming agile in your service delivery model

Future-proofing your GBS Finance function

Recent geopolitical events have made Finance global business services (GBS) leaders begin to realise that agility, resilience and recovery plans are just as important as efficiency and effectiveness. A political conflict or a pandemic can quickly disrupt offshore operations. It pays to be prepared.

Becoming a digital front runner

Digital transformation for GBS Finance leaders

The pace of digital transformation is accelerating rapidly, with many customer-facing organisations embracing a “digital-first” mindset. This in turn places demands on the GBS organisation to transform itself into a modern partner for the business. To do that, GBS Finance leaders need to be well versed in the tools, methods, skill set and set-ups that can enable them to become a digital front runner.

Insights

Creating a successful ERP reporting strategy

Guiding principles for robust enterprise reporting

With more companies facing overwhelming amounts of enterprise data, it’s critical they chart a course for building a sustainable ERP reporting strategy. Learn how a successful reporting strategy—one focused on clean, consistent, and well-defined data—can position companies to drive growth, profitability, and overall competitiveness.

How Generative AI will transform Sourcing and Procurement Operations

The next disruptor for Source-to-Pay processes is here

From ChatGPT to Bard, generative AI technology is finally here and making waves—including in the sourcing and procurement landscape. Discover the many ways generative AI can boost efficiencies, unlock value, birth new digital capabilities, and revolutionise what’s possible across source-to-pay processes in the world of supply chain.

How finance can enable business agility

Mastering budgeting as a key success factor for agile business units, teams, and projects

The uncertainty and complexity confronting today’s businesses calls for an adaptable organisation that can rapidly identify and respond to change, such as fast-rising inflation – a key risk at present for Swiss CFOs. But traditional budgeting often becomes a limiting factor for business units transitioning to an Agile model that enables adaptability through dynamically formed, product-based cross-functional teams. To unleash the full potential of Agile, we propose an evolution to an adaptable portfolio-based budgeting approach, one that transforms how value is defined through fast feedback loops for agile business units, teams or projects.

Effective Finance Business Partnering

Success stories from leading companies in Switzerland

Finance Business Partnering is a challenging topic for CFOs, as the expectations for finance functions to deliver meaningful and actionable insights keep growing. However

Is Switzerland facing the threat of stagflation?

The Deloitte CFO Survey Switzerland – second half-year 2022

Swiss CFOs assess the economic outlook for Switzerland as significantly weaker than six months ago, however a slump in the economy is not yet imminent. A majority remain optimistic about their company’s financial outlook, offering a glimmer of hope. The risk environment has shifted to the impact of the geopolitical events, dominated by shortages and rising prices: inflation, supply chain challenges, raw material and energy prices, and energy shortages are the most frequently cited risks.

The ‘Crunch time’ series for CFOs

From cloud computing and robotics to analytics, cognitive technologies, and blockchain, a new class of digital disruptors is transforming how the work of finance gets done. Examine specific digital disruptors and their impacts in our "Crunch time" report series.

Our events

Deloitte Finance Day

Finance in a Digital World

An exciting platform for networking and exchange awaits senior finance executives under the topic Finance in a Digital World. With keynote speakers, panel discussions, benchmark meetings and client stories, the full day event offers you interesting insights as well as the chance to connect and discuss.