'Crunch Time' for CFOs archive

Learn how algorithmic forecasting can be a transparent way to improve the forecasting process, while relieving finance professionals of tedious, repetitive work. The result? More accurate and timely forecasts—and more informed decisions.

Our Algorithmic Forecasting guide shares the basics of algorithmic forecasting and how it changes forecasting processes, the workforce, and decision making.

When tax is modernized, it shifts from being mostly a compliance function to a high-value planning and reporting function. Check out this guide that reveals the impact of new data modeling tools and other resources that make it possible to deliver valuable tax insights and implications—in real time.

For many CFOs, deciding when and how to implement SAP S/4HANA could be the most significant technology investment choices of their career. It’s a big deal. Check out this guide that explains the benefits of stepping up to the new system and what to consider for a smooth implementation.

Digital platforms can make finance organisations faster and more effective than ever before. But the devil is in the details. What’s the right digital architecture for your company? When are you ready to begin implementation? How can new technology help you keep pace with expanding business and regulatory requirements—or even meet challenges posed by a global public health crisis? As you consider your options, you’ll want to take a look at Oracle Cloud.

No matter what future you see ahead for your finance organisation, one thing is sure. If business leaders around you are going to compete in the digital world, they will need to process more information more efficiently, and turn that information into deeper insights faster than ever. It will likely require new technology — a group of people who are curious and skilled in using it.

Deloitte's original point of view, Crunch Time: Finance in a digital world — based on extensive research with finance executives, including in-depth interviews with CFOs of global businesses — explores the various digital disruptors and may be the quickest way to understand what's in store for finance organisations as they hurtle toward the future.

Thirty CFOs share their unfiltered thoughts and experiences around a broader discussion of finance and what it means to make the digital journey. Deloitte knows that one way to stay abreast of new developments is to join in focused conversations with other finance leaders, across multiple industries and geographies, so this is a good place to start.

Cognitive technologies have been adopted in other areas of business, inspiring finance to start learning about them, experimenting with them, and figuring out how to use them. The goal, as with any finance technology initiative, is to create a more efficient, insightful, and controlled finance function, yet only 42 percent of surveyed CFO’s said their finance team is knowledgeable about emerging technologies, including cognitive.

Crunch Time III: The CFO’s guide to cognitive technology provides a collection of examples based on currently available technologies we’ve seen companies begin to test and adopt, in addition to our experience working with many finance organisations that are devoting more resources — financial and human — to deploying new technologies in these early days of cognitive.

It’s important to remember that none of these technologies stands on its own. There is no Internet of Things or blockchain without cloud computing. There is no cognitive pattern matching without advanced analytics. The technologies build on one another. And what do they build into? Faster and better ways of getting work done.

Ten minutes into a discussion with a group of blockchain professionals, one CFO shook his head. “This is ridiculously ambiguous,” he complained. And it didn’t take long for others to agree. In response, we set out to demystify blockchain for CFOs, focusing on how finance organisations can apply blockchains to streamline processes, improve controls, and transform finance operations.

Crunch Time IV: Blockchain for Finance is a practical guide for finance organisations that want to understand options for blockchain and make effective decisions about moving forward. It features more than a dozen frequently asked questions finance teams can use to make sense of blockchain technology, as well as a high-level roadmap for adoption. It also includes a seven-point checklist for CFOs who are thinking about embarking on the blockchain journey.