Why the future belongs to smarter finance, not stretched teams

Too many finance teams are expected to scale overnight without the systems to keep up. Recent research shows most finance leaders of mid-sized companies now work outside standard office hours: 99% say they work evenings or weekends, and a notable 64% do this frequently. Even so, finance teams still struggle to get timely, reliable information to make decisions. This isn’t a question of effort – it's the result of repeated operational friction, such as long deployments, unexpected supplier costs and reliance on manual workarounds that drain capacity and slow strategy.

Smarter finance is not about replacing people with technology. It’s about connecting systems and introducing the right, tailored tech stacks that remove repetitive work and give both teams and leaders the clarity to make faster, better decisions – so they can focus on strategy and growth rather than firefighting. The future of finance should be measured in clarity and capacity, not hours worked.

Slow, complex systems draining teams

Long and costly implementations of finance systems can overwhelm finance teams. I’ve personally heard stories from finance leaders who have had to put up with months and months of drawn-out deployments that lead to teams feeling more stretched and less invigorated in their work. There’s even the story of a finance leader who went into labour early due to the stress of an ERP rollout and, upon returning from their maternity leave, discovered that it still wasn’t complete! 

One of the striking findings from the research was the fact that three in every five finance teams use less than half of their system’s functionality. Not only is this sending money down the drain (given an ERP can cost £100,000 a year), but by grappling with too many features, teams are spending their time managing system complexity instead of utilising it to automate their processes and generate insights in a consumable format. In particular, a lack of integration with critical business systems and bank accounts can significantly hinder processes. 

By the time finance teams find relevant financial data in its corresponding system or spreadsheet, manually transfer it onto another system, and then consolidate it for reporting, it can be outdated. Errors might have creeped into the datasets during the process too. So, the effort of trying to report in a timely manner while also sanity checking data for accuracy can stretch teams to the limit and dampen their morale. They’re working round the clock to patch inefficient processes, and this leaves them susceptible to burnout. All of this eats into a healthy working culture and weakens decision-making at the top. 

The data gap

Real-time data isn’t just needed for improving internal processes. It’s also integral for better protecting organisations against volatile external conditions. With economic growth stagnant and markets ever more uncertain, access to live, consolidated information matters more than ever. There is a pressure to make quick and precise decisions – this explains why CFOs ranked timely access to data as their top concern (25%). Yet despite this, nearly two-thirds reported that their financial decisions were sometimes made without enough data, and 29% said this happens often or always. 

If data is fragmented and locked away in different systems, then this majorly undermines business agility. For example, supplier disruption caused by a cyberattack might necessitate the reallocation of resources for a certain entity of the business to minimise its impact. Without a real-time overview of financial performance across the group, CFOs are handicapped in their ability to understand how best to mitigate this disruption and optimise resources. Inevitably, this will create a lot more stress, pressure and work for them and their finance teams. 

The more real-time visibility CFOs have over their company and its subsidiaries, however, the quicker they can react to such external impacts. They can also proactively anticipate future challenges, accurately forecast factors like revenue, and, imperatively, guide business strategy with data. This should result in a more efficient, productive and motivated team. 

Finding the golden middle ground (with minimal disruption)

The potential disruption caused by a system implementation or migration can prevent CFOs from adopting new finance software. Yet holding onto smaller or overly complex software can create more problems than it solves too. So, CFOs need to plan a considered migration strategy and staged adoption to mitigate any disruption and avoid hidden costs.  

The first step in achieving this is to look for software that is suited to the company’s size, one that offers enough functionality for your needs but not so much that it impacts team processes and you end up overpaying for it – the golden middle ground. While this decision will be specific to each company, the three most desired characteristics expressed by leaders in the research were:

1. Consolidation needs for multiple accounts (34%)

2. Better reporting capabilities (30%)

3. Value for money (30%)

These are more general and commonly sought after features for mid-sized companies. A crucial step in achieving them requires CFOs to outline how the new system will connect with their existing infrastructure (to ensure a smooth migration) and evaluate what software features their team actually needs. 

Then, to avoid complex and laborious implementations, they should prioritise efficient, phased onboarding where there is streamlined transition onto the new platform – this strategy will mean it actually takes place faster overall then attempting it in one go. Dedicated, personalised support for finance teams should be non-negotiable to facilitate this process. 

The right software will create a finance function that is truly data driven. With smarter systems and real-time visibility, teams can form a healthier work-life balance and culture while driving business strategy.