Where is the IT in team?

Whether as the result of mergers, legacy applications or piecemeal solutions, corporate finance teams often have to work across multiple systems and processes.

As the systems stack up, transparency, control and efficiency, in short all those things the systems were brought in to help, end up suffering. For Finance and Procurement, which rely most heavily on these, a lack of transparency and siloed systems can mean lost negotiating opportunities, low levels of compliance and poor reporting. By the time key information is disseminated, it’s already out of date, directly affecting an organisation’s ability to optimise profits and stay competitive.

Without the right information reaching the right people at the right time, cash flow, supplier relationships and ultimately growth can be irreparably damaged.

Whilst technology may seem the enemy it’s often a case of poor integration between siloed departmental systems. Disparate technologies struggle, or are not set up to share information, leading to data stagnating in divided systems. And the burden on IT of managing these disparate systems can be great.

Many of the answers to simpler corporate finance lie in transparency and collaboration. Something that technology should facilitate, not obstruct.

CFOs cannot be successful unless they can reduce expenditure. Procurement executives cannot strike better deals without more effective financial processes. By tying together the systems that support these processes, procurement and finance are both armed with what they need. The real-time information, collaborative capabilities and effective processes to secure the best deals, manage supplier risk or volatility and reduce costs.

IT leaders need to create a landscape which supports efficiency. There is no longer the need to consolidate systems in order to provide a standard for finance. A standard process across Purchase-to-Pay (P2P), supported by an integrated platform, allows finance and procurement to collaborate and reap significant rewards. It will also provide a basis for growth and allow easier system roll-out in future, better supporting your organisation’s long term and strategic objectives.