WORLD ACADEMY OF INFORMATICS AND MANAGEMENT SCIENCES
ISSN : 2278-1315
For finance professionals, some of their core accounting and
behind. With this research, we want to help more
finance skills are at risk of becoming automated (Figure 3)
organizations to lead from the front.
into algorithms and software systems. This means that,
rather than being focused at foundational and intermediate
The keys to transformation
proficiency levels, finance professionals of the future will
need to concentrate on applying higher-level expertise. They
Based on our interviews, it appears that an organization’s top
will become the guardians or policemen for the automated
priorities to transform its finance function should be to:
finance process and accounting algorithm.
a. Make use of the latest technologies to release the full
capacity of the finance function,
b. Widen the remit of finance to cover a broader range
2. BUSINESS SKILLS: KNOWLEDGE OF DATA
of management information, generating new insights
SOURCES, ANALYTICAL SKILLS AND JUDGMENT
Here, business acumen skills are less susceptible to
and business solutions,
technological automation. The future focus needs to centre
c. Provide and empower finance professionals with new
on a good knowledge of data sources, analytical skills and
competencies and growth mindsets to help your
judgment. This includes commercial curiosity and an
organization create and preserve value.
ongoing drive to better understand and learn more about the
That’s what this project is all about.
organization and its ecosystem.
So, armed with this briefing, why not start a conversation on
the future of finance in your organization? Read one or all of
3. PEOPLE SKILLS: BUILDING EMPATHY AND
our briefing papers on emerging themes and share them within
INTERACTIONS WITH STAKEHOLDERS
your network.
Management accountants are often deployed to work
alongside business unit managers in business value
You can then ask yourself:
partnering roles, to bring professional rigor to performance
management. Recent CGMA research found that the
How do the emerging themes resonate in your organization?
objectivity they bring and the questions they ask can prompt
Where are you and your organization on the journey to
those collaborative conversations needed to generate
realizing the finance function of the future?
insights and improve performance. However, this
collaboration requires business understanding and
How, in the light of these themes, will you reconsider your
influencing skills. The future focus needs to be on building
strategies to meet the future finance function’s innovative
empathy and interactions with stakeholders, as these are less
mandate?
susceptible to automation and will drive valuable business
insight.
Five things you can do in light of this briefing
4. Leadership skills: team building, mentoring, driving
performance and change management
Leadership skills – which centre on team building, coaching
and mentoring, driving performance, change management,
and the ability to motivate and inspire – are the least
susceptible to automation. This is borne out in the
McKinsey research, where ‘managing others’ has a mere
nine per cent chance of becoming an automatable activity.
What’s clear is that finance professionals’ core
competencies will need to adapt as the intelligence
augmentation model embeds into the finance function.
There also needs to be a shift in mindset. We must all have
the curiosity to find out what we don’t know, be able
continually to ask the right kind of questions, and actively
challenge our own opinions, as we proceed to the future.
THE FUTURE OF FINANCE: JOIN US ON OUR
JOURNEY
Our briefings on these emerging themes will enable us to
discuss a new delivery model for modern finance, with
certain key features. Ultimately, all organizations face the
same obstacles of building capacity, competence and
credibility within their future finance functions.
The difference is that some organizations are innovators on
the journey to the future, while others are lagging
www.waims.co.in
1. Allow yourself to build time into your working life for
contemplation and the construction of good questions. A good
question has the ability to inspire people to think and act.
When paired with technology, it can lead to disruptive
innovation for your organization.
2. Consider enhancing your skills around empathy, and social
and emotional intelligence. These skills are currently
underused and difficult to replicate in machine learning
technologies. What’s more, they’re increasingly becoming the
core skills of the finance professional.
In order to advise and influence decision makers and achieve
impact, it’s important to develop your collaboration and
partnering skills.
3. Encourage yourself to learn from and reward failure.
Failure is a route to innovation and success, so it’s useful to
develop a habit of observing your assumptions and reviewing
them continually. In a world where technology is likely to
replace us in the dull, repeatable, tactical tasks, we will be
freed up to learn, innovate and play.
4. Place priority on building your social networks.
These networks can be as important as official hierarchies
when influencing decision making, and they are also helpful
in challenging long-held assumptions.
ENDEAVOR 2019 | WAIMS ACADMIC PRESS
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