• ACCA, CA ANZ and Generation CFO join forces to help finance teams cope with disruption, risk and continuous change
• Information from NTT DATA explains that transformation is a series of strategic and incremental changes that improve the business model.

Organizations continue to face rapid change in the face of Covid-19, climate change and technological innovations – and a new report urges finance functions working in these places to lead and embrace this change, or risk being left behind.

In Transformational journeys: finance and the agile organization ACCA, CA ANZ and Generation CFO state that the role of finance and its competencies are closely linked to organizational transformation.

But they also caution that certainty about the purpose of finance and accounting professionals in organizations is needed to ensure their future relevance. How the finance team aligns with organizational goals is critical to ensuring they continue to effectively contribute to the transformation of their workplace, whether large or small.

The roles of finance teams are increasingly expanded, managing operational, climate and non-financial data, and providing insights based on robust data analyzes collected through effective and efficient processes. As such, they must be at the heart of the transformation as key players in the performance and control agendas of an organization.

Helen Brand, Executive Director of ACCA explains: “Financial professionals have a clear role to play in the transformation. The nature of this role depends on the extent to which they have a vision of how finance itself can contribute to the organization of the future. Finance teams need to be forward-looking and agile in the face of constant change. ‘

Ainslie van Onselen, Managing Director, Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand adds: “There is no doubt that the speed of change will continue to accelerate. Being prepared for this acceleration will allow finance and accounting professionals to fully play their role in the transformation process and help ensure long-term organizational success. ‘

Comments from Chris Argent, Founder and CEO of Generation CFO: “The advice I would give myself as an occasional CFO is that accountants explore how they can play a major role in the future direction and development of their organizations. It’s not just about appreciating the technological improvements underway, but also understanding the cultural shifts in working methods that the pandemic has brought to light.

The report includes insights from Jason Ford, vice president of NTT DATA UK on what transformation really is – strategic, incremental changes that improve the business model – and key transformation trends, understanding risks the rise of “Cloud Native”. .

Ford explains, “Transformation is a very big subject. As organizations evolve to meet the needs of their customers, we need to re-evaluate how we assess the effectiveness of transformation. This requires collaboration between those responsible for development and service delivery and the finance function, in order to understand the realities of the investment case and to effectively measure performance. It is for this reason that organizations must ensure that agility is at the heart of their business strategy, so that they can not only react quickly and adapt to changing customer expectations, but they do so from the as effectively and efficiently as possible. ‘

Advice and ways to achieve transformation concludes the report, with tangible ways that accountants can lead the way in urgent engagement with the environment in search of business purpose and the moral responsibility of the profession. .