The Digital CFO

The pandemic has thrust finance leaders across the UK into the spotlight. With the economy reeling, and businesses unsure about the way forward, executives turned to their CFOs for strategic guidance. COVID-19 heightened the leadership status of the finance team, but it also increased expectations that they could predict the financial future. The ongoing pressure from executives to provide a higher volume and quality of insights, and at greater speed, coupled with frustration over their own outdated manual processes, led many UK financial leaders to rethink their digital strategies. According to a recent survey of 500 senior finance leaders in small and mid-sized UK firms, more than half (56%) of finance professionals say digitalisation is now their number one goal for the coming two years. These leaders are eager to embrace the benefits of better data governance; improved forecasting; and the ability to provide insights, rather than just hard data.