The document discusses how finance departments can adapt to better support organizations in the future. It provides summaries from 15 finance experts on how to optimize processes, technology, and personnel for data-driven decision making, overcoming data analysis challenges, enabling real-time scenario analysis, and developing a strategic approach. The experts emphasize the importance of improved data management, communication, automation, and a willingness to invest in new technologies.

2. Get Ready to Crush It!
If you’ve played any of those candy-colored smartphone
games, you know how addictive they can be. There’s
something deeply satisfying about planning ahead and lining
things up to score a game-beating combo.
Are you getting the same satisfaction with your financial
planning, analysis, and forecasting? If your department is
focused on reporting what happened last quarter, beware:
the future of finance is a whole new game. It’s time to
look to the future, plan high-scoring moves, and help your
organization crush it in 2018.
We asked 15 FP&A experts how the finance department can
optimize their processes, technology, and personnel to adapt
to this new game. Keep reading for their thoughts on data
management, real-time scenario analysis, strategy, and more.

3. Your Finance Team
Level 1:
Data-Driven
Decision
Making
Level 2:
Overcoming Data
Analysis Challenges
Level 3:
Real-Time
Scenario Analysis
Level 4:
Developing
a Strategic
Approach
Level Up

4. Leigh
Tucker, CPA
Magnus
Lind
Kenneth
Fick
Jim
Marous
Darryl
Bannon
Gabrielle
Luoma
Robert D.
Kugel, CFA
Tom
Hood
Jack
Sweeney
David
Worrell
Shawn
DuBravac
Ranica
Arrowsmith
David
Chase
Peter
Chisambara
April
Rudin
INTRODUCING THE PLAYERS: 15 Finance Experts

5. Data-Driven
Decision Making
Most finance departments don’t have
a quantity problem when it comes
to data. The challenge is finding the
quality data, verifying it, and turning it
into actionable intelligence.
FINANCE EXPERTS

6. The days of finance being the
‘guardian of every dollar spent’
are gone; prudent allocation of
resources and the ability to see
the big picture is the new norm.”Leigh Tucker, CPA
Principal, Managing Director
Nonprofit Client Practice,
CliftonLarsonAllen LLP
FINANCE EXPERTS

7. There is no single source of a
‘data truth’. We need to assemble
the data sources and conduct the
advanced analysis based on the
information we have, then test the
accuracy (and usability) of this
view, improving it through a test-
and-learn process.”
Jim Marous
Co-publisher of
The Financial Brand
FINANCE EXPERTS

8. Finance departments should
have a data repository able
to handle financial and non-
financial data. To ensure that
data is accurate and up-to-date,
it should avoid storing data in
individual spreadsheets.”
Robert D. Kugel, CFA
SVP & Research Director of CFO
and Business Research
Ventana Research
FINANCE EXPERTS

9. Overcoming Data
Analysis Challenges
Faster, more relevant data analysis requires
organizational changes in the finance
department. Better communication and
smarter automation are key.
FINANCE EXPERTS

10. When business owners have to
cover the roles of CEO, CFO and
Controller, they rarely find a good
balance between driving accurate
reporting and implementing
change. It’s critical to slash
unnecessary processes, be willing
to sacrifice a certain level of detail,
and automate as much accounting
and reporting as possible.”
David Worrell
Founding Partner
Fuse Financial Partners, LLC
FINANCE EXPERTS

11. Even though many finance
personnel feel driven to move
past report generation and into
value-added insight, many aren’t
sure exactly how to do so. And
paradoxically, the convergence of
finance, data visualization and data
science - the very movement that
will provide the tools necessary -
leaves many feeling threatened.”
David Chase
Managing Partner & CEO
Advanced CFO
FINANCE EXPERTS

12. Currently, we chop up the
financial chain into silos. Businesses
need to align the Office of Finance
to the overall business goal.
Otherwise, we cannot take the next
step to make all the independent
links into a full chain and move on
to the next level of efficiency and
competitiveness.”
Magnus Lind
CEO Skanör Group and
Author ‘FINANCE UNLEASHED’
Skanor Group
FINANCE EXPERTS

13. If you want any change
you need to get your people
involved. Start small to get the
quick wins. How can I simplify a
process? Do I need all the reports
I run? Ask those who receive
outputs from your department-
do you still need them?”
Darryl Bannon
Director
Darryl Bannon Consulting Ltd
FINANCE EXPERTS

14. Real-Time
Scenario Analysis
To truly be strategic advisers, finance leaders
need to provide scenario analysis in the
moment, not after weeks (or months) of
number crunching. It’s important to align
people, processes and technology to make
rapid-response analysis possible.
FINANCE EXPERTS

15. Tom Hood
President & CEO
Maryland Association of CPA’s &
The Business Learning Institute
To enable quick on-the-fly
analysis, finance pros need to get
their data in one place. Identify
major sources & link them or store
data in a data warehouse.”
FINANCE EXPERTS

16. Shawn DuBravac
President
Astra Insights
Organizations need to move
to an environment with reporting,
assessment, and decision-
making happening in a robust,
continuous cycle.”
FINANCE EXPERTS

17. Peter Chisambara
Founder & Principal Consultant
ERPM Insights
CFOs need to leverage
modern digital solutions,
automate routine processes
and create more time for
strategic analysis and insightful
finance decision support.”
FINANCE EXPERTS

18. Kenneth Fick
Senior Manager
MorganFranklin Consulting
Executives need to weigh the
informational priorities of accuracy
and timely and relevant information
to make the best decisions. Audited,
historical financial information may
be very accurate but how timely
and relevant is it if it takes nearly
three-months or more after an
accounting close to get it?”
FINANCE EXPERTS

19. Strategic Approach
Finance leaders may need to step out
of their comfort zone to innovate for
the future. More transparency, open
communication, and investment in new
technology will help equip the finance
department to be more strategic.
FINANCE EXPERTS

20. Gabrielle Luoma
Founder & CEO
GMLCPA
Accounting and Finance must
work together to create systems that
will help Accounting deliver relevant
and accurate information, and
Finance will need to communicate
what information is needed.
Communication is key.”
FINANCE EXPERTS

21. Jack Sweeney
Host of CFO Thought Leader
CFOs must share more data
to educate employees. Transparent
leadership can inspire workers
who, in return, will identify pools
of strategic data that can be
converted by the finance team
into competitive advantage.”
FINANCE EXPERTS

22. Ranica Arrowsmith
Technology Editor
Accounting Today
Be open to hearing what
new technology can do that you
hadn’t previously considered.
Place an emphasis on efficiency
and time-saving tools.”
FINANCE EXPERTS

23. April Rudin
President/Founder
The Rudin Group
Finance professionals need
to understand that investing in
technology can be a revenue
generator, not an expense item.
Investing in technology will bring
better data quality, give better
insight into clients wants and
needs, and help build business
with future clients.”
FINANCE EXPERTS

24. Are You Ready to Crush It?
The finance department has never been better positioned or
equipped to become leaders in the organization. Taking on
this new role — expanding beyond the traditional boundaries
of the finance function — will require new ways of thinking
about people, processes, and technology.
Are you ready to lead the digital transformation in your
finance department?
Visit our “Power Up Your FP&A with Data” webpage. You’ll
find even more expert advice and analysis from our high-
scoring team. You can get in the game yourself with our
interactive quiz, The Future of Business Finance: How to
Crush It in 2018. Answer questions, get new insights, and
aim for the high score!
Click to Power Up!
FINANCE EXPERTS