CFO as the Master of Measurement
CFO as the Master of Measurement
CFO as the Master of Measurement
The CFO's role in measuring things is not just about getting the numbers right. It's rather about guiding and monitoring
business improvement toward the agreed goals. And, in this light, CFOs need to involve themselves in the following
activities:
Workflows and existing processes for enterprise data governance need to be tested for efficiency and effectiveness.
Efficiency refers to the level of manual workflows / hand-offs and standardization of business rules. Effectiveness, on
the other hand, refers to the review and approval of new master data, such as customers / suppliers; data
redundancies and turnaround times
Help develop common key business metrics across the organization. The CFO has to work with key stakeholders in
the organization to define corporate goals the measures that help drive business outcomes, including customer
satisfaction, revenue growth, cost reduction, asset turnover, cash flow and operating profit and spread them across
the organization. Often, the core business metrics are not aligned in terms of priorities across business functions. For
instance, during the recession, companies looking at retaining cash flow rather than increasing sales may not have
been able to permeate the strategy across all functions
Standardize business rules and measurement procedures. One needs to look at the finer nuances. For instance, does
an organization track aging of debtors by calendar month or actual days outstanding? Often, different components in a
business look at things differently and as organizations grow, measurement processes get varied. The CFO needs to
drive the usage of a common metric across the board
Garner appropriate sponsorship and active participation of all business stakeholders. The CFO has to help the
champion for business intelligence in winning the support of the management team in an organization. One cannot
expect an accounting clerk to drive metrics!
Processes must be optimized. Consolidation, standardization and automation of master data workflows will provide the
quick wins needed to get the buy-in from various business units.
Upgrade technology as necessary. Instead of the traditional rip and replace' approach CFOs can champion the cause
for using Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) integration technologies that provide opportunities to extend the life and
value of existing data stores. IT can enable the infrastructure, capacity and scalability once the businesses own the
technology.
In my view, the CFO's role does not come at the end of the year to substantiate and analyze what has already been done
through the year. It's about getting involved in the nuances of what is being measured; how it is being measured; and
ensuring that it is being measured accurately using the right tools. And that's why I believe, a CFO is the Master of
Measurement.
In case of any social event it is wise to keep plastic water tanks Is Transaction-based Pricing the Next Big Thing in the FAO world? Thoughts From The Box - "The Butterfly Affect" Why Is 3D Rendering an Impeccable Part in the Field of Architecture Reg Fix Clean Up Tool - Seeing Is Believing ! The Importance Of Confidentiality Utilize Firewood Racks to Do Away with Firewood Mess Conference venues 1000 Calorie Challenge Useful Fap-turbo Settings From Rob Casey's Fapturbo Expert Guide - How To Make More With Fap Turbo Class Action – know whether you qualify as a plaintiff Change Is Inevitable Veteran Hospitals