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Finance Function Transformation Beyond the Numbers Game. Traditional finance roles built their foundation on historical data—reviewing past performance, reconciling accounts, and producing reports documenting what already happened. This backward-looking orientation provides necessary financial stewardship but offers little guidance for future strategic decisions. Modern finance function transformation moves beyond transactional activities to embrace transformative strategic partnership. Think about the difference between a ship's log and a navigation chart. The log documents where you've been; the chart helps plot where you're going. Your transformed finance function should provide strategic navigation, not just historical documentation. "Strategy is about making choices, trade-offs; it's about deliberately choosing to be different," observed Michael Dell, Founder and CEO of Dell Technologies. This wisdom captures the strategic role of transformed finance leadership—helping organizations make informed decisions about investment priorities and resource allocation. Excerpts From:

Finance Function Transformation Beyond the Numbers Game. Traditional finance roles built their foundation on historical data—reviewing past performance, reconciling accounts, and producing reports documenting what already happened. This backward-looking orientation provides necessary financial stewardship but offers little guidance for future strategic decisions. Modern finance function transformation moves beyond transactional activities to embrace transformative strategic partnership. Think about the difference between a ship's log and a navigation chart. The log documents where you've been; the chart helps plot where you're going. Your transformed finance function should provide strategic navigation, not just historical documentation. "Strategy is about making choices, trade-offs; it's about deliberately choosing to be different," observed Michael Dell, Founder and CEO of Dell Technologies. This wisdom captures the strategic role of transformed finance leadership—helping organizations make informed decisions about investment priorities and resource allocation. Excerpts From:

Finance Function Transformation Beyond the Numbers Game. Traditional finance roles built their foundation on historical data—reviewing past performance, reconciling accounts, and producing reports documenting what already happened. This backward-looking orientation provides necessary financial stewardship but offers little guidance for future strategic decisions. Modern finance function transformation moves beyond transactional activities to embrace transformative strategic partnership. Think about the difference between a ship's log and a navigation chart. The log documents where you've been; the chart helps plot where you're going. Your transformed finance function should provide strategic navigation, not just historical documentation. "Strategy is about making choices, trade-offs; it's about deliberately choosing to be different," observed Michael Dell, Founder and CEO of Dell Technologies. This wisdom captures the strategic role of transformed finance leadership—helping organizations make informed decisions about investment priorities and resource allocation. Excerpts From:

CFOs are no longer just financial stewards. They're becoming Chief Value Officers, driving transformation that extends far beyond the finance function. Recent research from BDO and KPMG reveals a fundamental shift: leading CFOs are prioritising AI-driven automation and strategic value creation over traditional compliance and reporting. Samsung Electronics' appointment of Park Soon-cheol as CFO exemplifies this trend, positioning finance leaders to oversee critical cash flow management and major investment decisions. The transformation isn't just about technology adoption. It's about freeing finance teams from manual, time-consuming tasks so they can focus on strategic insights and decision-making. Forward-thinking CFOs are building future-ready teams by embedding automation into everyday operations, particularly in areas like accounts receivable management. This shift creates a compelling case for comprehensive order-to-cash automation. When finance leaders can automate invoicing, payment processing, and dispute resolution, they gain the visibility and time needed to drive real strategic value. The question isn't whether finance will transform, but how quickly organisations can position themselves to lead this evolution.

𝗜𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗳𝘂𝗻𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘄𝘁𝗵, 𝗼𝗿 𝗶𝘀 𝗶𝘁 𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸?   For mid-market CFOs, the tipping point is clear: the books close, but later than they should. Your team is mired in transactional work, leaving no room for the analysis that drives strategy.   The default responses—hiring more staff or buying new software—often merely add cost to a broken process. So what's the alternative?   In our latest blog, we break down the strategic case for finance and accounting outsourcing, specifically for first-time partners. It's not about replacement; it's about augmentation and empowerment.   Learn how to: → Benchmark your close against top performers → Uncover the hidden cost of manual processes and delays → Evaluate a proven partnership model for mid-market growth   https://lnkd.in/daQ9XXGc   #CFO #FinanceLeadership #MidMarket #Outsourcing #FinancialClose #OperationalExcellence #PremierNX

From balancing technology adoption and people management to being deeply involved in enterprise strategy, today's CFOs are being asked to wear more hats and make more impact. This compelling piece from CFO's Peer Audit series explores how the “strategic, collaborative, forward-thinking” label has long been part of the CFO story and how the expectations today are pushing the role into new territory. Read the full article from here: https://bit.ly/42sAt8L #CFO #FinanceLeadership #Strategy

🌟 New report: Finance Trends 2026 with insights from 1,300+ global CFOs and finance leaders shaping the future of finance 💡    In a world of economic twists, shifting regulations and lightning-fast tech change, today’s CFOs are rewriting the playbook. They are thinking smarter, operating leaner and hiring with future growth in mind – exploring new markets, gearing up for acquisitions and building teams to be ready for the future 📈    Discover the five game-changing trends set to transform finance and the CFO role in our new Deloitte report here: https://lnkd.in/dF5WcVKZ   #DeloitteAudit #ImpactThatMatters #TopTier #CFOprogram #FinanceTrends2026 

Finance leaders in the mid-market often hit the same wall: the close takes longer than it should, and the team spends more time looking backward than planning forward. Adding headcount or new software rarely fixes the underlying strain. What I found compelling in this piece is the structured, phased approach: 1️⃣ Stabilize by taking on the heavy transactional load. 2️⃣ Optimize existing systems instead of piling on more tools. 3️⃣ Advance towards real insights that shape decision-making. My view: Outsourcing, when positioned as a partnership, isn’t about replacement. It’s about empowering internal teams to shift from “keeping the books” to driving the business. Full article here: https://lnkd.in/d6jdJ7Ha #CFO #FinanceLeadership #MidMarket #Outsourcing #FinancialClose #OperationalExcellence #PremierNX

For years, PE has poured into accounting, consulting, and outsourcing. One segment always stayed off-limits: executive search. That changed this week. Advent International and Corvex are taking Heidrick & Struggles private — a $1.3 billion bet that even the most reputation-driven business in the industry can be platformized. Search sits in the middle ground — it shares the volatility of OCFO advisory (event-driven, people-led) and the fragmentation of accounting (thousands of boutiques, a few giants). Until now, that mix kept investors away. If Advent and Corvex can prove there’s a scalable model across retained, interim, and leadership advisory, this could mark the start of PE’s next frontier in professional services. I’ll unpack what this means — and what it doesn’t — in my newsletter later this week.

Compared to the recent past, today’s leading chief financial officers are thinking differently, operating differently, and hiring differently. They’re helping navigate new markets, preparing for acquisitions and divestures, and building future-ready teams. But they’re contending with a complex growth environment. In Deloitte’s 2026 Finance Trends Survey of over 1,300 global finance leaders, 57% say they're helping shape enterprise strategy. This isn't just a report; it's a comprehensive guide to understanding the evolving role of the CFO and the future of the finance function and what it means for the future of an organization. 📥 Access the full report: https://lnkd.in/e5TYYyqd #Deloitte #financetrends