STUDY: 2024 CFO/Controller Sentiment Study

What will CFOs and Controllers do differently in 2024? Adopting AI is one major priority, which may assist with the ongoing talent shortage. Managing a Hybrid work environment will dominate. And carefully watching spend even with improved financial performance. The overwhelming majority of respondents serve as Controllers or CFOs, or similar financial positions for companies in the Small-Medium Business (SMB) category. This study’s demographics reflect a rich crosssection of American industries, including manufacturing, non-profit, software/technology, construction and professional services. 

2024 CFO/Controller Sentiment Study

STUDY: Corporate Finance & Accounting Talent Study (2023)

In 2023, CFOs and Controllers across the globe revamped their accounting and finance professional talent acquisition strategies to improve retention, find quality employees, and ensure that the needs of their organizations were being met. In this year’s study, Controllers Council researchers thoroughly explored how your CFO and Controller peers are dealing with ongoing talent challenges, including retention and recruitment.

Corporate Finance & Accounting Talent Study (2023)

STUDY: 2023 Controller/CFO Sentiment Study

What will Controllers and CFOs do differently in 2023? This inaugural study seeks to understand how current business and economic environments are impacting corporate financial planning, strategy, priorities, and outlooks. The 2023 indexes represent a “bullish” outlook for individual company financial performance, along with a “cautious” plan for spending. The new indexes will serve as benchmarks for future data, while identifying trends in financial performance and organizational spending.

2023 Controller/CFO Study

STUDY: The Digital Controller/CFO – 2022

Controllers and CFOs have shifted from the traditional roles of financial reporting and compliance, to take on greater responsibilities in many aspects of accounting/finance and corporate technology. We conducted The Digital Controller/CFO: Benchmark Study 2022 to identify the current trends in duties, roles, and responsibilities for Controllers, CFOs, and other accounting professionals.

Digital Controller/CFO Study - 2022

STUDY: Corporate Finance Upskilling/Reskilling

With this backdrop, the objective of the Corporate Finance Upskill/Reskill Study is to identify how Controllers, CFOs, and their respective counterparts have adapted to the Great Resignation staff shortages, along with remote and hybrid workplaces.

2022 Study

STUDY: The Contemporary Controller—Changing Roles and Responsibilities

In the Fall of 2020, the Controllers Council surveyed more than 300 Controllers, CFOs, and related professionals in accounting and corporate finance roles. The objective of this study: to identify how the roles and responsibilities of these important executives have changed, adapted and evolved. The conclusions, carefully documented and analyzed in this Benchmark Study Report.

The Businesswide Benefits of Financial Automation

BILL’s new guide, The Businesswide Benefits of Financial Automation, explores how automation supports every role throughout small and midsize businesses, from the CFO to your finance team to IT to HR. See how automation can streamline tasks, improve visibility, and decrease the workload for employees throughout your different departments.

financial automation benefits

The Controller’s Guide to Spend Management

Thanks to advances in technology, controllers have the opportunity and visibility to understand spending practices across their organizations and apply precision tools — not blunt instruments — to contain costs. With the added insight these technologies offer, Business Spend Management (BSM) has emerged, and is empowering finance leadership to better understand — and influence — how resources are being used across their company. With increased visibility across all spend types, from COGS to operating expenses, finance professionals are better able to make the informed decisions necessary to ensure their company remains competitive.

spend management guide

The 2024 Corporate Controller Outlook: Top Trends and Insights

Based on a September 2023 survey of 346 finance decision makers who are controllers or have controller responsibilities, The 2024 corporate controller outlook: top trends and insights uncovers fascinating findings about the financial industry.

controller outlook

A CFO’s Guide to Automation: Cutting Costs, Not Corners

The adoption of financial management automation is quickly proving to be a necessity for all businesses to remain competitive. In this guide, NetSuite and Avalara discuss how to save time, free up resources, and create efficiencies with automation. Download your copy today and learn how to improve profitability with end-to-end financial automation.

cfos guide to automation

A Complete Guide to AP Internal Controls

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, and this is as true for security as it is for healthcare. Taking the time to secure your payments process can prevent headaches down the road, improve your recordkeeping, and prevent unauthorized spending. Download BILL’s “A complete guide to AP internal controls” for a full list of preventative policies your finance team can enact, including obligational controls, data entry controls, and payment controls.

AP internal controls

Turbocharge Your Cash Flow with O2C Automation

In today’s highly competitive and unpredictable economic landscape, optimizing your order-to-cash (O2C) process is key to securing your financial performance. Discover the transformative power of O2C automation in enhancing customer satisfaction, driving revenue growth, and maintaining a steady cash flow.

Lease Administration

The Hackett Group: Accounting Process Excellence Drives Digital World-Class Finance Performance

Analysis of The Hackett Group’s 2021 benchmarks reveals that account-to-report processes at digital world-class finance organizations significantly outperform more-typical organizations because they have simplified, standardized and automated a greater share of their activities. Get your copy of this white paper for perspectives from The Hackett Group.

The Hackett Group: Accounting Process

A 21 Step-by-Step Guide to Selecting Your Next ERP Solution

An ERP solution is an important investment but the selection process can be a daunting task. Fortunately, it doesn’t have to be. Armanino’s straightforward guide provides a comprehensive framework of considerations to drive your selection process.

ERP

The Ultimate Guide to AP Automation

Accounts payable is never a completely painless process, but digital payment approval workflows can help automate and streamline manual processes. In our free guide, The Ultimate Guide to AP Automation, we’ll show you how automated solutions can help. 

AP Automation Guide

Book Preview – Deep Finance: Corporate Finance in the Information Age

Accounting has come a long way since the time of the abacus, computer punch cards, or even the paper ledger. Modern finance leaders have the ability and tools to build a team that harnesses the power of business intelligence to make their jobs easier. Leaders who aren’t aware of these opportunities are simply going to be outpaced by competitors willing to adapt to the 21st century and beyond.

Deep Finance will take you from asking “What Is AI?” to walking a clear path toward your own digital transformation.

Deep Finance Book

GASB 87 Handbook: Get Ahead of the Deadlines with the Right Approach

GASB 87 changes the financial reporting requirements of organizations that enter into contractual relationships that meet the definition of a lease for assets such as real estate, vehicles and equipment. It can significantly affect your organization if you have arrangements that need to be accounted for under the standard and can be especially challenging if you are a lessee and a lessor.

GASB 87 Handbook

CFOs Drive Business Value

CFOs have a unique opportunity to seize the moment and elevate themselves to be architects of business transformation, in addition to their usual position as financial stewards. To do so effectively, CFOs will have to embrace the role of a value driver, taking a seat at the planning table and providing timely financial insights to help influence their companies, while also initiating changes in the finance function.

CFOs drive business value

5 Ways to Accelerate Your Business – eBook

As a business leader, you’re constantly looking ahead to future-proof your business. After all, the survival of your company depends on it. While some businesses will thrive, others will barely scrape the surface. Taking advantage of new innovation, along with some tried-and-true business advice, will help your company level up and flourish.

In this eBook, we’ll explore five simple areas in which you can take action right now to quickly accelerate your business efficiency and provide stability for your company’s future.

accelerate your business

A Guide to Trade Credit Insurance

Did you know that trade credit insurance (TCI) enables a company to increase sales by up to 20%? Or that, on average, banks lend up to 80% more on insured receivables? 

From policy terms and indemnity details to interpreting costs and use cases, there is a lot to know about trade credit insurance that can help you use it to make safe, confident decisions for your business.

To help you understand all of the benefits and inner workings of this service and tool, we created this guide to provide you an extensive journey through the world of trade credit insurance.

trade credit insurance

Bankruptcies and Insolvencies: How to Keep Your Business Afloat

The waves of insolvencies and bankruptcies worldwide are adding major pressure to supply chains. When you extend credit to a client, you take a risk that the client will not pay, and your cash flow will be interrupted. With the COVID-19 crisis and the ongoing rise in bankruptcies, your key customers that struggle financially or declare bankruptcy could expose your business to loss.

Get your free copy to learn about the unique challenges you may face if one of your customers starts proceedings.

allianz bankruptcy ebook

5 Signs Your Accounting System is Holding You Back

As the size, complexity, and pace of your business grow, the frustrations can multiply.That accounting system you relied on to manage finances and operations has, over time, gradually become a barrier to growth and efficiency. But in a highly competitive business climate, you can’t afford spiraling overhead costs, functional limitations, and unnecessary risks.

Have you outgrown your accounting system? Take a look at these signs.

Outgrown Accounting System

5 Questions CFOs Should Ask Their Controller

As the office of the controller becomes ever more strategic—creating higher levels of financial visibility to help drive growth and profitability—the financial organization’s relationship to the controller role must evolve as well. Specifically: Today’s CFO needs to work closely with the controller to ensure that, one, the organization gets the full benefit of the controller’s talents and knowledge and, two, the controller’s office is operating at the highest levels of efficiency and accuracy. Ask your controller the following five questions to initiate a conversation around best practices.

Questions CFOs for Controllers

ASC 842 Lease Accounting Standard Handbook for Private Companies

Get ahead of the private company lease accounting deadline while driving savings.

Even though your deadline for complying may have moved out, it is time to start getting your organization ready to meet the new ASC 842 Compliance standard for private organizations. Your leasing portfolio is probably more complex than you realize, so utilizing this extra time will pay off as you start to automate the process.

ASC 842 Handbook

What IT Disasters Keep You Up at Night? The Cost of Not Being Prepared

Disasters happen, sometimes bringing down a single application, sometimes bringing down your entire data center. No matter how careful you are or how good your IT team is, eventually some event will shut down your applications when you really need them up and running. The costs of preparing for disaster can be high, but the consequences of not planning for disaster recovery (DR) can be even higher.

disaster recovery plan

Controllers Code – The Secret Formula For a Successful Career in Finance

Free for Controllers Council members

Controllers in the 21st Century need to master more than technical accounting skills to become the strategic leaders their companies need today. They need to be effective leaders and managers, explain complicated accounting at a high level for the C-suite, be a technology expert, and still ensure that their teams are doing the accounting right.

Unfortunately, these skills aren’t taught in traditional accounting classes. This book offers real world guidance from Financial professionals to help you navigate the world of the modern controller. 

Controllers’ Guide to Artificial Intelligence (AI)

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is permeating business and organizations of all types and sizes. For those in the accounting and finance department, AI may have one of the most significant impacts on the way you work. The Controllers’ Guide to Artificial Intelligence (AI) will provide a concise but complete view of AI and related technologies of Machine Learning (ML), Robotic Process Automation (RPA) and more. The guide will focus on the applications and opportunities for the accounting function, exploring the role of “Robots” in the Accounting process.

Cloud Success Begins with Cloud Discovery and Assessment

The Discovery & Assessment process helps businesses derive both quantitative and qualitative understanding of existing inventory so the transition to the cloud can be optimized for minimal risk, minimal cost, maximal efficiency, and maximal benefit, whether a public, private, or hybrid solution is selected. 

The data collected enables businesses to understand their existing IT infrastructure, how it can benefit from cloud migration, and the best approach to cloud migration for each workload.

cloud discovery

The Ultimate Guide to Cloud Migration

The term “cloud migration” can mean different things to different people. For some, migrating workloads from on-premises infrastructures to the cloud is an opportunity to be grasped with both hands. For others, there may be a reluctance to change existing work practices; which, possibly coupled with a fear of the unknown, can be a handicap to taking advantage of what the cloud has to offer.

For people who fall into the second category, this guide to cloud migration has been prepared for you.

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