Finance Teams Are Alarmingly Less Efficient Than a Year Ago, According to New Research from insightsoftware

While trying to do more with less, accounting and finance pros are taking longer to get work done, overlooking automation and technology as a potential solution

In an economy that challenges them to do more with less, finance teams believe they are actually taking longer to get things done, according to new research from insightsoftware, a global provider of reporting, analytics, and performance management solutions. Facing pressure from inflation, economic disruption, and a looming recession, senior accounting and finance professionals are becoming increasingly less efficient across all major responsibilities — such as tax management, strategic decision-making, and short-term business strategy — as they strive to do the same or more work with fewer resources than the previous year. According to the Finance Team Trends Report for 2023, these shortcomings have been furthered by a decreased focus on automation and a limited hiring market for financial talent.

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In an economy that challenges them to do more with less, finance teams believe they are actually taking longer to get things done, according to new research from insightsoftware, a global provider of reporting, analytics, and performance management solutions. (Photo: Business Wire)

In 2022, despite continued economic headwinds, finance teams were optimistic about the future and preparing for growth. Most of these hopes have been dashed, however, as organizations are squeezed by both internal and external pressures, such as rising inflation and market instability. As tighter budgets are slowing down hiring from an already limited talent pool, fewer finance professionals are prioritizing automation: only 25% of respondents, down 15% from 2022. This may be due in part to the tense relationship between finance and IT, with only 28% of respondents completely satisfied with their tech teams and 66% already feeling too reliant on them.

Additional findings include:

• A significant drop in team growth expectations, down to 64% of respondents that expect to grow their team in 2023 compared to 73% in 2022. This statistic will likely widen an already sizable skills gap as more financial professionals retire from the workforce.
• Greatly reduced perception of efficiency related to tax management, with only 68% of teams rating their processes as efficient, compared to 84% last year. This reduction is likely the result of the increasing complexity surrounding global tax laws forcing organizations to navigate more regulations.
• One quarter (24%) of finance teams still find manual and time-consuming processes a key challenge, highlighting the need for increased automation across the industry.

“CEOs are increasingly partnering with CFOs to guide companies through this current uncertainty. Accurate financial forecasting requires more frequent reporting, tapping the productivity of already lean finance teams,” said Bryan Motteram, VP of product marketing at insightsoftware. “Interestingly, the research shows that accounting and finance professionals are prioritizing automation as a potential solution less than the previous year. Achieving predictability amidst uncertainty requires finance teams to enter a new stage of digital transformation. With the right technology, CFOs can build agility that drives the resilience needed to meet the demands of today’s economy.”

Download the complete findings of the 2023 Finance Team Trends Report at https://insightsoftware.com/resources/2023-finance-team-trends-report.

insightsoftware will also be hosting a webinar on the results - join the discussion by registering at https://insightsoftware.com/resources/2023-fpa-trends-closing-the-efficiency-gap/.

Research Methodology

insightsoftware’s Finance Team Trends Report for 2023 was developed in coordination with Hanover Research. This independent survey was conducted among 519 senior accounting and finance professionals across North America, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA). Fifty-two percent of survey participants were located in North America, with forty-eight percent from EMEA.

About insightsoftware

insightsoftware is a leading provider of reporting, analytics, and performance management solutions. Over 32,000 organizations worldwide rely on us to support business needs in the areas of accounting, finance, operations, supply chain, tax, budgeting, planning, HR, and disclosure management. We enable the Office of the CFO to connect to and make sense of their data in real time so they can proactively drive greater financial intelligence across their organization. Our best-in-class solutions provide customers with increased productivity, visibility, accuracy, and compliance. Learn more at insightsoftware.com.

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