Digital Technology Poised to Revolutionise Reporting (2)

For CFOs, a convergence of emerging technologies promises to automate reporting, decreasing drudgery while increasing quality.

One big transformation involves how business people will interact with reported information. Instead of relying on static data on paper, finance customers will use tablets and phones to navigate information at their own pace and in any way they want.

Last week, we looked at the case for digital tools, such as automation, advanced analytics, and machine learning, being part of the reporting process and the challenge of combining such different technologies across the entire endto-end reporting process. But what will this new and revolutionary reporting look like? What are some of the key traits we can expect and what will this mean for CFOs and their teams?

Reporting’s New Traits

The laborious grind of management and financial reporting today likely won’t exist in the future. People will be insight generators, not report builders. The talent pool in finance could expand to include business people with finance backgrounds, data scientists, and storytellers – all collectively enhancing finance’s ability to support the strategy of the company.

In addition, three key characteristics will likely transform reporting in the future:

1. Reporting will be intelligent. Some emerging technolo

gies will improve the user experience by learning what users want. Others will assume some of the reporting grunt work. The writing of reports – at least the first drafts – will happen without human involvement. In addition, intelligent reporting will be more prescriptive. The same tools that are reshaping the future of forecasting – predictive analytics and algorithms – will enhance the quality and value of reports.

2. Reporting will be interac

tive.

One big transformation involves how business people will interact with reported information. Instead of relying on static data on paper, finance customers will use tablets and phones to navigate information at their own pace and in any way they want. Reporting tools themselves will become interactive, too. If someone needs the latest information on SKU performance in China, she can get it herself by asking a personal digital assistant. If someone wants to see customer churn for South America, he can get that information with a couple of clicks. Chatbots querying databases to get information on-demand will supply the ultimate self-service experience. Users will have their own interactive dashboards.

3. Reporting will be real time.

Real-time reporting will materialise when all aspects of the reporting process become automated and streamlined. Automation helps simplify and streamline data management, with software replacing manual analysis. By providing the entire organisation with a single, cloud-based source of data, all business functions will operate from the same reliable starting point.

Sparking the Revolution

Finance chiefs looking to apply digital technologies to financial reporting should consider several leading practices that can help make the most of the technologies available:

• Organise your data.

Without your data house in order, some of the reporting opportunities outlined won’t be possible.

• Focus on customers, espe

cially the user experience.

Early in your journey, explore “what-if” questions with key audiences. Ask them how they might use information differently if their reports were more intuitive, more visual, and more proactive. Build in formal and informal mechanisms for generating feedback.

• Take small steps.

Focus on applying solutions to specific segments or functions before implementing more broadly. Look for high-impact use cases to build a base of advocates. For many companies, flash sales reports are a good place to start. Span the full range of sophistication among those who will eventually use the technology.

• Reassure your people.

Be aware that workforce disruption is top of mind for many employees adopting automation or digital tools. While some more repeatable finance tasks may be obsolete when new technologies take hold, work with employees to make the most of their human skills, empowering them in new roles that rely on high-level analysis, relationship-building, and creativity.

Reimagine People Too

Reporting isn’t and never has been about technology; new tools may take some of the tedious and repetitive work out of reporting processes, but there remains an indispensable role for human intelligence. In a digital world, humans get to take on more interesting challenges (such as shaping effective narratives with the information). This transformation may require CFOs to retool their talent mix. But more than that, it will require those same CFOs to rethink how they deploy their talent strategically to incorporate data and analytics into decisionmaking overall.