Budgeting during Uncertain Times
In a team sport, different players support different roles. Some players are versatile enough to switch in and out of different roles, and we see that in business as well. For the most part, we also experience specialization within positions. A soccer team may have the best goalie in the world, but try to convert that player into a striker and things may not execute as planned. Similarly, try taking the best power hitter on an MLB team and ask him to become the pitcher instead. The results may not be amazing in most cases.
Depending on what is going on in the game, the team may depend more on different roles to get things done. Different position players need to step up in team sports. When the game is on the line sometimes it's the defense that is called on to execute. Other times it's your offense that needs to run up the score on a final miracle play.
How does this translate to the world of business?
We can pretend offense is your front office including sales and marketing. They are out there driving revenue. The CFO can represent your defense to ensure that the company can stay afloat, does not take too much damage from the market, and is able to continue to operate successfully.
Within this same spirit of comparing business to team sports, when the economy was high-flying and the focus was on growth the Chief Revenue Officer was asked to step up. Now that many companies are under pressure to navigate very uncertain times it is important for the CFO to step up and lead the way forward.
An article released by BCG and titled “Budgeting in an Age of Uncertainty” aims to provide the ammunition today’s CFOs need in this environment.
The article explains this need for the CFO to step up and make adjustments:
To succeed, companies must react more quickly to rapidly changing conditions. Flexibility and agility are in; bureaucratic hierarchies and long-term planning cycles are out. Under these circumstances, CFOs have taken the steps needed to assert their role as their company’s “value steward.” They have focused on costs and liquidity, driving smart capital decisions and tightening performance management. Now, many are looking forward and asking, How should we run financial budgeting in these turbulent times?
If your finance team needs to move faster, make fewer errors, improve collaboration and meet today’s challenges, you cannot do it with disconnected spreadsheets. FinLogic.io offers a great alternative to CFOs looking to adopt a modern platform without spending a fortune.