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The close has a structural problem. Here's what it actually is and why the solution isn't what most finance leaders think. 6–10 Business days lost to close every month 67% Of finance leaders cite close as their #1 stress source 30+ hours/month spent on manual reconciliations Let's be honest about something. You've probably tried to fix the close before. Maybe you hired more analysts. Maybe you invested in an RPA tool that automated a handful of repetitive tasks. Maybe you tightened up your close calendar, sent the chasers earlier, and ran a post-mortem after every painful period end. And yet. ...

In a recent project with a leading media company in Australia, we set out to demonstrate how IBM Watsonx Orchestrate can revolutionise finance operations through the power of Generative AI. The Commercial Finance team, under constant pressure to deliver timely, accurate and insight-rich reports, needed a smarter way to move beyond manual data wrangling and deliver executive-ready outputs in record time. That’s where WatsonX Orchestrate came in. Unlike traditional BI or workflow automation tools, Watsonx Orchestrate leverages Generative AI to not only automate repetitive tasks but also to ...

Warning: long term use of Excel is lethal for CFOs trying to make data-driven decision-making. Discover how Excel can’t excel when it comes to managing data and what can be done about it. The troubles with Excel are only beginning. Excel not only caps out at a million records, but it also rounds off large numbers using imprecise calculations which compromises the accuracy of your data. Excel is a single-user system. That means it only allows one person to input data at a time. There’s a high chance that someone entering the data does it without regard for storage, backup, and processing best ...

Instead of using historical sales data, CFOs making financial transformations are shifting to driver-based forecasting. In the Australian construction industry alone, market conditions have moved so quickly in the last 24 months, that history can no longer be trusted to tell the future. In the Australian construction industry alone, market conditions have moved so quickly in the last 24 months, that history can no longer be trusted to tell the future. Forecasting P+L and balance sheets based on actuals and historical data is proving less reliable. The historical data can’t capture the market ...

Australian construction companies that will thrive during the recent consolidation will blend corporate strategy and digital analytic strategy. CFOs will move away from traditional models to adopt digital strategic planning models that rely on data insights while making decisions. Aspen Medical CFO, Moazam Shah, noted some of the key competencies for finance professionals to thrive in a digital world, including knowledge of digital technologies, ability to articulate their use to a wider audience in the business, an ability to learn and adapt to changes in technologies, and to a motivation to ...

Home Innovation Builders, Dyldam Developments, Hotondo Homes franchise, Tasmanian Constructions, ABD Group, BA Murphy, Pindan, and Inside Out Construction have all gone bust. It’s time CFOs from the construction embraced financial transformation. Construction giants like Probuild and Condev have collapsed. Many other construction companies are looking at downturns and the huge debt that’ll push them into a similar path to liquidation. Amendra Pratap, Managing Director at Octane, say: “The rate of construction companies falling and going bankrupt is at an all-time high. The major reason behind ...