The modern finance department has evolved over time. Today, companies are using data and technology to optimize their financial processes. With the cost of failing to keep up with digital payment processing increasing every day, it’s more important than ever for your company to have a strong finance function. Financial operations can no longer be treated as an add-on or an afterthought.
The challenges your finance department will face today are different from those of even a few years ago – and that’s a good thing! Today, in addition to having a more independent and autonomous finance department, you need your finance team to have the ability to think outside of the box, problem-solve, and work independently while collaborating with other departments.
What you need to know about the modern finance function
The modern finance department consists of a few different departments that work in collaboration with each other. Accounting is the department responsible for managing your company’s bookkeeping, financial records, and general ledger. They often handle tax filing and corporate compliance as well as fraud detection. Finance is the department in charge of planning, budgeting, and controlling all financial transactions within your company. 
They also manage your cash flow and deal with credit risk on both long-term projects and short-term investments. IT handles all of the technological aspects of managing information: data management, database development, data security, e-commerce platform, or email marketing platforms.
IT also manages the accounting and reporting system. Marketing handles all aspects of how you market your product or service to potential customers or clients – advertising campaigns and business development activities are among their responsibilities. Marketing also designs website content, surveys customers to determine what they want from a website experience, or implements social media strategies.
The future of the modern finance function
As a modern finance function, you need to consider the future of your finance department. As more and more companies move away from traditional paper-based processes, your finance department will need to do the same.
A team’s skill set must keep up with technology’s rapid change. With an efficient and supportive finance department, you can meet these challenges head-on. The modern finance department has evolved over time.
It’s now important for your company to have a strong finance function that is able to optimize its financial operations through both digital and technological advances.
Why is a strong finance department so important?
A strong finance department has the ability to help you stay ahead of the curve in your industry. Finance departments are on the front lines of processing payments, managing cash flow, and identifying opportunities that can help your company grow and succeed.
Your finance department provides a window into the future, which is why it is critical for them to consider what might become important or trending in the near future. For example, if you have a warehouse-based supply chain, you could see an increase in mobile transactions in the next five years and need to be prepared for that possibility.
An experienced finance team can identify trends like these and develop solutions for how they will affect your business. In addition to knowing how trends impact your business and preparing for them, your finance department can also work with other departments to help optimize their processes as well as expand their own role within the company. For example, there may be financial regulations that require a change in information technology so that they can facilitate those changes within their system and allow other departments to prepare accordingly.
A stay up on finance trends and technology
The first step towards a successful finance department is staying up on the latest trends and technology. It’s important for your company to understand the process for deploying new financial software, accounting software, and other technology, in order to make sure you’re ready for any changes that may occur. If your company doesn’t have a working knowledge of how these technologies operate, it will be much more difficult to incorporate them into your business processes.
From a technological standpoint, there are many ways in which finance departments can improve their performance. For example, finance departments should use data analytics to track key financial indicators such as cash flow and profitability. By using data analytics, it will be easier for your company to keep track of its progress over time and identify areas where it can make improvements.
Use Data, APIs and Software for finance automation
The first thing your finance department needs to do is explore the power of data. Your company should be using APIs for digital payments and software that allows you to pool and analyze data in new and creative ways. With these tools, your finance team will be able to automate their processes, identify opportunities for savings, and increase efficiencies across the board.
With increased automation, companies can also handle more complex financial problems with greater ease. These tools will allow you to create reports based on both internal and external data, which helps provide better insights into your company’s performance. By understanding where your company is spending money, you and your team will be able to control costs more effectively while increasing revenue potential. 
Your finance department should also have strong collaboration capabilities – something that has been a challenge for some companies in the past but can now be easily fixed through the use of powerful online software that allows teams to communicate seamlessly across different offices and platforms.
An in-depth understanding of finance operations is required
Today, your finance team needs to be able to have a deep understanding of the company’s business model as well as the industry. There are a lot of moving pieces in today’s financial systems, and it is imperative that your finance team has the ability to deal with these complex systems. When you have a strong understanding of what your business does and its history, you can uncover areas that need improvement or opportunities for growth.
Your finance department will also need to be able to work independently and be able to handle multiple projects simultaneously. Finance teams with diverse skills and experiences are better equipped to handle all tasks assigned by upper management.
Conclusion
Setting up a finance department is a huge project. But, if you’re going to be in business for a long time, you should take the time to develop your finance function. It will help your business run as efficiently as possible and give your company a competitive edge.
