AllBusiness: Looking to the Future: 5 Steps to Better Financial Projections During Covid-19

“Almost overnight, a global pandemic turned the status quo on its head, and individuals and businesses were left scrambling to adapt and overcome the challenges they faced. Click on https://ncplanning.com/business-corporate-planning/ to access important information regarding business laws.

For some businesses, that was a loss in foot traffic or a change in consumer behavior. For others, it was a problem downstream in their supply chain, distribution network, or development pipeline, which reverberated back.”

Read more at AllBusiness >

Better Scenario Planning Helps Companies Benefit During Disruptions

“CFOs will play a key role in determining how various scenarios will impact revenue, the cost structure, the balance sheet, and liquidity. Three key areas can shape how companies prepare for and respond to the uncertain environment ahead: identify new data inputs, model data to understand how the business may behave under different circumstances, and act now to allow for flexibility under different scenarios.”

Read more at CFO.com >

U.S. Poultry & Egg Association 2020 Financial Management Seminar

Join us and the U.S. Poultry & Egg Association to get informed on the most impactful topics for financial management in the “most innovative and progressive segment of animal agriculture”.

“The Financial Management Seminar ensures that industry financial managers stay informed of accounting practices and tax laws that affect the industry. The seminar also previews current economic conditions and future trends that impact poultry and egg firms.”

When: June 29-July 1, 2020

Where: The Ritz Carlton, Amelia Island, Florida

SEE the brochure for more details on the schedule, accommodations, and registration.

REGISTER for the event here!

The Value of Continuous Accounting for Business

“Many senior finance executives want their department to play a more strategic role in the management and operations of their company. They believe there is value in shifting their focus from processing transactions to higher-value functions in order to be able to make more substantial contributions to the success of the organization. Continuous accounting can serve as the foundation for transforming the role of the department.”

Read more at Ventana Research >

A Futurist’s Framework For Strategic Planning

When it comes to long-term planning, many FP&A professionals should be able to answer these questions: Where do you want to have impact? What it will take to achieve success? How will the organization evolve to meet challenges on the horizon? These questions are the foundation for any achievable plan, both long and short term. Many businesses get stuck cycling between strategy and tactics, and while that process might feel like serious planning for the future, it results in a perpetual cycle of trying to catch up: to competitors, to new entrants, and to external sources of disruption. “Futurists” see their planning timelines as more of a cone that measures certainty and charts actions, rather than simply marking the passage of time as quarters or years. The result, ideally, is a flexible organization that is positioned to consistently and effectively respond to external developments.

Read More at The Harvard Business Review >

Increasing Profits with Mid-Year Adjustments

Mid-year adjustments to business plans help many companies improve their tactics while staying on track with long-term initiatives. While many businesses only have impromptu approaches to adjusting business plans, a more structured approach provides flexibility and focuses concentration on the right levers of profitability. Checking in on mid-year financials allows executives and decision makers to not only see how the business is performing, but also to see how their plans are faring mid-year and determine any variances. Furthermore, the ability to identify the root cause of the variance and make a thoughtful adjustment to the business strategy is crucial to optimize business performance and drive profits.

Read more at Forbes Magazine >

Intelligent Scenario Planning with Advanced Analytics

Nobody understands Robert Burns’ quote, “The best laid plans often go awry,” like modern business leaders. When it comes to financial planning, finance teams need the ability to assess and adjust plans when they go off course. Intelligent planning starts with analysis of past results to help determine where is business is going, and measure future success. However, most planning processes are tangled in static spreadsheet processes that are error prone and limit agility. Modern businesses are leveraging intelligent technologies that provide the most up-to-date insight by analyzing the actual data being used by the systems of record. This enables users to react to analytic results in the context of their business process or workflow by creating scenarios that provide the insight to make strategic decisions.

Read More at The Digitalist by SAP >

Nine Essential Steps for Strategic Planning

All corporate functions do strategic planning, but few do it well. Strategic planning is critical for forward-looking organizations, but short-term planning activities often leave little time to pursue long-term strategy. The mission for business leaders is to identify initiatives that will drive enterprise growth ambitions, and unlock the capacity (time, budget, talent and technology) needed to fuel them. Most companies are now pursuing strategies that have a greater risk of failure, and often involve business model change that creates a complex set of coordinated changes across the business. Gartner suggests 9 steps that provide a guide for leaders to effectively prioritizes the successful execution of critical initiatives that are tied to overall business goals.

Read More at Smarter with Gartner >

Intelligent Technologies Are Re-shaping the Future of Business

Technology is shaping the future of how businesses operate. Digital transformation and the rise of intelligent technologies are driving business leaders to shift from managing technology to delivering more creative and strategic business outcomes. An organization’s technology vision comprises four components: the future of work, strategic technology investments, risk and resiliency, and technology operating model agility. Its approach to each of these aspects can help create an environment in which innovation grows, encourage collaboration between business and technology functions, and create sustainable competitive advantage.

Read More at The Wall Street Journal >