Excellence in finance

By Cyrus Asgarian, Viktoriya Bondarets and Frederick Van Gysegem

Unlocking the potential of the modern finance function

Related expertise

Today's finance functions operate in a rapidly evolving landscape, facing pressure from both internal and external forces. To thrive, they must evolve from a traditional number-crunching function into a key driver of strategic value.

Assessing the future of the finance function

Finance functions are undergoing a fundamental transformation, becoming more value-driven and strategically integrated into business operations. This evolution will redefine how the finance function operates within the company, making it more efficient, automated and impactful – and transforming it from a back-office role to an enabler of business success. The following developments are driving this shift:

Streamlined finance operations: Automation and digitalization are driving efficiency and making finance operations more agile and location-agnostic
Lean corporate center: Corporate finance functions are becoming significantly smaller thanks to automation and self-service, at the same time shifting their focus to strategy, investor relations and regulatory compliance
Embedded business finance: Finance teams are beginning to act as trusted partners, integrated into operations so they can provide insights and support decision-making
Expanded centers of excellence: These hubs are set to grow in scope and expertise, operating through a hybrid mix of fixed and virtual locations
AI as a driving force: Artificial intelligence is enhancing automation, analytics and strategic decision-making

Andreas Poeschl

Principal

Frankfurt Office, Central Europe

Future-proofing finance

Roland Berger has a tried-and-tested approach to helping organizations build future-proof finance functions. After more than 20 years and 100+ projects, our playbook includes a range of tools to navigate this transformation, each of which can be adjusted according to the client’s needs.

Benefits for your business

Four key elements sit at the heart of a high-performing finance function:

Finance operations deliver high-quality, scalable services across the company and add value via economies of scale, making use of AI solutions wherever appropriate
As a business partner, the finance function helps shape and manage outcomes that generate value for the company
Finance acts partly as a center of excellence, providing valuable insights for decision-making across the organization. This part of the team should collaborate closely with the business partner element to share best practices and ensure a standardized approach
Governance and compliance safeguard the function by developing strategies and targets and providing standards and policies

A strong yet lean finance function maximizes value by designing its operating model as a scalable platform. A clear separation of activities and responsibilities across the four elements above ensures that each area focuses on developing the relevant capabilities.

Success stories

Reshaping the finance function of an international audio electronics company

Situation: After benchmarking its finance function, an international audio electronics company realized that it needed a holistic transformation in order to close the gap to industry best-in-class. The analysis revealed structural deficiencies within the function and a limited focus on forward-looking business analyses and standardized end-to-end processes.

Solution: Together, we created a vision for the new finance function, including detailed organizational design, processes and systems. We compared this to the status quo and compiled a three-year transformation journey with prioritized processes, work packages and initiatives. We also calculated the expected benefits and the CapEx, OpEx and implementation effort required.

Impact: The client now has a future-proof finance function with stronger business partner capabilities and a shared service center, combined with a center of excellence in virtual teams. The workforce has been transformed to increase efficiency and close the gap to best-in-class competitors.

Sustainable transformation for a European fashion retailer

Situation: A German-based fashion retailer with around 18,000 employees and almost 2,000 shops in 17 European countries came to us looking to improve its finance function. The client had a traditional financial planning and analysis (FP&A) setup with a reactive role and limited business insights.

Solution: We defined a target vision and designed a detailed new operating model, then carried out a fit-gap analysis against the status quo. Outlining a transformation journey helped the client prioritize and sequence the steps it needed to take.

Impact: By rethinking the role of FP&A, finance is now a strategic partner for management. It focuses on automation, digitalization and value creation to achieve long-term excellence.

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