In February 2020, we launched “Finance Transformation: the human perspective”, a report that explored the “people” aspects of finance transformation from both a finance and an HR perspective. We found that underinvestment in people and resources, lack of training, insufficient and inconsistent communications, no clear change management and/or the absence of a talent pipeline can all spell disaster for an organisation. A matter of weeks later, we saw this in practice, as government and business leaders scrambled, often chaotically, to deal with the emerging threat.
Our research showed that transformation is as much about a culture of organisational growth, learning and development as it is about technology. Adopting a growth mindset, both individually and as an organisation, was key to success. The digitally driven remote-working future may have arrived rather abruptly but here it is.
As we transition into our new normal, we will all have to adapt to new ways of working and thinking.
As we enter the crisis recovery zone, it is tempting to focus on cost control, particularly when revenue streams have dried up. However, this carries the risk that we cut back on drivers of long-term business success. We must manage our people, networks and relationships as assets, rather than costs.
So far, we’ve focused on firefighting and protecting our people. But now we need to go beyond survival.
Organisations widely recognise that they need to become more agile to better perform in today’s complex world. But agility is more than just an organisation’s ability to innovate, adapt to changing market conditions and make shrewd capital allocation decisions — it also relates to their growth mindset. The ability to learn, evolve, think differently and understand quickly is just as important for individuals as it is for businesses. As old systems and processes are superseded by new ways of working, we must learn to leave our legacy mindsets in the past.
Finance Transformation: the human perspective AICPA and CIMA, 2020
