CFO-CIO Alignment Emerges as the Defining
Relationship for Enterprise-wide Change in the Coming Years
PLEASANTON, Calif., July 19,
2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Workday (NASDAQ:
WDAY), a leader in enterprise cloud applications for finance and
human resources, today published the results of its latest survey,
which examines the state of digital finance transformation, how
these efforts are impacted by finance and IT, and how CFO-CIO
alignment is central to transformation success.
The survey of 1,060 finance and IT leaders found a positive
correlation between the level of alignment of a company's finance
and IT teams and digital finance transformation progress. However,
it also revealed only 44% of those surveyed are fully confident in
the integrity and usability of their data. This lack of confidence
impacts decision making, with more than half of the finance leaders
(51%) saying they are forced to make gut instinct decisions where
finance is concerned, despite having the data they need, because it
is siloed, not in the right format, or not readily available.
Barriers to Building Data Confidence
The ability to make data-driven decisions at speed is critical
for finance teams today. However, the survey revealed three key
barriers to data confidence, all of which are essential for
successful transformation:
- Lack of alignment makes finance transformation difficult
from the start. Lack of finance-IT alignment was ranked by
respondents as the top barrier to digital finance transformation.
While 41% of finance leaders admit that their CIO does not have a
seat at the table during critical finance meetings, even when
technology is essential to solving a challenge, more than half
(51%) of IT leaders believe their aim to eliminate IT complexity is
directly at odds with the expanding scope of the finance
function.
- Challenges with technology hinder finance's ability to
adapt. There is a disconnect between the technology that CIOs
and CFOs know they need and what they currently have. Half of the
survey respondents believe their legacy enterprise resource
planning (ERP) systems are not flexible enough for today's business
requirements. While technology transformation needs to balance IT's
goals of simplicity and agility with finance's expanding scope and
complexity, the survey reveals finance and IT agree change is
required to meet their evolving needs.
- All agree on a need to increase cross-functional finance and
IT skills. For finance leaders, the fact they rely on IT for
data access and reporting was ranked as the biggest barrier to
generating accurate, usable insights. In turn, IT leaders rank a
shortage of skills within the finance team to work with emerging
technologies as a top barrier to transformation. Nearly half (49%)
of IT leaders feel they are under pressure to innovate finance
technology despite limited financial literacy, revealing an
opportunity for greater training and partnership with finance.
Comments on the News
"Data is the fuel for finance
transformation, yet many organizations still have challenges when
it comes to accessing and trusting data," said Barbara Larson, chief financial officer,
Workday. "As the role of finance continues to expand, the
partnership with IT becomes even more critical. Together, finance
and IT must continue to drive the data strategy to deliver the
access and insights organizations need to thrive."
Workday helps organizations with digital finance transformation
and provides a unified view of financial, people, and operational
data with Workday Enterprise Management Cloud. With more than 9,500
customers, Workday helps finance and IT teams across the world
adapt and stay ahead of the accelerating pace of change.
For more information:
- Learn more and access the full report: The CFO and CIO
Indicator Study
- Read our blog: "Global Research: CFO-CIO Partnership Powers a
Bold Approach to Finance Digital Transformation"
- Listen to the podcast: Workday Podcast: CFO-CIO Partnership
Powers a Bold Approach to Finance
- Watch our LinkedIn Live: #WDAYChats: Accelerating Finance
Transformation
About the Survey
The global survey of 1,060 senior
finance and IT leaders was commissioned by Workday and conducted by
Longitude, a Financial Times company, in March and April 2022. Respondents were based in NORAM,
EMEA, and APJ and worked across 11 sectors.
About Workday
Workday is a leading provider of
enterprise cloud applications for finance and human resources,
helping customers adapt and thrive in a changing world. Workday
applications for financial management, human resources, planning,
spend management, and analytics have been adopted by thousands of
organizations around the world and across industries – from
medium-sized businesses to more than 50% of the Fortune 500.
For more information about Workday, visit workday.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains
forward-looking statements including, among other things,
statements regarding Workday's plans, beliefs, and expectations.
These forward-looking statements are based only on currently
available information and our current beliefs, expectations, and
assumptions. Because forward-looking statements relate to the
future, they are subject to inherent risks, uncertainties,
assumptions, and changes in circumstances that are difficult to
predict and many of which are outside of our control. If the risks
materialize, assumptions prove incorrect, or we experience
unexpected changes in circumstances, actual results could differ
materially from the results implied by these forward-looking
statements, and therefore you should not rely on any
forward-looking statements. Risks include, but are not limited to,
risks described in our filings with the Securities and Exchange
Commission ("SEC"), including our Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter
ended April 30, 2022, and our future
reports that we may file with the SEC from time to time, which
could cause actual results to vary from expectations. Workday
assumes no obligation to, and does not currently intend to, update
any such forward-looking statements after the date of this
release.
Any unreleased services, features, or functions referenced in
this document, our website, or other press releases or public
statements that are not currently available are subject to change
at Workday's discretion and may not be delivered as planned or at
all. Customers who purchase Workday services should make their
purchase decisions based upon services, features, and functions
that are currently available.
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SOURCE Workday Inc.