Accounting automation platform Trullion released the results of exclusive research that identifies the top issues facing today's finance professionals. The report highlights their most pressing concerns: attracting and retaining talent, leveraging technology to free more time for strategic initiatives, and recovering from a recession.
The survey, conducted from Dec. 1, 2022, to Jan. 20, 2023, queried 100 respondents from from US public and private companies, audit firms and consulting groups, each sharing their perspectives on the industry today, focusing on the intersection of finance and technology. The professionals included CFOs, VPs, finance directors, technology innovation leaders, controllers, accounting managers, auditors and analysts, among other roles.
According to the survey, the foremost challenge for finance professionals today is the competition to recruit and retain highly skilled professionals.
The results show that 34% of respondents rank dealing with an ongoing talent shortage as their top issue. That’s even more true of public companies, where 61% of the respondents ranked talent as a top issue.
The hiring issue is closely followed by the need to free up time for high-impact projects, at 31%. Financial technology tools are seen as a key to meeting that objective, with 50% reporting that saving time by significantly reducing manual work is the most important element of financial technology. More than 60% of respondents say that if they could automate one part of their job, they’d choose data entry and financial reporting.
How would all of these finance professionals reallocate their freed-up time? More than 50% report that they’d use the extra time to prioritize strategic planning and high-level insights.
Beyond assessing the day-to-day challenges of finance professionals, the survey took the pulse of their leading economic and social concerns. A striking 79% worry most about recovering from inflation and recession. At the same time, 39% of respondents from multiple industries express confidence that SaaS and fintech companies will rebound strongly—and among respondents at advisory firms, that number rises to 44%.
As the industry embraces technology and automation, where is it headed? “Our research reveals that 58% of the financial professionals surveyed—and 64% of senior executives—expect artificial intelligence and automation to have the biggest impact on their industry over the next 10 years,” says Trullion CEO Isaac Heller. “AI and automation are transforming the financial world. It’s exciting to learn that finance leaders can rely on today’s most advanced technology to drive their future success by offering them opportunities to add value through actionable insights, high-impact projects and strategic planning.”
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