CFO Survey Reveals 74% Intend To Shift Some Employees To WFH Permanently

According to Gartner, nearly three in four CFOs plan to shift at least 5% of previously on-site employees to permanently remote positions post-COVID 19.

“This data is an example of the lasting impact the current coronavirus crisis will have on the way companies do business,” said Alexander Bant, practice vice president, research for the Gartner Finance Practice. “CFOs, already under pressure to tightly manage costs, clearly sense an opportunity to realize the cost benefits of a remote workforce. In fact, nearly a quarter of respondents said they will move at least 20% of their on-site employees to permanent remote positions.”

Remote work is one example of creative cost savings senior finance leaders are seeking in order to avoid more severe cuts and minimize the downside impact to operations.

What’s the problem then?

It’s much easier to deal with remote work when the entire organization has effective and well-practiced project management, processes, and technology capabilities. But the matter of fact is that, more likely than not, this isn’t the case. With employees working remotely, issues like multiple versions of files, poor traceability, limited control, and slow, error-prone manual processes are exacerbated tenfold.

How can remote finance work be improved, with little to no change?

The answer is with DataRails. Let teams keep working on their native spreadsheets as information is automatically synced onto a secure, structured database that is stored on the cloud. In turn you’ll gain access to accurate data and traceability, all in one place. While your work processes are enhanced significantly, you and your employees won’t feel a thing.

What sets DataRails apart from other cloud-based planning platforms is this hallmark feature- the fact that it’s Excel-based, meaning that it doesn’t change the way employees currently work and requires little to no organizational culture change. DataRails is an adaptive tool that brings much needed agility and flexibility to financial management, particularly during these turbulent times.

Consolidate with a click.

DataRails is based on a first-of-its-kind algorithm capable of extracting and analyzing complex organizational data, and what that means is that irrespective of data structure or source ( ERP, GL, HR or spreadsheets), you can put all data onto one database.

View the full history of a spreadsheet cell, including values and formulas that have changed over time. Automate any data preparation process (like consolidations, FX conversions, eliminations, drill-downs and variance analyses), benefit from comprehensive and error-free numbers, and access up-to-date operating expenses to strategically plan and allocate future expenditures based on real-time numbers consolidated from your disparate organizational systems.

”[With DataRails] I now have a complete and comprehensive hands-off solution to manage my financial operations data…which affords me additional control and a birds-eye view over the entire process.”
– Rob Grasso, Director of Sales Operations, Bauer Hockey

Address WFH’s Shortcomings- You’ll win big.

With DataRails, finance professionals can access and leverage financial and operational data independently, regardless of technical competency. This means the finance team can easily support planning, analysis and reporting needs on-the-go to drive faster and more effective decisions.

End-users keep using Excel while executives benefit from superior access to data and novel insights. With DataRails’ effortless, automated, and accurate solution, employees can spend less time putting the numbers together and more time thinking about what they mean, all without leaving Excel. Now that’s a win-win.