CFOs Don’t Trust Their Data

The business planning platform software company Pigment recently conducted a survey of over 500 finance leaders regarding their data. The survey found that 89 percent of those CFOs are making critical decisions based on inaccurate or incomplete data. Wow.

Maybe they just talked to the wrong people or caught them on a bad day? Not so fast.

Another recent survey conducted by Blackline reveals nearly 40% of CFOs lack complete trust in their own financial data.

Can you truly steer your company towards sustainable success with such uncertainty? What are some of the consequences of poor data quality?

🚮 Wasted resources: A 2019 Gartner report estimated poor data quality costs businesses an average of $15 million annually.

🚮 Damaged reputation: Inaccurate data erodes investor and stakeholder confidence, potentially impacting your ability to secure funding or partnerships.

🚮 Poor decision-making: Strategic choices based on shaky data made can lead to costly missteps, impacting everything from profitability to market competitiveness.

What to do about this lack of confidence? Where do you start in “wrangling” this data in order to work towards your company’s goals?

📈 Prioritize data quality: Invest in ensuring clean, accurate, and consistent information across all departments.

📈 Implement data governance: Establish clear guidelines and processes for data collection, storage, and usage.

📈 Empower your team: Equip them with the training and tools to understand and leverage data effectively.

📈Seek expert guidance: Partner with data specialists to audit your systems and identify improvement opportunities.

With today’s fully integrated software systems, data is available for the taking and data can be your most valuable asset. Treat it with the respect it deserves, and unlock its transformative power to:

💡 Drive informed decision-making: Make strategic choices with confidence, knowing they’re based on accurate insights.

💡 Maximize profit: Identify and capitalize on opportunities for growth and cost optimization.

💡Achieve sustainable success: Build a future-proof organization powered by reliable data.

So is the devil in the details or in the data? There’s certainly more insight to be gained than merely from historical financial data or budget to actual comparisons.

#CFO #DataQuality #FinancialLeadership #privateequitycareers