Your Year-End Financials: Overcoming Information Deficits in 2020
This is the second article in a two-part series focused on the year-end close process. Businesses are examining their 2019 numbers and making plans for 2020. In the first part of this series, we explored what you can do if your year-end financials suggest you need to cut overhead costs. In this part, we will be exploring an even bigger problem – when your year-end financials suggest nothing at all.
Are You Operating Without Enough Information?
The year-end close is about taking all the data you’ve accrued over the last 12 months and using it to explain your ups and downs this year. Conducting a systematic “self-review” is important for all businesses because without knowing where you’ve been it’s impossible to control where you’re going.
As you’re working through the process, you may discover that you have less data than you expected or too much data that hasn’t been properly organized and analyzed yet. You might also conclude that you don’t have enough time or talent to thoroughly explore last year’s performance before the calendar is up.
This situation is common at a lot of companies, and more troubling than most realize. When companies neglect to leverage all the information at their disposal, their plans for the coming year might be more reckless (or disastrous) than anyone anticipates.
Fortunately, the solution isn’t complicated. Working with an outsourced accounting firm gives companies the resources they need to tackle in-depth reporting, analytics, and planning. Outsourced accountants have experience and expertise to find all the insights lurking within the data. They also utilize best-in-class financial technology to analyze data in greater depth in less time.
Once an outsourced accounting firm is in the mix, decision-makers within your organization have access to information and answers essentially on demand. Great information leads to better outcomes next year and anytime the company is at a crossroads. Plus, since the outsourced accountants are handling the heavy burden of managing and analyzing information, your in-house accountants have more time to put that information to use. They’re free to focus on the future all the time, not just at the end of the year.
Most companies understand the value of data, but most are struggling with the volume and velocity of information involved. Instead of expecting the impossible, turn to outsourcing. Having a partner to help you do justice to your data ensures you’re not wasting this precious resource. More importantly, it helps you replace assumptions with empirical information so that you make the right choice more often. That’s a strategy any company can embrace.
Upgrade Your Insight in 2020
The year-end close is a time for reflection and honesty. If your accounting department is anything less than optimal – because it’s too expensive or under-resourced – strongly consider outsourcing as the solution. Whether you need assistance now or later, rely on CDH.