Journey to value creation A global CIMA research programme has found that an evolutionary change has been occurring in the finance function, with a drive towards a closer collaborative relationship between finance and the wider organisation. Traditional structures for the delivery of finance services to the organisation are found to persist, with a separate finance function still the dominant model of delivering finance services to the organisation and responsible for the full range of such services.

Nevertheless, there are significant trends in the transforming function that provide mechanisms used to gain cost and process efficiencies but also importantly, to maximise the contribution of finance to the business. This is true particularly in large commercial organisations and include: •The use of technology and external service provision to drive costs down and increase process efficiency via shared service centres and outsourcing. •The decentralisation of finance professionals to support the wider organisation.

Senior management foresee the need to switch finance resources into supporting management directly and away from the more transactional accounting operations. This approach is driven by the need to create further value by closing the gaps between finance and the strategic and operational functions.

The finance organisation and the Chartered Global Management Accountant (CGMA designation holder) can provide a common language in which to frame a company’s goals and need to exert a greater influence to drive effective decision making in supporting the organisation’s strategic thinking.