Chief finance officers (CFOs) are accustomed to steering a company towards growth and profitability, by making decisions based on the numerical evidence available to them. But sometimes, the most important numbers are beyond internal projections and market indicators.
Last month, the Census reported that millennials now total 83.1 million across the US, outnumbering the baby boomer generation by nearly 10 million people.
While businesses are searching for ways to appeal to this burgeoning market, finance may find it especially hard, as current studies imply a sense of mistrust between millennials and finance processionals. According to a CFO survey by Duke University, a majority of CFOs believe that millennials are less loyal to the company than other employees.
The mistrust goes both ways. The 2008 crisis hit the generation especially hard, as millennials bore the brunt of job reductions and lack of opportunity. Deemed too inexperienced to be employed, many millennials had to invest in their experience and skillsets in order to be marketable and ensure employment opportunities. Others, frustrated by a difficult job market, created the Occupy Wall Street movement, which has served as a galvanising moment for many people’s view of the relationship between millennials and finance.
Smart CFOs must work to overcome these barriers. Recognising that millennials bring a greater degree of tech competence and a strong propensity to innovation and creativity, CFOs need to embrace the challenge of making work more attractive to millennials to harness their skills for the benefit of their organisations. Here’s how:
Embrace the millennial work style
Many of the tools used in finance are obsolete and show their age. It is important that leaders in the finance industry begin to upgrade to a modern user interface that matches the intuitive ones used by consumers. By doing so, financial experts will be able to deliver mobile access, security and a combination of analytic and operational capabilities that feel familiar to millennials. A modern user experience must also include social communication within the enterprise that permits the collaboration and transparency that millennials are accustomed to.
Reduce complexity
Many of the tasks performed by a finance professional – piling over reports to reconcile inconsistent data points and digging through systems to locate the right numbers, for example – don’t appeal to anyone, much less tech-savvy millennials. The finance industry needs modern systems that remove the barriers of complexity, supporting the business rather than “reporting the news.” CFOs should consider investing in systems that reconcile and improve speed by design, accelerating core processes. This means less time spent on lower value activities and more time supporting the business. By evolving the role to one that is more engaging with the business, young people can grow their skills, advance in their careers and improve their value to the organisation.
Another way to reduce a company’s complexity is to eliminate any silos within the finance department. For example, a treasurer should work on the same source data as an accountant. Payroll should be integrated with finance, not housed within HR. A holistic, integrated experience is expected by millennials whose social lives are driven by a cohesive system where the click of a button can switch their attention from one social media platform to another.
Report in real time
Many millennials are idealists who want to make a difference. Their tech experience and propensity to creativity makes them ideal candidates for being strong analysts and business partners. In order to do so, they need instant insight and real-time data analysis capabilities. By using tools that put information back in the hands of finance, not IT, millennials can proactively engage with the business and help drive decision-making.
There has never been a major business or investment decision that wasn’t made better by having a strong financial analyst engaged. CFOs must provide their teams with the tools to engage as a partner in business decisions. The company is rewarded by better returns on those decisions, millennial employees are rewarded with a broader set of skills, and the CFO is rewarded through more loyal and productive employees.
The finance industry must quickly build trust with the millennial generation. Upgraded tools that are simple to use and efficiently report in real time can help CFOs and their companies build loyalty with their employees and shareholders, especially the younger ones. Increasing the speed of financial decision-making isn’t just a millennial issue – it’s a business issue. As the leaders of the finance industry, CFOs are the ones that must ultimately meet this challenge head on.
Thack Brown is general manager and global head for SAP’s line of business finance
This advertisement feature is brought to you by SAP, sponsors of the Guardian Media Network’s Next-gen tech hub
