Are you planning to kick off a finance automation initiative in the new financial year? If you answered in the affirmative, you’re in good company. 

In 2024, mid-sized and enterprise organisations alike are alive to the benefits embracing automated accounting can deliver, and rightly so.

Unpacking the advantages

Being able to reduce manual processing and speed up the quarterly close process while simultaneously slashing error rates equates to a significant productivity and efficiency gain.

Meanwhile, automating the accounts receivable process can shave an average of between five and ten days off the payment cycle and contribute to a 30% reduction in bad debts, on average, according to the latest BlackLine research. 

Businesses that go down this route also have the opportunity to establish a single source of truth about their financial status – one that’s up-to-the-minute accurate, not a reflection of the status quo months earlier, last the books were balanced. Information is power, and having on-tap access to it enables leaders to make smart, data-driven decisions.

But, alas, achieving these benefits isn’t as easy as selecting cloud-based finance automation software and rolling it out. 

If they’re to really reap the rewards, businesses need to invest in strategic change management processes and practices across the project lifecycle. 

Here are some that will help you optimise your finance automation implementation this year.

Knowing where you want to go

Anchoring your project with clear, quantifiable objectives is the first and arguably most important action you should take. 

Make them too challenging, vague or difficult to measure, and you’ll hobble your team from the get-go.

You’re also likely to struggle with scope drift or creep. Both are guaranteed to distract your team from the main game – delivering your project on time and on budget.

Being crystal clear about what it is you’re aiming to do, and why, will help them stay on track and make it easy for you to demonstrate the value you’re delivering to the organisation.

And whatever your goals may be, they should be etched in metrics. Forget positive vibes, a la Dennis Denuto, about how much better things will run post-implementation – we’re talking detailed numbers that demonstrate the return on investment the organisation will achieve.

Engaging with key stakeholders 

Rather than viewing your finance automation initiative through a technological or corporate lens, it should be regarded as a people-centric exercise. 

That means getting the right people involved early on is critical to setting expectations appropriately and avoiding challenges later on.

You can work out who they are by asking yourself a few simple questions. Who will be impacted by this project, and at what stage? Who needs to be informed? Who are the key decision-makers? Who can help drive positive outcomes? And who will the success of the project depend upon?

The list of names that eventuates should include a senior leader who will champion the project, your ICT department who’ll play a pivotal role in pulling things together in the background, and the end users who’ll be working with the new solution on a daily.

Identifying change champions

Every transformation initiative needs a change champion or several – individuals who understand the issues the organisation is facing and can see the benefits your project will deliver. 

Well-connected and respected, they’re willing and able to communicate those benefits to their colleagues across the enterprise. 

Identifying your champions and encouraging them to support the project is a great way to help other employees accept and adapt more readily to the changes coming their way.

Testing exhaustively

Software implementations can be complex and it’s a rare project that doesn’t experience an issue or several. The week after go-live is not the best time to detect and deal with them. 

That’s why a rigorous testing regimen is an essential component of your change management program. It enables you to be sure your newly acquired finance automation platform will perform as expected once you make the switch, and provides an opportunity to iron out any bugs before they disrupt operations and destroy employees’ confidence in the new technology.

Sharing the success

If you’ve followed these steps, the success of your finance automation project is all but assured. Should it go well, don’t be shy to talk about it, and encourage your stakeholders and change champions to do likewise. 

That way, you’ll find it easier to obtain buy-in and support for future upgrades and enhancements, as well as other upcoming digital transformation initiatives.