interRel's State of Business Analytics Survey Identifies Five Key Disruptors Changing the World of Financial Close, Planning, and Reporting

ARLINGTON, Texas, Feb. 13, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- The same technological forces of disruption that have upended many businesses are now poised to change the way companies approach financial planning, reporting, and governance, per the "State of Business Analytics 2017" survey results released today by business intelligence and data analytics experts at interRel Consulting. The inaugural study analyzed various accounting and financial planning processes at more than 250 global businesses, and identified five key trends that are poised to disrupt the way businesses manage these functions internally.

The interRel study examined four areas of business operations – financial consolidation and close, planning and forecasting, reporting and analytics, and data governance – and found that business analytics are being disrupted by innovation in methodologies as well as the transformation of tools, driven by the migration from slowly evolving on-premise products to rapidly changing Cloud-based solutions.

"In the last 10 years, we've seen companies that were market leaders get left behind as a result of external disruptions in business models and markets," said Edward Roske, interRel CEO. "And now we're witnessing those same types of changes and improvements in certain internal business processes that will affect how companies plan, forecast, report, and analyze their operations and financial results. The trends are pointing toward disruption, and we wanted to find out where these trends will land." 

Among the specific disruptive trends identified through the survey is the concept of "continuous close," where companies are completing analysis and consolidation throughout the month, no longer waiting for a specific date or period end. interRel also found that the financial planning and forecasting process within companies is happening at a faster pace, with companies developing multiple plans simultaneously to feature a range of outcomes. Budgeting is shifting from massive annual budget cycles to continuous rolling forecasts using rapidly implemented planning applications in the Cloud as the time to prepare an entire budget approaches as little as 40 hours.

According to Roske, most of these trending developments are enabled through technology, and business managers need to be prepared to accept change as part of their business philosophies. "Businesses must position themselves to disrupt or prepare to be disrupted," he said.

Roske recommended that businesses evaluate current processes and systems to benchmark against market trends, improve and streamline planning and forecasting processes, and seek more sophisticated technologies that offer enhanced detail and frequency.

Five Key Disruptions in Business Analytics

1. Continuous Close.  Period-end will be replaced by "always closing."
2. Multiple Plans.  Budget time will be slashed to allow for multiple scenarios.
3. Data Melding and Analysis Inversion.  Data will not be reported in departmental silos; reports will be analyzed by the provider, not the receiver.
4. Exception Governance.  Governance will become so automatic, we will only consider it when it doesn't work.
5. The Cloud is Ubiquitous. The term "Cloud" will disappear as Cloud becomes the ubiquitous platform of choice.

About the Survey

Respondents to the interRel State of Business Analytics Survey included more than 250 companies across 18 industries in 13 countries. To view a white paper with interRel's comprehensive analysis of survey results, please visit interRel.com/SoBA17.

About interRel Consulting

Founded in 1997, interRel Consulting is the longest-standing partner in the world dedicated solely to implementing Oracle EPM/BI solutions. To learn more about interRel Consulting, please visit www.interRel.com. 

SOURCE interRel Consulting

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