Industry executives and experts share their predictions for 2023.  Read them in this 15th annual VMblog.com series exclusive.

Three Tech Trends That Finance Pros Need in 2023

By Rob Israch, President of Tipalti

The economic outlook for next year will be unlike anything we've seen before. The Fed is beginning to slow interest rate hikes after a series of increases in an effort to curb spending and prevent inflation. However, the job market has yet to contract and Americans continue to spend, leaving economists scratching their heads. As 2023 looms, how can finance leaders set their organizations up for success with no certain economic playbook?

Specifically for finance teams, the key to success in this economic climate will be prioritizing agility, urgency in strategic decision-making and efficiency in business processes. Companies that have not yet adopted the right combination of streamlined processes, team structures, and technologies to enable this are likely already behind their competition and will continue to fall behind. Because of technology's ability to support this lean yet demanding reality, finance teams should expect to see an uptick in the adoption of tools that provide three capabilities: efficiency and sustainable growth, cost control, and multi-function proficiency.

Put simply - invest in reliable, multi-functional enterprise software solutions that fit your business needs. Investing in these tools will not only save money, but will save time through streamlined processes, which will be crucial for recently-downsized or lean teams.

Efficiency and sustainable growth - and doing more with less

In the current economy, companies are challenged to do more with less, making automation technologies an attractive option. As more teams leverage automation to eliminate redundant manual tasks and use their current resources more effectively, we'll see broader adoption, which will usher in new applications and infrastructure that optimize legacy business operations across workflows.

Ultimately, teams will use these efficiencies to be more strategic and use more analytics, meaning decision-making across the business improves as a result of finance's guidance. It's up to finance and business leaders to prioritize investing in the right technologies now to seed long-term sustainable growth.

Cost control

As businesses are confronted with uncertainty, finance leaders are grappling with major decisions that will determine the organization's resilience and future. With revenue growth stilted across industries, businesses need cost control software that provides visibility and controls, such as supplier and purchase order management software.

By allowing finance teams to monitor variances at each budget control level, businesses can reduce the need for unexpected financing and improve liquidity. With 80% of CFOs expecting cost pressures to persist into next year, finance leaders need robust support to balance their ongoing responsibilities, while also fortifying for any possible financial challenges the company may face in the new year. Cost control capabilities will be essential, for the finance function and the company as a whole.

Multi-function proficiency

To underscore the theme in the aforementioned predictions, enterprise software solutions must meet several needs to be worth the spend, allowing businesses to do more with less. Going into 2023, organizations' IT decision-makers and finance teams need to explore all the possible ways to improve operations, and adopt solutions that offer multiple functionalities across the business.

While automation requires teams to adjust their work approach, the result is a more streamlined workflow that allows teams to work smarter. The next automation era for enterprise software capabilities for finance teams will produce applications and infrastructure tools that optimize and streamline legacy business processes across end-to-end operational workflows. By implementing automation technologies into the finance function that offer efficiency and sustainable growth, cost control, and multiple functionalities across the business, financial leaders can focus on preparing their organizations for the uncertainty ahead.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Rob Israch serves as the President of fintech unicorn Tipalti, where he leads the company's growth strategy. Tipalti automates global payables operations for countries all over the world to help them scale finance efficiently, reducing finance operations workload by 80%, avoiding future AP headcount, accelerating monthly close by 25%, and strengthening cost, fraud and compliance controls.