In the wake of the recession, the topic of fixed asset management has become increasingly important. When an organization has a good handle on its fixed assets, meaning it is able to do a good job of tracking, managing, and accounting for depreciation, it not only avoids errors on its financial…

As 2012 begins to come to a close and finance departments are consumed with the year-end close-to-disclose process, it seems fitting to reflect back on how this “last mile” of finance has transformed over the past few years. The close-to-disclose process involves all activities needed to close an…

Talent development lessons for all can be found in best-in-class finance functions. This was my big take-away after co-presenting a webinar for Business Finance Magazine on developing finance professionals. In the webinar, The New Rules for Finance Talent Development, my colleague Mary Driscoll and…

Earlier this month, APQC released the latest financial management (FM) Best Practices Report Building a Best-in-Class Finance Function. This research describes 14 best practices common among best-practice organizations.   Topics include:    the strategic purpose of the…

Big Data refers to a collection of data sets so large and complex that capturing, storing, searching, sharing, analyzing, and understanding them is beyond the capabilities of commonly used databases and tools. Organizations are being inundated with a plethora of data that has the potential to…

A common theme among senior finance executives and subject matter experts regarding the close-to-disclose process has emerged. Many large organizations, particularly those that have significantly grown globally over the past decade, could stand to improve in one or all of the following four areas…

Recently, several in-depth articles that review shared services center (SSC) performance with headquarter (HQ) and business unit (BU) performance were updated with new benchmarking data. According to APQC’s Open Standard Benchmarking in accounts receivable, accounts payable, payroll, and general…

Organizations evolve over time as they expand into new markets and develop product lines to meet fast-moving consumer trends. However, as organizations become more complex, performance management processes and tools—implemented long before the business evolved to what it is today—may be obfuscating…

On August 22, 2012, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) adopted new controversial rules under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. Under these new rules, organizations that issue securities and file financial statements with the SEC must disclose the use of…

APQC, in conjunction with EPM Channel, conducted a survey this summer to better understand trends in finance talent development. When asked, “what one change would make the most difference to your finance organization and its ability to add value to the enterprise?” 26 percent of survey…