Reporting is not just a necessary burden. It's also a strategic opportunity. The organizations that optimize their reporting process are able to make decisions based on deeper insights in less time. Their reports become a strategic tool that directly promotes their competitive advantage.
Ready to reap the same rewards? Here are four ways to improve your company's overall reporting.
Rely on a Single Platform
Without a centralized source for data the reporting process requires a massive search effort. The vast majority of time and energy involved is spent tracking down facts and figures that have become unnecessarily inaccessible because of poor data management. Consolidating all operational and financial data on a single platform expedites the discovery process significantly. That way finance and accounting can focus on the quality of the reports rather than the completeness of the data involved.
Provide Context and Comprehensibility
A spreadsheet stuffed with numbers does not provide many actionable insights. And a one-size-fits-all approach to reporting leaves a lot of stakeholders focusing on irrelevant information. Reporting becomes a more valuable process when it provides decision makers with understandable information that serves their specific needs. In order to do that, finance and accounting must be able to streamline the data loads of reporting and focus on providing meaning and value.
Incorporate Visual Narratives
Numbers cannot and should not tell the whole story. In order for reports to have the necessary impact and clearly communicate their full meaning they must incorporate graphs, charts, and other visual aids. This point builds off of the previous one – reports should be as instructive and actionable as possible. Again, that means finance and accounting must have tools in place that handle the heavy lifting of dealing with data.
Make Reporting Self-Directed
As the reporting process has become more important the demand for customized reports has grown in kind. Financial professionals are often overwhelmed with requests for esoteric insights delivered on demand. Not only is this impossible to provide. It also wastes the time of accounting departments that could be focused on more productive pursuits. Introducing self-reporting allows all stakeholders to take a deep dive into the data and extract information immediately.
What if there was a single solution that could instantly enable you to improve reporting? Adaptive Insights is a leading Corporate Performance Management platform that empowers professionals to make the most of data. Every single stakeholder is able to use intuitive tools to make meaning out of metrics.
AcctTwo is proud to partner with Adaptive Insights to elevate reporting to new heights. Connect with our team to get in-depth information and schedule a free demonstration.