Treasury executives are facing an unprecedented confluence of challenges today, with no reasonable prospect that the massive waves of change will be easing up any time soon.  In addition to the black swan event of a global pandemic that has literally shutdown economic activity in much of the world, companies are also dealing with other high volatility forces, such as the Russia vs Middle East oil production standoff and global currency fluctuations.

These and other related forces are combining to create significant new challenges for Treasury, which in turn is accelerating the already existing trend toward greater integration and interoperability of various treasury-related software applications.  For example, management of cash positions, working capital and hedges against external risk factors are prime focus areas that can benefit from enterprise-wide visibility along with flexible analytics tools and agile response mechanisms.

Overall risk management entails these four key areas:

• Financial: Cash, Foreign Exchange, Commodities, Exposures, Credit
• Geo-political: Taxes, Tariffs, Trade, Political
• Business Continuity: People, Processes, Supply Chain, Equipment, Real Estate
• Security: Data, Systems, People, Property, Brand/Reputation

Security issues span all aspects of a business. For more info, watch the video of this webinar on Risk and Exposure.  In this post, we are focused on three areas, Financial, Geo-political, and Business Continuity, all of which have significant relevance to enterprise-wide treasury integration.

Over recent years, several changes in the compliance landscape, such as ASC 606 / IFRS 15 on Revenue Recognition and ASC 842 / IFRS 16 on Lease Accounting, have radically altered the requirements for what data must be disclosed and how disclosure reporting is handled. 

At the same time, major shifts in business models, such as the rise of the subscription economy and the move from product-focused sales to experience-focused solutions are fundamentally changing the ways that revenue is generated.

In addition, most companies are looking for ways to speed up their closing cycles in order to provide investors and other stakeholders with accurate and timely information in a shorter period of time.

The main functions of treasury include cash and liquidity management, funding and capital management, and financial risk management. These functions are in many treasury environments handled through spreadsheets and manual processes. This creates significant risks and these risks need to be matched to the organization and the board’s objective.

Listen to our latest Podcast on Improving Cash Flow and EBITDA with Active Lease Management. During this podcast, John Froelich, Bramasol VP of Marketing and Strategy, discusses Active Lease Management and explains how it can improve visibility of lease portfolios and cash flow along with enhancing financial performance.

SAP Central Finance (CFIN) offers an excellent pathway to jumpstart your S/4HANA journey by providing an efficient and agnostic platform for integrating visibility and financial reporting across diverse ERP landscapes.  However, if the data isn't accurate and doesn't flow properly you won't achieve the results you want. 

Most companies are constantly looking for new ways to upgrade their finance, treasury, and compliance activities as an on-going commitment to improving productivity, reducing risk, and optimizing overall business agility.

When it comes to risk management, CFOs are invariably at the center of the action. This is especially true during a black-swan event such as the current global pandemic but even in normal times, CFOs must deal with identifying and mitigating risk every day.

Among the key tools that CFOs use in risk management are hedging strategies, particularly regarding foreign exchange (FX) rates and portfolio investments.  This blog provides an overview of hedging strategies, methods and technology tools that can help CFOs mitigate risks while optimizing returns.

SAP Central Finance (CFIN) can help streamline your S/4HANA journey by providing an efficient and agnostic platform for integrating visibility and financial reporting across diverse ERP landscapes.  

In March 2019, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) issued Accounting Standards Update (ASU) No. 2019-02, Entertainment—Films—Other Assets—Film Costs (Subtopic 926-20) and Entertainment—Broadcasters—Intangibles— Goodwill and Other (Subtopic 920-350): Improvements to Accounting for Costs of Films and License Agreements for Program Materials.

Merger and Acquisition (M&A) strategies are an important element for many companies to drive growth, expand markets and jump start new initiatives. However, to succeed with M&A projects, there are many key technical accounting issues that must be understood. Although M&A activity is way down right now, the current crisis portends a coming surge in new deal opportunities that will emerge as recovery begins.  Will you be ready?