One of the key tasks of the CFOs is using financial data to drive strategy. The focus should be on aligning investments with the strategic direction of the organisation.

In this keynote presentation, Matt Boon – Senior Research Director at ADAPT uses key findings from the pre-event survey and discussions with peers, to discuss the priorities for the year ahead, include optimising costs, addressing talent challenges, and enhancing operational effectiveness.

In addition, survey results are used to compare priorities among different leadership roles, such as tech, security, and digital leaders, and explores challenges in delivering projects, including competing business priorities and the impact of legacy tech.

Investment priorities for the upcoming year focus on data quality, analytics, and staff upskilling. There are challenges in cloud investment, like managing costs and the shift from CapEx to OpEx.

Furthermore, the survey revealed insights on public cloud adoption, challenges faced by organisations in understanding cloud costs, and the preferred cloud providers.

Matt also discusses the importance of FinOps (Financial Operations) maturity and awareness within organisations.

Matt shifts the emphasis to addresses the perceived preparedness of financial leaders in delivering on their responsibilities, covering areas such as record-keeping, financial planning, and innovation.

Organisations need to accelerate innovation efforts, based on the Global Innovation Index ranking of Australia.

He provides insights into the current landscape of financial leadership, emphasising the need for strategic alignment, efficiency, and innovation in navigating the evolving technological environment.

 

Key Takeaways:

  • Priorities for the year ahead: The top priority is optimising costs, emphasising investments for maximum value. Talent retention and attraction, especially in the finance sector, pose significant concerns. Operational effectiveness is a common goal, with a continuous emphasis on efficiency. The importance of security and trust has increased, underscored by recent high-profile outages.
  • Challenges in project delivery: Competing business priorities pose a significant challenge, exacerbated by an accelerated focus on cost optimisation. Legacy technology, technology debt, and outdated mindsets hinder progress in efficiency and effectiveness. Talent shortage, especially in data analytics and cyber security, is a widespread challenge.
  • Investment trends: Increased budgets for technology and security align with a continued emphasis on governance and risk. Top investment areas include data quality, integration, and analytics. A shift towards opex-style technology initiatives poses challenges in understanding and controlling costs. Organisations hold cloud providers accountable for cost transparency. Growing awareness of FinOps emphasises the need for a cross-functional approach in effective cost management.
Contributors
Matt Boon Senior Research Director at ADAPT
Matt Boon is the Senior Director for Strategic Research at ADAPT, responsible for directing and developing research content and positions. For over... More

Matt Boon is the Senior Director for Strategic Research at ADAPT, responsible for directing and developing research content and positions.

For over 30 years, Matt has worked in research and advisory, including senior leadership roles at Gartner as Principal Analyst, Research Director, and Managing Vice President, where his 18 year history included working with Dell, Microsoft, and many others.

Throughout his career, Matt has been a sought after and highly respected authority on the local and global IT landscape.​ He interacts with executives daily, bringing together groups of C-suite leaders to discuss and prepare for the challenges and opportunities they face.​
​
At ADAPT, Matt hosts numerous industry-leading business and technology events which Matt chairs, including the yearly Security Edge conference, delivering unique market trends and white-papers, advising executives across the technology provider landscape to make informed IT decisions.​

When he is not working, Matt enjoys walking the many trails of the NSW Southern Highlands, travelling and listening to music. He is also partial to a good steak and nice glass of red wine.

Less
Budgets Modernisation