According to the 2024 Insightsoftware Finance Trends Report, 75% of finance teams spend 6 hours per week recreating financial reports, amounting to 300 hours per year. The top three most time-consuming reporting tasks for finance units are:
Modern Finance
Turning old habits into fresh opportunities with Dynamics 365 Finance and Operations
The changing face of finance
The role of finance departments is changing. With a slew of digital tools to automate fiscal processes, they are cementing their seat at the table and making important contributions to high-level strategy development teams. And since they hold the purse strings, this new wave has the potential to turn CFOs from mere risk managers into true allies for innovation.
Finance is the fiscal lifeblood of an organization. Beyond spreadsheets and reports, they are a critical link in the decision chain, especially for large investments. The rise of big data is underscoring this role, and yet many departments are facing a mountain of tasks that threaten to slow them down.
But today’s finance teams are much more than this. With the right tools, they can leverage data insights, automation, and advanced analytics to make proactive, informed decisions. For many businesses this can be a tall order, as growing volume and regulatory requirements are accompanied by increasingly time-consuming processes.
That’s why HSO has partnered with Microsoft and Aptitude to enable finance departments to fulfill their role as enablers of strategic business goals. With our combined expertise we are empowering the next generation of finance leaders with tools that automate data-centric tasks and leverage AI to open new business opportunities.
Read Blog: Changing Finance Trends
Did you know?
60%
Tax preparation
59%
Financial statement creation
57%
ERP maintenance and data management
The 2024 Autonomous Finance Benchmark Research states that 44% of the 1,700 Finance and IT executives that participated see Data Quality and Reliability as the #1 obstacle jeopardizing strategic decisions. According to the same research, the top 3 areas where businesses will see ROI in the coming 3-5 years are:
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Data Analytics and Business Intelligence
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Financial Management and Reporting
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Customer Relationship Management
Our three keys to unlock Autonomous Finance
Without a strong foundation, you can’t visualize the path to realize your vision. That’s why we’ve crafted a three-tier layered approach to help finance teams uncover their strategic superpowers and drive real impact.
Not your grandfather's bookkeeper
HSO + Microsoft + Aptitude: A Best-of-breed Partnership
This is not our first rodeo. HSO, Microsoft, and Aptitude have come together to develop a comprehensive solution for modernizing finance departments. This trinity combines unique, battle-tested finance modernization tools with Microsoft’s cutting-edge cloud and AI technologies to make the most of today’s dynamic market trends.
HSO leverages expertise across industries to adapt Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance, Power Platform, and Aptitude Fynapse to the unique needs of each client. We augment these with our DnA Data and Finance frameworks to enable insight-revealing, near real-time reporting.
Key benefits of our collaborative solutions include:
- Unified data: Ensures compliance and accuracy across all financial operations.
- Near Real-Time Flexibility: Harness data visibility with intuitive dashboards and analytics.
- Composability: Build a platform that fits your business needs like a glove and add features as requirements change.
- Scalability: A flexible cloud infrastructure that grows with your organization.
- Automation: Streamline settlement and payment processes.
“Executing international finance implementations is not just a job for HSO, it’s who we are.”
#1 Unlock Data: The foundation of Modern Finance
The basics of finance modernization start with a robust data strategy. Without unified, actionable data, you’ll be stuck in the weeds.
- Data Management: No more conflicting info. Identify gaps in your current data ecosystem and create a structure that consolidates information into a single truth.
- Data Infrastructure: Build scalable, flexible systems that grow with you and integrate seamlessly with existing tools like Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance and Operations.
- IT Strategy: Harmonize processes across departments to create an efficient, well-oiled machine.
The result? Ready-to-use data consolidation templates, task checklists, and prototypes for unified structures that reduce mistakes and save you time.
#2 Unlock Digital: Automate Manual Processes
Modern finance is digital by nature. By embracing the cloud and modern ERP systems, you can automate processes and shatter standard financial reporting timelines.
- Cloud: Serve as the backbone for real-time financial operations and analysis.
- ERP Modernization: Shift from manual processes to automated workflows with Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance.
- The average timeline for month-end closing is 6.4 days. Wouldn’t you rather spend that time making your business better?
The result? Near real-time reporting that reduces time spent on month-end and year-end closings, freeing up resources for strategic tasks.
#3 Unlock AI: The holy grail of business insights
Modern finance is autonomous. Proactive instead of reactive. By analyzing historical data and offering predictive insights, AI tools light up the path to make risk-conscious decisions on the way to your goals.
- Automated Processes: Free your team from repetitive tasks.
- Autonomous Agents: Turn finance into a trusted advisor with AI enabled, self-improving functions that detect patterns in big data and turn it into actionable insights.
- Strategic Planning: At its peak, AI drives a prescriptive model. Decide where you want to take your business, and it’ll tell you what to tweak to get there.
The result? Personalized Finance AI copilots and digital agents that streamline operations, helping your team focus on big picture strategy.
Success Story: OneDigital
OneDigital, a leading US insurance brokerage, partnered with HSO, Microsoft, and Aptitude to modernize its finance department. By implementing an integrated solution with Dynamics 365 Finance, Power Platform, and Aptitude Fynapse, they achieved:
- Improved Compensation Management: Full visibility into settled accounts via the Producer Compensation Hub.
- Automation: Streamlined carrier statement matching and settlement processes.
- Revenue Recognition: A seamless feed for accurate, incremental revenue reporting.
This transformation boosted OneDigital’s agility, accuracy, and transparency, enabling them to respond quickly to market changes and customer demands.
Contact Us to Learn More About Modern Finance
What sets HSO apart
HSO is a Business Transformation Partner with deep industry expertise and global reach. HSO leverages the full power of the Microsoft Cloud to transform how people work and engage customers, ultimately accelerating the impact of cloud transformation and improving overall business performance. Large enough to serve, small enough to care.
Consistent Global Delivery Capabilities
HSO offers global delivery capabilities alongside 24/7 managed services to expedite business transformations for multinational corporations. Our unified global delivery methodology and template approach ensure consistent implementations worldwide, enabling cost-effective solutions with predictable outcomes.
100% Microsoft Focus
HSO is a full service Microsoft Partner, having achieved all six Microsoft Cloud Partner Program Solution Designations, with each designation being anchored on the Microsoft Cloud: Business Applications, Data & AI (Azure), Digital App & Innovation (Azure), Infrastructure (Azure), Modern Work, and Security.
HSO Academy
HSO Academy is an integral part of the HSO culture for the further development, continuous improvement and certification of HSO employees. We invest in our people with ongoing training programs, delivering the most impact on your business.
HSO Offerings
HSO develops solutions for our customers that leverage the latest cloud and AI technologies from Microsoft. Our industry-focused products address the vertical and horizontal needs of the markets we operate in, accelerating our customers' digital transformation and enabling them to become digital leaders in their industry.
Discover more about HSO's capabilities for autonomous finance
Learn more
Global Autonomous Finance Benchmark 2024
Embracing Autonomous Finance: A Guide for AEC Firms
Discover how embracing autonomous finance can revolutionize your AEC firm's financial operations, enhancing efficiency and decision-making through the power of AI and machine learning.
Why Your CFO Should Own Your AI and AI Governance
Leveraging AI to Enable Autonomous Finance
Are You Ready?
Modern Finance Trends
Turning Number Whisperers into Strategic Partners with Dynamics 365 Finance and Operations