Finance leaders share what motivates them to go 'all in'

In previous posts, we’ve showcased goal-driven people who demonstrate drive and resilience throughout their personal and professional lives. For our initial video series, we talked with Goal Getters who shared what it means to go ‘all in’ and provided blueprints for staying energized, focused, and receptive to new ideas.

We deliberately sought out experts and practitioners outside of the Office of the CFO to provide a fresh perspective. However, since we launched our video series, we’ve heard from dozens of finance professionals, both within and outside of the Prophix community, who have shared their own thoughts on perseverance and motivation. Their comments prove that one doesn’t need to be a former paralympic champion, professional football player, or neuroscientist to commit to a set of goals and find ways to overcome obstacles.

Turning failure into opportunity

We asked a group of finance professionals to provide anecdotes in which concerted team efforts fell short but resulted in new learning or process improvements. Not surprisingly, many teams have experienced struggles with projects like technology implementations, migrations, or updates. While each roll-out of this kind can come with inherent challenges, they all present opportunities for a team to grow, unify, and adapt. For instance: 

“My team started a project which we underestimated project complexity and overpromised on delivery. This resulted in missed deadlines and dissatisfied stakeholders. We took this as an opportunity to seek feedback and did a deep dive into the issues that caused us to fail. This allowed us to build a list of areas to improve and resulted in growth for members of the team.” - Graham Darlington, Director of Finance, Canadian Helicopter Limited

For many teams, innovative technology provides a fast and intuitive way to overcome challenges that, in the past, have taken weeks to manage, if they could be managed at all. A fantastic example:

“When we initially designed our 180 Cost Centre reports, we found them unsatisfactory due to the absence of statistical data aligned with the financial information available in Prophix. This limitation prevented us from including specific statistical data in our Cost Centre reports.

For a few months, we generated cost center reports without the inclusion of statistical headcount data. Eventually, we devised a plan to create a Prophix module containing the required statistical data.
Together, we designed templates for inputting statistical data based on the financial data provided by [our various] business units. This endeavor was a collaborative effort, and we received wholehearted support from the business units. As a result, our MIS Reporting now integrates financial and statistical data, which is generated using Prophix reporting templates.” - Sammil Hossain, Senior Accountant, Public Health Ontario

For all the challenges they encountered, in each scenario the teams involved were willing to embrace change and rethink processes that were no longer working. Being open to new approaches, technologies, and best practices – even when it may involve the risk of a failure or a false start – is necessary for team leaders that wish to improve productivity, quality, and employee morale. Now faced with the possibility of transformative change to their departments, finance leaders need to decide if they are ‘in or out’ on the next generation of technology.

Bringing together different teams to achieve a common goal

Finance teams are certainly not immune to the communication and collaboration challenges that are common as organizations scale and workforces become more distributed. Like members of any type of team, finance professionals do their best work when they’re provided with a shared goal, receive clear and regular feedback, and are inspired by their leaders to buy into a common sense of purpose.

Clear evidence can be found here:

“One of our project teams was developing new business processes for a few departments. The team was faced with challenges in collaborating effectively due to differences in expertise and priorities. The team clarified their approach by building team activities, simplifying the common goal, and requesting regular feedback and check-ins. The end result wrapped up with better output from the departments and improved resolutions.” - Mitch Krohn, Scoular

“I was a project manager in charge of a diverse team from different departments, backgrounds, etc. that had been struggling to produce high quality work. I recognized a need for change and made an effort to identify a shared vision, encourage open communication, set clear goals and foster collaboration. This led to more team member engagement and an improvement in the overall quality of deliverables.” - Graham Darlington, Director of Finance, Canadian Helicopter

In many instances, opening the lines of communication can be as simple as gathering in the same (virtual) room and speaking to a colleague face-to-face. For instance:

“Our financial leaders had to submit a report to business development, and a report to the finance team regarding upcoming opportunities. These were two separate reports but contained similar information. Ultimately all it took was getting finance and business development in the same meeting to discuss minimum requirements, establish synergies, and consolidate reports into one report. This saved time as it eliminated an entire report, but also created synergy between two different departments.” - Josh Morgan, Financial Advisor, ASRC Industrial Services

On motivating teams

Every team is different and is driven by its own unique set of metrics. Regardless, no team can operate without some form of motivation that goes beyond the basic work/wage transaction. Team leaders, finance leaders among them, are consistently challenged to find new motivational opportunities for colleagues, both through intrinsic reward and professional growth. Practical examples from finance leaders include:

“We motivate through team and individual development as well as understanding team/individual goals. We also promote a healthy work life balance that allows for flexibility in scheduling and work processes. Ultimately, the support of leadership is helpful with this.” - Sabrina DeYoung, Senior Controller, Emergency Technology, Inc.

On motivating yourself

Teams feed off the energy and attitude displayed by their leaders. But when team leaders need to plug in, engage, and provide the best example, it’s not always easy to summon up the necessary motivation. It is critical that people leaders practice self-care and recognize what they need to deliver their best work. To wit, finance leaders advise:

“Set clear goals, maintain a positive mindset, reward yourself for achievements, and seek inspiration from others.” - Ashish Tumulu, S A Armstrong, Ltd.

“I motivate through positive thoughts and communication with my team. It is beneficial for others to help, assist, learn and grow through development whether it is assisting or taking something off one’s plate to develop within their role. Personally, a better work life balance is also a large contributor.” - Sabrina DeYoung, Senior Controller, Emergency Technology, Inc.

All in for next-generation finance

Finance leaders are far from immune from the forces that lead to complacency and inertia within their offices and teams. So many of the processes that impact the productivity of a finance department are in place because “that’s the way it’s always been done.” But today, finance leaders stand at a very distinct point in history – one where technology and economic conditions will force them to confront their standard practices and either evolve to meet the moment or remain entrenched. Based on the resilience and motivational skills they display daily, we’re confident that Prophix users like those above are already ‘all in’ for the next-generation of finance.