How can a finance and accounting professional contribute to improve profitability and value addition to a company?

One of the changed /modern roles of finance and accounting professionals is to support business growth initiatives of any organization through (a) transforming to strategic finance business partnering front office role from traditional back-office role, and (b) translating the numbers into effective actions and directions for those operating on the front lines of the business.

Today’s finance professional is involved in the business interacting with the other organizational functions, participating actively in developing strategic business models with new business/revenue opportunities, strategic pricing, promotion and use of technologies, and also assisting/driving business performance vis-à-vis profitability.

As custodian of profit and loss and shareholders’ value, and in the economic downturn when cost control is critical, the finance professional is called upon to help identify areas where the organization can scale back in order to improve overall profitability and also to ensure optimal cash flow and use of other limited resources.

Finance and accounting professionals get an understanding of the company’s product s and services and how they affect the profitability of the business, and accordingly provide data, metrics and analysis that helps transform a common understanding of the drivers of profitability throughout the organization, in order to ensure that profitability develops into a basis for action