Finance Function Relocation and Uplift: Fuelling Growth for a Tech Company with Global Ambitions

Ever had that feeling that your finance team is stuck in a rut? Good at keeping the lights on, but not quite ready to help you conquer the world? That's the situation a technology company found themselves in. With big plans for growth, including a potential IPO on the NYSE, they needed a finance function that could keep pace with their ambitions.

The Challenge:

This scale-up tech business, with both software and hardware solutions to service the industrial automation and safety market, had been around for over 20 years. But their finance function was more about "keeping the books tidy" than driving strategic decision-making. They needed a serious upgrade to support their ambitious growth trajectory.

The CFO - who, incidentally, is the only other corporate professional I know who downs pre-workout before work instead of coffee - recognised this challenge. Her vision was to secure additional funding, enhance their go-to-market strategy, and ultimately be IPO ready. But while the existing finance team was certainly competent, they were very much focused on operational accounting – debits, credits, and the like. Strategic forecasting and big-picture financial insight? Not quite in their wheelhouse. It was time to bring in reinforcements.

The Solution:

They rolled up their sleeves and got to work. Together with the executive, they assessed the current finance function and mapped out a future-focused structure. This wasn't about restructuring and making redundancies; it was about creating a roadmap for growth and expansion within the finance team. This involved:

• Strategic Forecasting: Building a team capable of developing sophisticated 3 way financial models and forecasts to support transactions and investor relations.

• Systems and Automation: Implementing new systems and automating processes to improve efficiency and accuracy.

• Business Partnering: Creating a finance team that could actively partner with business units and operations to provide insights and support decision-making.

Reorganisation and Growth:

They designed a new organisational structure that offered team members clear progression opportunities, keeping them motivated and engaged throughout the transformation. To address the gap in more strategic and value-adding roles, they decided to establish a secondary office in Melbourne (to add to their existing Canberra location). This allowed us to tap into a wider talent pool and attract professionals with the specific skills and experience needed to drive the company's growth across two of Australia’s major cities.

With this new structure in place, they built a high-performing finance team of around 15 people. This included a wide range of roles, such as:

• ERP Manager: This role later evolved into an Enterprise Applications Manager as the company's systems landscape expanded.

• Financial Analysts: Providing key financial analysis, modelling and reporting support.

• Finance Business Partners: Working closely with business units to provide financial insights and support decision-making.

• Statutory Accountant: Ensuring compliance with all relevant accounting standards and regulations.

• Statutory Reporting Manager: Leading the financial reporting function and ensuring timely and accurate reporting.

• Tax Manager: Developing a more structured approach to company tax and international legislation.

• GM Finance: Overseeing the overall finance function and providing strategic direction from a commercial finance lens.

• Payroll Manager and Officer: Managing the in-house payroll function.

• Accounts Officers: Providing support for day-to-day accounting operations.

Project Execution:

In parallel, they ran several key projects:

• ERP Enhancement: They implemented Netsuite to provide a robust and scalable ERP system.

• Strategic Forecasting: An interim resource was brought in to develop a comprehensive 10-year, three way integrated strategic forecast for potential investors.

• Forecasting and Reporting: They implemented Workday Adaptive Planning to streamline forecasting and reporting processes.

• Payroll Transformation: They in-housed a previously outsourced payroll function and implemented a remediation plan to improve efficiency and accuracy.

The Outcome:

The transformation was a resounding success! The company now has a finance function that is truly fit-for-purpose, capable of supporting their ambitious growth plans and setting the stage for a potential future IPO.

Key Takeaways:

• Don't be afraid to shake things up. Sometimes a restructure is perceived negatively but can be a big positive for people who haven’t seen progression opportunities to step up.

• Think outside the box when it comes to talent acquisition. Expanding your geographic reach can open up new possibilities and attract top talent.

• Invest in systems and automation. This can free up your finance team to focus on more strategic and value-adding activities.

If you're looking to transform your finance function and build a team that can drive your company's growth, get in touch – we're here to help!