Facts alone are seldom persuasive enough to drive changes in an organization, much to the frustration of those with superior technical know-how but limited political clout. At most organizations, having the ear and support of influential executives is also vital to implementing a new process or tool, like automated expense report software.

According to CFO.com, today’s finance officers are playing important roles in many technology initiatives, lending support to projects ranging from “big data” and analytics to digital customer engagement.

CFO.com examined the findings of a new report by McKinsey & Company on global digital business initiatives. In McKinsey’s survey of 850 top executives, 70 percent of CFOs said they are supporting these technology projects, up 6 percent from the previous year, and many are directly involved with the projects.

A user-friendly analytics platform like Chrome River ANALYTICS can help put CFOs and technical personnel on the same page. Such a platform can make it possible for decision-makers to transform complex enterprise data into relevant, compelling reports as needed, without requiring technical assistance. Providing management with customizable ad hoc reporting and transaction-level details means they can better grasp the value of technology initiatives like an automated expense report program.

To successfully implement projects in analytics and automation, “big data” and digital engagement, CFO support is critical. In the McKinsey survey, most respondents said that these projects tend to fail due to lack of executive interest and support, rather than technical problems. Using analytics that make data more accessible and meaningful to executives can help build common ground and support for digital business initiatives. Make your first project mining the data in your company's expense reports to discover the true cost of sales.

Please share your ideas and thoughts. How can you help secure the support of the CFO and other influential players? How often do you see projects fall by the wayside due to lack of executive-level interest?

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Our choice of Chrome River EXPENSE was made in part due to the very user-friendly interface, easy configurability, and the clear commitment to impactful customer service – all aspects in which Chrome River was the clear winner. While Chrome River is not as large as some of the other vendors we considered, we found that to be a benefit and our due diligence showed that it could support us as well as any large players in the space, along with a personalized level of customer care. Sally Abella, Director of Corporate Travel Harman International
We are excited to be able to enforce much more stringent compliance to our expense guidelines and significantly enhance our expense reporting and analytics. By automating these processes, we will be able to free up AP time formerly spent on manual administrative tasks, and enhance the role by being much more strategic. Ben Zastrow Zelle
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