Streamline Financial Operations to Achieve Faster Consolidation & Close
Many finance professionals are challenged with inefficient manual processes and spreadsheets, cumbersome account reconciliation, and a need to modernize their financial close processes to save time and effort.
Learn how leading organizations are able to overcome these challenges by automating and streamlining financial consolidation and reporting processes using Oracle Cloud EPM.
But first, what is Oracle Financial Consolidation and Close?
Oracle Financial Consolidation and Close is a unified platform for financial consolidation, planning and reporting, supporting the process of combining financial information from multiple entities or business units within an organization into a single set of financial statements. It is ideal for any organization that needs to consolidate financial data, large organizations with complex structures/multiple entities/subsidiaries, and organizations with high compliance requirements.
Common Challenges
Time-Consuming Processes: Manually consolidating financial data from multiple sources can be time consuming, especially if the data is spread across different systems in different formats.​ Manually gathering this data and converting the different currencies can lead to inaccurate financial data and cause delays in producing financial statements – impacting decision-making and planning and leaving a company out of compliance regulatory standards.
Lack of Standardization: Using a manual process, different business units may use different accounting systems and processes which can lead to financial data being captured in different formats across the organization. A lack of standardization can also lead to inconsistencies in financial reporting making it difficult to compare financial data across business units and countries. Additionally, manual processes may not allow for real time visibility into financial data, making it harder to identify financial trends and address issues in a timely manner.
Compliance Challenges: Financial consolidation and reporting processes must comply with regulatory standards and requirements. A manual process can make it difficult to ensure compliance as there is no way to track changes or maintain an audit trail without significant time and effort. With a manual process there may be limited documentation when of the financial consolidation and close process. This can make it difficult to prove compliance or to provide and audit trail.
Benefits to the Business
According to an IDC study, organizations that use Oracle FCCS have seen an average return on investment of 305% over five years, with a payback period of just over a year.​ And finance professionals have reported an average of 45% reduction in the time required to complete the financial consolidation and close process.​
A survey of Oracle customers found that 91% of respondents reported improved visibility into financial data, 84% reported improved accuracy of financial data, and 75% reported improved compliance with regulatory requirements.​ Customers have also reported an average reduction of 20% in audit costs and an average reduction of 10% in external audit fees.​
In the same Oracle survey, 79% of respondents reported improved collaboration and communication across finance and other departments, while 66% reported improved efficiency of financial processes.​
Additional benefits include:
- Unified view of financial data enabling finance managers to identify opportunities for improving financial performance.
- Automation of consolidation & close enabling finance managers to provide timely financial reports to stakeholders, and make data-driven decisions.​
- Real-time visibility into financial data enabling finance managers to make informed decisions, optimize financial resources, reduce costs, and increase profitability.​
- Better collaboration communication by providing a unified platform for financial consolidation and reporting.
Finance and IT teams can also benefit from adopting a enterprise data management solution:
- Improved Accuracy and Transparency​
- Faster Financial Close
- Enhanced Regulatory Compliance
- Better Collaboration and Communication
- Reduced IT Workload
- Improved System Security
- Scalable and Flexible Platform
- Reduced IT Infrastructure Costs
Solution: Oracle Financial Consolidation and Close
What are your current financial consolidation and close processes? How are they managed, and what are the pain points associated with these processes?​
Oracle Cloud EPM Financial Consolidation and Close streamlines data consolidation from various sources reducing the risk of errors and providing a faster close cycle. It provides increased visibility and accuracy – data is consolidated in real-time, providing a clear and accurate view of the financial health of the organization. Finally, it provides improved financial governance and compliance via built in governance features.