7 Reasons why Finance Business Partnering works
Posted by Helen Lumb - 4th July 2013

Over the last few weeks I have been writing a series of articles about using a Finance Business Partner approach to adding value and improving measurable business performance.

A finance business partner is a finance professional whose role it is to sit inside the business, work collaboratively in a communicative and engaged manner with the key managers of the business with the aim of improving business performance.

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So why does Finance Business Partnering work?…..

Reason 1 - Untapping Value

A Finance Business Partner's role is to connect, support and challenge the business. Similar to how a Coach will work with an individual, unlocking potential, a finance business partner will adopt a similar approach to working with individuals inside the business, unlocking potential financial value. The typical areas this might cover are:

Revenue growth
Gross and operating margin improvements
Market development
Product/ Service development
Shareholder return and value

Reason 2 - Ensuring that business strategy is delivering financial value

We all know that business strategy is a roadmap and following the roadmap will lead us on a journey and to a final destination. A finance business partner, by truly understanding the business and working with the business managers inside the business is in an excellent position to challenge strategy and the roadmap, by modelling the impact of various scenarios, they can most importantly help the business to understand the financial implications of operational decisions. This ensures that the final destination reached is the desired one.

Reason 3 - Facilitating and encouraging ownership of decision making across the business

By taking responsibility for decision making instead of silo working, businesses are more likely to meet or exceed goals and targets. A finance business partner helps to generate synergies between departments, bring clarity to management information being produced and enhance communication. This all leads to improved decision making across the business. This gives organisations a competitive advantage.

Reason 4 - Relevance

A good finance business partner who truly understands the business ensures that management information is relevant and important to the decision making process. This cuts out unnecessary information that can cloud decisions and drive operations that don't meet the strategic aims.

Reason 5 - Impact

Following on from relevance, a finance business partner skilled in financial competencies and working closely with the business can demonstrate the impact that key actions will make on financial and business performance. Business acumen skills and the ability to synthesise as well as analyse information, being able to understand connections, big picture thinking and impact analysis are crucial to the decision making process.

Reason 6 - Collaboration

Stephen Covey in the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, demonstrated in his model that "public victory" came as a result from moving from Independent to Interdependent working. In habits 4, 5 and 6 "Win-Win", "Seeking first to understand" (Empathy) and "Synergise" (The whole is greater than the sum of its parts) he advocated that this way of working led to greater performance for everyone concerned. The finance business partner approach has a collaborative, empathic approach at heart, working for the 'greater good' which in turn works for the business as a whole rather than just for pure individuals

Reason 7 - Intrinsic motivation

Intrinsic motivation (motivation from within) as opposed to extrinsic (carrot or stick) as long been proven to yield better results. A finance business partnering approaching which moves away from silo working, encouraging enhanced responsibility in the decision making process leads to a "value creating" environment and culture. This serves to drive intrinsic motivations as people begin to understand their role, how it fits into the success story of the business and how they can "make a difference". Intrinsic motivations drive employee satisfaction, loyalty and lower staff turnover, which in turn drives business performance.

In next times blog, I will work through the challenges of implementing finance business partnering and the solutions to overcoming them.

Please read my blogs, give me your comments and feedback, follow me on Twitter where I will post when I have added new information or send me your email address to Helen.lumb@indigoperformance.co.uk and I will contact you when a new post has been added.

Helen Lumb is director and co-owner of Indigo Performance Ltd, a company dedicated to developing finance professionals and businesses for increased performance, an active partner in Jenson Solutions Ltd - a chartered accountancy firm of part time Finance Directors and a qualified executive coach and NLP practitioner.

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7 Reasons why Finance Business Partnering worksPosted by Helen Lumb - 4th July 2013

7 Reasons why Finance Business Partnering works
Posted by Helen Lumb - 4th July 2013