{"id":9697,"date":"2021-06-16T10:00:20","date_gmt":"2021-06-16T09:00:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/?p=9697"},"modified":"2026-01-29T09:42:38","modified_gmt":"2026-01-29T09:42:38","slug":"power-of-data-business-decisions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/power-of-data-business-decisions\/","title":{"rendered":"The power of data: 5 ways to make sure you get business decisions right"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\tThe power of data: 5 ways to make sure you get business decisions right\t\t\t\t\t<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\"Lucien\t\t\t\tLucien Wynn<\/span>\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Data is at the heart of the modern world. It is all around us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Every day, humans create more than 2.5 quintillion bytes of data.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When it comes to business, data is one of the biggest assets a company has. Yet many are failing to maximise their data, even ignoring it as such a vital asset.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Across finance, there is a huge amount of data available to accountants and teams \u2013 all of which should enable simpler and smarter decision making, driving key insights into the health of a business, its risks and opportunities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But are you listening to what your data is telling you?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Importantly, do you even have arrangements in place to allow your data to tell its story and present a clear financial narrative?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here, I will explore five ways to make sure you get decisions right by listening to your data and what it\u2019s trying to tell you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here’s what I cover:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Advocate data from the top<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Set your team to (new) work<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Give your team the tools to succeed<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. Start listening to your data<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

5. Get value from your data<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Download your free copy of 7 tips to supercharge your business decisions<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

1. Advocate data from the top<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

It was only a short while ago that an over-reliance on Excel locked finance teams into a static mode.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Data was often confined to fields in a spreadsheet<\/a> and you would need an Excel-formula whizz in your office to manipulate the data and get some meaning from it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fast forward and in today\u2019s business world, data is seen as a dynamic and competitive asset, rather than simply static information.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It enables you to proactively plan and deliver analysis for your business or your clients.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s always obvious to me when working with finance and accountancy teams that those who use data well have an agile leader in place: someone who fully grasps and advocates the importance of data, and who fosters a data-driven environment in which people and technology are available to make success a reality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once data is advocated for at the top, buy-in from the rest of the business seems to follow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What emerges is a culture in which data and its use is central to the business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Top tip<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Ensure an agile leader advocates from the top, creating a culture in which data is highly valued and where everyone buys into it and wants to listen to it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Set your team to (new) work<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019re the agile leader in your team or company, then part of your role will be to re-position finance as a strategic voice and ensure your people are central to how data is used: to act quickly and make value-added business decisions, forecast the future, and maintain a competitive edge for your business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gone are the days when finance teams were solely responsible for bookkeeping and processing transactions or working discretely behind the scenes as number crunchers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many day-to-day finance activities have also been digitalised, therefore freeing up time for the finance team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, Sage\u2019s own research<\/a> highlights that businesses can save \u00a317,000 per year with a move to digital accounting<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, if spare capacity is there and savings are to be had, your finance team should be encouraged to get to grips with data, taking the time to learn about your business\u2019s key challenges and identify opportunities and areas to improve\u2026 and then be the ones to look for ways data can add value.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Top tip<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Encourage your finance team\u2019s unique view of the business to analyse and interpret your data, taking responsibility for listening to what it is saying and passing this on to internal stakeholders to help them make better decisions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Give your team the tools to succeed<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A culture of data analytics and the evolving role of the finance team requires a platform that offers the processing power and ease of use to streamline finance processes and to drive valuable insights in an instant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It doesn\u2019t seem that long ago that Computer Weekly reported<\/a>: \u201cAlmost three-quarters of financial professionals say they struggle to collect data from multiple sources and perform the analysis required to answer questions about corporate financial performance.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Luckily, the technology is now here to process and drive huge amounts of data.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The right technology will provide finance and accountancy teams with instant access to powerful data and analysis, helping them do their jobs better by providing accurate insights that are right at their fingertips.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Top tip<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

A cloud-based financial reporting platform is a good place to start automating compliance and statutory reporting, regular management information reporting, and improved accuracy reporting for multi-entity consolidations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Download your free copy of 7 tips to supercharge your business decisions<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

4. Start listening to your data<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

With the above in place, you\u2019ll be primed to start listening to your data.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Data analytics can then be applied in a wide variety of ways, such as developing company goals and objectives, identifying opportunities, creating financial policy, evaluating trends, and more \u2013 providing CFOs, finance directors and accounting managers with reliable insights they need to make critical decisions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of the clear benefits I often witness when data is utilised and listened to is that it locks you into a successful feedback loop.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One in which leadership has advocated for and backed a greater emphasis on data and the finance team\u2019s evolving role; and where the finance team, in turn, are better able to support leadership and management by providing visible, regular, timely and accurate data reporting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Top tip<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Be bold and confident in the way you start to listen to your data.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now is the time to fully embrace it, because getting value is what comes next and that\u2019s the end game\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5. Get value from your data<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Data is often talked about in terms of the 3Vs: volume, velocity and variety.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once you have the technology in place to handle the sheer volume, velocity and variety of data, a fourth V is the end game: value.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By getting value from your data, you will have achieved a seismic shift away from a static mode of working to one where data is dynamic and enables your people to be inquisitive and follow hunches, querying data for answers, exploring questions such as \u201cwhat will happen next?\u201d and predicting outcomes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Top tips on how to get value from your finance data<\/h3>\n\n\n\n