{"id":22088,"date":"2024-03-20T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-03-20T13:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/?p=22088"},"modified":"2025-01-07T08:55:15","modified_gmt":"2025-01-07T13:55:15","slug":"mastering-your-tech-stack-with-saas-ai","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/mastering-your-tech-stack-with-saas-ai\/","title":{"rendered":"Slash uncertainty with SaaS tech stack AI"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tTechnology & Innovation<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\tSlash uncertainty with SaaS tech stack AI\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\"david-appel-and-eric-sleeth\"\t\t\t\tDavid Appel & Eric Sleeth<\/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

As a SaaS CFO, you and your team members will never fully get rid of uncertainty. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, you can come impressively close if you’re equipped with an automated tech stack. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Limiting financial uncertainty to the bare minimum is a huge piece of reaching your business goals, and having the right technologies in your department is a critical piece of that equation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This post explores 1) Common tech stack challenges that make it hard for SaaS CFOs to eliminate strategic uncertainty while scaling their companies, 2) The importance of having a tech stack strategy for slashing uncertainty and what yours should be, and 3) Important questions to ask as <\/strong>you compare different companies that provide accounting software systems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What’s needed to slash financial uncertainty while optimizing performance for small and large companies alike? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let’s find out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2 legacy tech stack challenges holding today’s SaaS CFOs captive<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Despite the incredible advances that SaaS finance tools have made in recent years, many CFOs continue to use legacy technology services. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

What’s familiar is comfortable, after all. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But is it necessarily the best option?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this case, the answer is a resounding “no”. Here are two of the most important reasons why.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Lack of integration sucks up time and money<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

SaaS CFOs require a centralized web app or piece of software with all the backend functionality they need in one place\u2013with a sleek frontend user experience to match.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Legacy tech stacks tend to be disjointed and composed of many different software solutions cobbled together over months or years. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This approach is more expensive, less operationally reliable, and wastes a tremendous amount of time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some companies using legacy finance tools deploy internal software development professionals or engineering teams to fill in the gaps and make this outdated set of technologies more effective. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

That’s costly, features a questionable return on investment (ROI), and\u2013given the availability of integrated cloud accounting tools<\/strong><\/a>\u2013is completely unnecessary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Your data isn’t actionable\u2013and sometimes isn’t even available when needed<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The fact that legacy finance tools aren’t integrated into a single application is hardly the only problem. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of the other vulnerabilities of legacy tech stacks is their lack of trustworthy real-time data.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Legacy solutions stacks rely on manual financial reporting rather than AI automation technology. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The downstream impact of this is that reports generated with these tools often feature flawed business intelligence that can harm your company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bottom line: how can your tech stack slash financial uncertainty when it’s causing uncertainty through reporting delays or inaccuracies?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plan to fail if you fail to plan<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

If all that just gave you a flutter, that’s good\u2013that’s the effect it should have. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tech stack inefficiencies drastically limit your ability to reduce professional uncertainty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That’s why SaaS CFOs need to formulate a specific tech stack strategy. Knowing what you want will help you steer clear of what you don’t want. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

And that’s essential because when it comes to choosing different tech stacks, taking the wrong path can be tremendously painful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, without further ado, what should your finance technology stack include to make sure you have the means to slash uncertainty?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cloud-based tech stack integration<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

If you’re still using a legacy tech stack on an ordinary web server, you’re missing out on one of the most powerful business benefits of a modern tech stack: integration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

An integrated accounting suite weaves all the different pieces of your operating system into one hyper-usable product with a sleek user interface. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

And you don’t need a programmer, web developers, additional IT investment, or an internal development process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The gold standard tech stack should come pre-built with everything you need. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It’s much harder for you and your team to contend with financial uncertainty when you’re switching between a heap of different software apps to do your work. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

What else should your strategy include?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Real-time reporting data you can leverage to full effect<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

SaaS CFOs should ensure that their department has the technology infrastructure for real-time reporting. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Usage-based or hybrid billing requires instant feedback on customer usage levels, billable events, and similar variables.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As you research different software options, you’ll know you’re on the path to choosing the right tech stack if it supplies you and your team with continuous real-time data and AI-generated financial reports.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Modern cloud accounting tools supply advanced backend technologies for lag-free KPI readouts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

They give CFOs immediate access to all the different SaaS metrics needed to track company performance and quickly maneuver if necessary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Automated SaaS forecasting to help you shape your future<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

“I wish whipping up a SaaS forecast was as simple as using Google or Facebook, watching Netflix, or updating my Android IoS.” <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Odds are decent that some version of that sentence has passed through your mind before.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That’s hardly surprising. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

SaaS forecasting<\/strong><\/a> is crucial<\/strong>. It’s the central node that brings your strategies to fruition. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately, unless you’re leveraging tech stack AI, it’s also laborious and error-prone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cloud-based forecasting is the superior choice for slashing uncertainty because:<\/p>\n\n\n\n