Strategic outsourcing can stabilize back-office operations and allow internal teams to focus on core tasks.
Key takeaways
Leaders should pay attention to warning signs that signal the need for finance model transformation.
Finance leaders who act now are positioning their companies for resilience, growth and sustained value.
Why CFOs are rethinking finance delivery
Finance leaders are facing a reckoning. Talent gaps, rising overhead costs and stalled enterprise resource planning (ERP) initiatives are exposing the limits of legacy operating models. Month-end close cycles are stuck in manual loops. Retirements are accelerating. Tech stacks are fragmented. Internal teams are stretched thin.
The risk isn’t inefficiency; it’s inertia. Chief financial officers who delay transformation are falling behind on compliance, analytics and enterprise decision support.
Here are five signs your finance model may be costing you growth:
- Turnover and retirements disrupt continuity
- The close is chaotic, manual and error-prone
- ERP projects stall due to a lack of bandwidth
- Overhead grows faster than revenue
- High-value talent is stuck in low-value work
When these signs show up, it’s time to rethink the model.
Outsourcing as a strategic lever
Outsourcing allows companies to bring in automation tools, offshore leverage and process discipline. This stabilizes the back office so clients can focus on the front office. That shift from transactional to analytical is where real value is created.
Outsourcing is no longer just about cost. It’s about control, flexibility and scale. CFOs are using managed services to support the back office and shift internal teams toward forecasting, analytics and stakeholder engagement.
Benefits often include:
- Faster, more accurate close cycles
- Enhanced transparency through upgraded technology
- Elevated trust in finance across the organization
- Flexibility to scale resources up or down
- Noticeable cost savings
These gains compound over time. What begins as faster close processes and lower costs evolves into a finance function that anticipates risk, influences strategy and delivers sustained value.
Possible challenges
Cultural fit and process maturity matter. Organizations that lack internal discipline or resist structure may struggle.
The most successful arrangements go beyond transactional support. They offer access to a full bench of specialists across finance, technology, human resources and operations. The flexibility of saying, “I’ve got someone for that” is a game changer. While your current team may be ready for today’s needs, your future team is ready for tomorrow’s requirements.
Today’s finance leaders don’t outsource just to save money. They outsource to scale smarter.
Avoid delays
The first step is clarity: you need an honest assessment of your finance operating model. Finance leaders who act now are gaining a competitive edge. Those who don’t are at risk of being trapped in outdated processes and mounting inefficiencies.
The takeaway
CFOs and similar finance leaders are building flexible, scalable finance functions that deliver confidence and capacity for the future. Outsourcing can be key to this goal. Leaders who assess their company’s finance operating model are taking the first step to unlocking outsourcing’s full potential.
RSM contributors
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Tara LejaNonprofit Sector Leader, Partner
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