2011 technology issues for financial executives.

• Author: Van Decker, John
• Position: TECH STRATEGY

For the 13th year, FEI's Committee on Finance & IT (CFIT) and Financial Executives Research Foundation (FERF) surveyed FEI members on their use of technology. This was the third year in which Gartner sponsored the study.

Key trends detected in the latest study included a shift in information technology from a tactical operation to a strategic asset, as well as the link between technological excellence and optimal business performance.

Though some areas of the survey are consistent with last year's results, several findings in the 2011 survey stood out, including a renewed emphasis on business intelligence (BI) and business applications and the increasing role of the chief financial officer in information technology decisions.

This year, 344 executive-level decision-makers responded to the survey, all of them highly qualified to provide their perspectives on technology deployment within the enterprise. About two-thirds (66 percent) of the respondents were enterprise CFOs. Business unit CFOs accounted for about 9 percent of the pool and 95 percent of the respondents could be classified as senior financial executives.

CFO INFLUENCE IN IT EXPANDING

Consistent with the results of the past three years, 42 percent of IT organizations report to the CFO, compared with 33 percent that report to the CEO. In last year's study, 43 percent of IT organizations reported to the CFO.

When asked about their preferred reporting structure, 46 percent said they believed IT should report to the CFO--more than any other officer. Given the increasing role of the CFO in making IT decisions, it is increasingly important that individual businesses ensure that CFOs are better educated on technology issues, and that chief information officers and CFOs have a common understanding of how to leverage enterprise technology.

An increasing involvement of the CFO in IT investment decisions was also noticeable, up from the 2010 results. In more than 26 percent of the companies, the CFO alone has authority over all IT investment--51 percent when combined with the chief information officer. This is much higher than that of the CIO alone; only 5 percent of IT investment authorization is made by the CIO, down from 2010 (see chart on the next page).

The CFO's understanding of available technology is critical and as the role continues to evolve, the CFO must fully understand the use and potential for technology.

IT SPENDING RECOVERING IN 2011

Senior financial executives predict...