Technology trends CFOs must know.

• Author: Wright, Tony
• Position: Technologuy - Chief financial officers

On a global scale across all industries, finance executives have experienced tumultuous times over the past 18 months. The finance department has been on the frontlines--managing the unpredictable, living in the moment and focusing on the here and now. But the tides are turning. Finance executives are starting to look beyond the next quarter. They're using terms like "long-term strategic plan," "growth" and "opportunity."

While each industry has unique challenges, there are a number of common emerging trends and technologies every finance executive must be aware of and potentially plan for, since the lines between finance and technology continue to blur. Indeed, according to a recent Gartner study more than 40 percent of chief information officers are now reporting to the chief financial officer.

Five trends that every CFO needs to fully understand are: Tax automation, extensible Business Reporting Language (XBRL), service-oriented architecture (SOA), profitability management and mobile reporting/business intelligence.

Trend #1: Tax Automation

Automating financial tasks is not new. From automated payroll and fully automated data collection processes, to enterprise-wide corporate performance management suites, automation is finance's friend. The benefits are myriad: Automation virtually eliminates human errors, reduces person-hour intensive tasks and provides the pathway for more strategic activities including financial analysis.

Many companies have already shifted from spreadsheet-based systems to automated solutions for key financial processes such as planning, budgeting, forecasting, financial consolidation and management reporting.

Automating the tax provision is the next logical step in this process. Taxes, like payroll and similar finance operations, require repetitive tasks, such as collecting data and entering it into specific systems that today is typically spreadsheet based. Once collected, this information has to be consolidated and validated--all activities that consume hours of the finance department's time. These are hours that could be spent on more value-add, strategic activities, such as tax planning.

Automating the tax provision is not just about running a more efficient finance department. In some cases, it's a matter of meeting regulatory requirements, and in all cases it's about implementing financial best practices.

As finance departments move beyond simply reporting the numbers and act as advisers, corporate...