Your weekly go-to guide to transform your finance function into a strategic powerhouse.

Welcome CFO Techstack Community 👋,

Today, we’re launching a new series about how tech is central to your success as a finance leader, featuring key insights from our recent event, Stacked.

In this series, we’re diving into the roles finance teams need to tackle and how tech can be a real game-changer in making it all happen. We’ll start by exploring a simple way to think about the different “jobs to be done” and how the day-to-day can get in the way of bigger, strategic goals. Then, we’ll look at where tech can help – and where it can’t. Finally, we’ll bust the myth that ERP is always the best solution, showing how automating with Xero plus its ecosystem can often be a better fit.

Let’s dive into the CFO Techstack Hierarchy of Needs—a simple way to break down and think about the key jobs the finance team needs to handle.

FEATURED ARTICLE

CFO Techstack’s Hierarchy of Needs

A way of looking at the roles the finance function must play 

In Episode 1, we’re taking a fresh look at the many roles finance teams juggle and the importance of prioritising effectively. Using the CFO Techstack Hierarchy of Needs, we’ll break down the “jobs to be done,” from the everyday tasks that keep things running smoothly to the bigger-picture responsibilities that drive growth.

The goal? To help you see how lower-level tasks can often take over, and why it’s crucial to manage them smartly so you have more time for the high-value, strategic work that really makes an impact.

The hierarchy of needs in finance

The bean counter

At the base level, finance teams play the role of “bean counters,” making sure every debit and credit is spot on. It’s the core of what keeps the books balanced and the company on track. While it might seem routine, getting this part right is essential—it’s the foundation on which everything else is built. Without accuracy here, it’s tough to make solid decisions higher up the chain.

The reporter

Next up is the role of "reporter," where finance teams are responsible for providing accurate and timely reports both internally and externally. This goes beyond just tracking numbers—it’s about translating the data into insights that leadership, stakeholders, and regulatory bodies can rely on. Whether it’s monthly financials for the executive team or external compliance reports, these reports are crucial for decision-making and maintaining transparency across the business. Prompt and precise reporting builds credibility and trust.

The controller

The "controller" role is all about safeguarding the business. Finance teams here are responsible for protecting the company from fraud, managing risks, and ensuring that spending stays within approved limits. It’s not just about tracking finances, but actively controlling them to avoid any unapproved or excessive spending that could expose the company to unnecessary risk. By setting up strong controls and monitoring systems, finance teams act as a protective shield, keeping the business financially secure.

The forecaster

In the role of "forecaster," finance teams look ahead to envision the future of the business. This involves analysing current trends, market conditions, and internal capabilities to predict where the company is headed. They assess whether the organisation has the necessary resources to achieve its goals. By creating accurate forecasts, finance teams not only help guide strategic decision-making but also ensure that the business is prepared to navigate potential challenges and seize opportunities as they arise.

The business partner

As the "business partner," finance teams play a crucial role in collaborating with other departments to enhance decision-making across the organisation. This partnership involves actively engaging with teams to provide financial insights that enrich their strategies. This collaborative approach not only empowers teams to make informed choices but also drives overall business success through shared objectives and goals.

The crow's nest

Finally, the "crow's nest" in which finance teams reach the pinnacle of strategic insight. By providing a broader perspective, finance professionals guide leadership in charting an optimal course for the organisation’s success. 

A lesson in finance transformation

Let's bring to life the importance of prioritisation and balancing day-to-day tasks with bigger strategic goals through a personal story from our Co-Founder and CEO, David Tuck, during his time as Finance Director at WAYN.

David's time at WAYN, a social travel network, began like many startup stories — with challenges. Fresh off the back of a £2.5m funding round in 2012, he entered a finance function that lacked structure. The finance team consisted of a part-time bookkeeper under the oversight of a CRO who didn't have a finance background. The bookkeeper struggled with new tools, especially when it came to transitioning to cloud accounting software. As a result, there were outstanding invoices unpaid for over two years and revenue was incorrectly recognised.

Determined to make a change, David and his team dedicated months to rebuilding the general ledger and uncovering hidden liabilities, including £50,000 in unpaid invoices that hadn’t even made it into the system. After three intense months of focus and hard work, the accounts were finally clean. However, this victory came at a cost.

Reflecting on the experience, David learned a crucial lesson: while he had succeeded in cleaning up historical data, he had overlooked a more urgent priority—cash flow management. “I got bogged down in the historic clean-up to the detriment of getting a handle on cash,” he admitted. The outcome? The business had taken on unsustainable spending levels, leading to tough decisions.

Ultimately, they had become too wrapped up in the "bean counting" aspect of the hierarchy of needs, overlooking the essential "forecasting" level. It’s common for lower-level tasks to bog down finance teams, but by managing these routine responsibilities smartly, finance professionals can free up more time for the high-value, strategic work that truly drives impact and supports the organisation’s long-term goals.

A lot of roles to fill

The finance function has a lot on its plate, with many roles to fill and only so much brainpower to go around. A recent statistic from Ramp reveals that only 17% of finance teams’ time is spent on strategic work—if anything, that feels generous. David's journey at WAYN highlights how easy it is to get bogged down in daily tasks, making it clear that finding balance is essential.

We’ve taken a closer look at the various hats finance teams wear and the critical importance of prioritisation. By using the CFO Techstack Hierarchy of Needs, we’ve seen how everything from “bean counting” to strategic forecasting contributes to the bigger picture. By managing those routine responsibilities effectively, finance teams can carve out more time for high-value work that truly makes a difference.

In the coming weeks, we’ll explore how tech plays a role in these functions—where it can and can't help. Then we'll delve into the idea that while tech is central to your success as a finance leader, it does not necessarily mean you should implement an ERP system. In fact, automating with tools like Xero and its ecosystem can often provide a more effective solution. Stay tuned!

COMMUNITY INSIGHTS

🎤 How Stacked speakers stack it

Steve Jarvis, CFO at Terrafend, took to the stage at Stacked—but how does he stack it?

Steve Jarvis is currently CFO at Terrafend, a sustainable cleaning solution business.

In his role as CFO at Manufacture 2030, a climate tech company that helps large corporations reduce carbon emissions in their supply chains, he went on a tech stack journey moving the company over to Xero from Sage 50 and implementing the following apps into their tech stack.

Steve told us, "Manufacture 2030 is rapidly scaling up, so everything we do in the finance team focuses on improving and streamlining our processes. We're moving from manual, spreadsheet-driven, and email-based workflows to scalable solutions. To illustrate our growth, our annual recurring revenue (ARR) increased by nearly 90% in 2024, reaching just over $4.4 million as of last month. As a reasonably sized and fast-growing business, it's crucial for us to scale effectively, and that's where Xero and a decent tech stack come in."

Here's what Steve's team are using:

1. Dext for OCR: Dext scans and processes our invoices. We chose Dext because it’s the market leader and supports detailed line item handling, unlike Hubdoc. This feature is crucial for us, as many of our purchases include multiple line items. It allows us to allocate different items to specific accounting codes and divisions accurately.
2. ApprovalMax for Financial Controls: We pair Dext with ApprovalMax which is an excellent approvals app. We use it to raise purchase orders and approve invoices, and we've recently started approving payments with it.
3. Airwallex for FX: Airwallex has been absolutely fabulous across various metrics. Its tight integration with ApprovalMax ensures every bill paid is properly documented, audit-ready, and secured with two-factor authentication, reducing fraud risk. Additionally, Airwallex offers significant savings on foreign currency transactions. With most sales in dollars and costs in pounds, we've avoided hefty foreign exchange fees and poor rates. We think we'll probably save the equivalent of a couple of full-time employees just in better FX rates. We also use Airwallex for employee cards due to its simple interface and multi-currency support without FX fees. We're working with them on reimbursements in beta, which is more comprehensive than Xero expenses and integrates seamlessly with our tech stack, allowing us to keep Xero just for the finance team.
4. Stripe for Invoices: On the revenue side, we handle two types of invoices. For larger invoices to our big customers, we issue them directly from Xero without any issues. For the smaller transactions to the underlying suppliers, we will charge for those, so we tend to take those payments using Stripe. We also use Stripe's subscription model, which automatically renews subscriptions after a year unless the customer opts out.
5. ScaleXP for Revenue Recognition: We need revenue recognition because we receive payments upfront but must spread them over the service period. To manage this, we use an app called ScaleXP. We've set it up so Stripe records the license date in the invoice description, and Synder automatically reads this to categorise the revenue. This integration replaced a series of Excel lookups and match functions that were often unreliable and difficult to manage as we scaled. ScaleXP has been incredibly useful for accurately recording our revenue.
6. Mayday for Intercompany: We use a lovely app called Mayday to help us allocate costs and revenues to our different divisions on a monthly basis. 
7. Fathom for Reporting: To report to our board of investors, we use an app called Fathom. It allows us to run an Excel-type model for quick scenario analysis. As a fast-growing business, we need to adapt rapidly to changes, whether positive or negative. Managing a large Excel model for cash flow has been challenging, but with Fathom, we built a straightforward model that lets us quickly recast long-term and medium-term cash flow forecasts.

Keen to share how you stack it? Email to zoe@cfotechstack.com 

NEW IN THE WORLD OF CFO SOFTWARE

🗞️ News from the stack-o-sphere

• Xero acquires Syft to enhance reporting and insights capability. Learn more.
• Spendesk is introducing a brand-new navigation experience currently available in beta. Check it out.
• Airwallex improves visibility into transfers with new upgrades to transfer and transaction reporting. See the latest updates.

WHAT THE DATA SAYS

📊 Stat of the week

13% of UK businesses say their digital transformation is in its early stages.

Research by Pleo.

UPCOMING EVENTS

🗓️ Save the date

Webinar: Tackling Price Rises with Xero's Hospitality Apps

Wed 25 Sept, 11am BST

Tailored for hospitality finance professionals, this panel discussion features Lightyear and Tevalis alongside Xero to uncover how technology improves data consistency to help overcome constant price rises in the industry.

Webinar: Budgeting & Planning Tech Showcase

Thu 26 Sept, 3-6pm BST

Is your budgeting and planning keeping up with today's fast-changing financial world? Hear from five top software providers and discover innovations that can transform your financial strategies.

Virtual summit: CFO Connect Summit

8-10 Oct

CFO Connect's flagship annual conference returns for its fourth consecutive year! This three-day, fully virtual event is the ultimate gathering of finance leaders, featuring the industry's brightest minds sharing their deep knowledge and expertise to help you become a better finance professional and accelerate your professional journey.

MORE OF THE GOOD STUFF

And lastly, our top picks!

🎧 Podcast: Why Technology Projects Fail: 10 Pitfalls to Avoid in Your Finance Transformation with Hannah Munroe, ep. 192, CFO 4.0 by itas

📝  Article: 7 key steps to building a great finance team

😆  Joke: Why did the finance manager start a band? They were great with notes!

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