Learning Outsourcing > A Modern CFO’s Point of View

CFO Magazine held its annual Melbourne CFO Symposium last month, bringing together over 180 Finance leaders for a day of networking and learning, exploring the ever evolving and widening role of the CFO.

One of the key topics of discussion for the day was around the continued shortage of finance talent locally and how using outsourcing can build a strategic, agile and global finance team. Here are some of the key takeaways.

Outsourcing as a Solution

Simba Global’s CFO Naresh Raja attests that working with D&V Philippines helped them address their growing need for international workforce. For Michael Hill Jewellers’ Deputy CFO Joel Watson it was interesting that he didn’t experience any resistance to outsourcing with his internal finance team. On the other hand, stakeholders within Michael Hill were also consulted and he made sure to alleviate their concerns with help from D&V Philippines.

Another key to outsourcing that Joel pointed out is the importance of finding the right balance between what can be outsourced and what should remain inhouse. It is important to understand the roles that can outsourced to set expectations and maximize its benefits.

Cybersecurity and Data Management

D&V Philippines CEO Stefan Vermeulen assures clients that cybersecurity is among his top priorities. His two key concerns are the control over technology, which involves having the latest state-of-the-art cybersecurity protection, and control over people, centred around the company’s relentless education of its talents about the latest cybersecurity concerns and best practices. Naresh agrees and expresses his confidence with D&V Philippines’ data management. He is pleased with how the IT Team at D&V Philippines walked him through the company’s cybersecurity practices.

Aside from investing in infrastructure, Michael Hill pours continuous efforts into improving their cybersecurity measures, emphasizing that the IT team is an important part of their outsourcing journey.

Both Joel and Naresh emphasized the importance of the close coordination between their IT teams and that of D&V Philippines.

Outsourcing Experience Insights

Tackling their outsourcing experience, Simba Global lauds D&V Philippines for their remarkable recruitment of the right candidates. Naresh pointed out that the engagement allowed them to express their concerns and the alignment of expectations that created a good working relationship. This partnership has now grown to include customer service support that augments Simba Global’s accounting team. On the other hand, Michael Hill commended the outsourced team’s understanding and mastery of their processes. Key to this is the management forum where concerns not just from the finance team, but also from HR and IT can be raised and resolved with D&V Philippines. This group greatly helps them discuss issues they can’t pick up immediately and ensure an inclusive approach for all stakeholders.

The Future of Outsourcing with D&V Philippines

The executives concurred that shortage of talent will persist for the foreseeable future. Joel notes that they currently have a good split of outsourced and inhouse roles. The challenge for their leaders is maintaining this balance and ensuring that they bring their outsourced team in their growth. For Naresh, he sees a bright partnership between Simba Global and D&V Philippines in the future as Simba Global moves forward with its expansion in different markets. There is also great potential in administrative roles to supplement the finance and accounting support they receive from D&V Philippines. Stefan reassures that as it has done for Michael Hill and Simba Global, D&V Philippines will remain committed in helping industry leaders gain access to the right talents in finance and accounting and help businesses fuel their growth.