A Great Rider Requires More than a Great Bike

Pair great discipline, greater vision, and achieve really great things

When customers implement Prophix’s software and services, they always achieve success. After all, using automation software to save time, reduce risk, improve reporting, and generate new insights all contribute to better business results.

But, the reality is that honing processes, while essential, is more incremental than transformational.

For Prophix’s customers to achieve the greatest level of success, they need a vision and drive.

Let me give you an analogy. When I’m out for a bike ride on a Sunday I see a type of rider that you’ll recognise. He/she is togged up in all the latest gear, astride an expensive bicycle. Every spare ounce has been shaved off the frame, with carbon fibre this and alloy that.

The rider, however, would do better with shaving a few pounds off their own frame. Some extra time at the gym would have saved them an awful lot of pounds, in both weight and cash.

The bike undoubtedly makes a difference to their performance. But pair it with greater discipline, and greater vision, and they achieve really great things.

It’s for this reason that I challenge customers. I’m a salesman. I want to sell. But after over a decade of working with finance teams, I’ve seen the difference between an engagement that is based on enhancing processes and one that is focused on striving towards a great vision. When prospective customers define and operationalize a vision, the value they draw from Prophix’s software is always exponentially greater.

What does getting optimal results look like for a finance professional?
Getting optimal results starts with a vision – in other words, recognising what the finance function can do, rather than wanting to improve what it does already. That means thinking about foresight and operational intelligence, as well as smarter reporting and compliance. In other words, you can only lead by looking forward.

Getting optimal results also requires skill. That means training people in the science of financial planning and analysis as well as on the expanded role that technology plays in enhancing these processes. Only a team equipped with the abilities and tools to deliver real insight achieves its vision.

Also see: Should you ever build a roof before the foundations?

Finally, getting optimal results requires an ability to engage the rest of the organisation in a vision. That means partnering with sales, marketing, operations, and customer service, to understand their needs and enable them with better information.

When a customer has all of these attributes, they achieve great things working with Prophix.