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KPMG: 71% of financial directors in Romania consider outdated technology a drawback for profitability
About three thirds of financial directors in Romania consider that outdated technology is a drawback for development and profitability. In these conditions, nine out of ten directors estimate cost increases with technology, according to an opinion poll made by KPMG.
“This seems to hold pride of place in the investment program of companies in Romania, 25% of respondents investing between 100,000 and 500,000 euros and 37% over 500,000 euros,” the report shows. The main areas for investments in new technologies are operational area, data management and security and interaction with clients.
More than half of respondents consider that fiscal law is arbitrarily interpreted and procedures are difficult to apply, while 40% claim the lack of dialogue and the impredictability of the fiscal environment.
“The more and more complex fiscal environment is a provocation for financial directors who have as priority stimulating innovation and making bold decisions for the future. The poll made by KPMG in Romania shows that the financial directors’ role is going through significant changes. Their activity is not just figure control, it supposes complex analytical abilities, operational abilities and the involvement in defining the business strategy of the organization,” said Cezar Furtuna, Partner Coordinator of the Audit Department for KPMG Romania.
The integration of new technologies and company strategy has the role to make operational processes more efficient, when maintaining profitability represents one of the financial directors’ main priorities.
“According to poll results, the development of a coherent business strategy is also affected by the fiscal system, characterised by repeated, unpredictable changes and questionable rules. Moreover, poll results show other worries of financial directors, such as growing costs with labour force, difficulties in attracting and keeping talents, to which we could add the growing complexity of rules”.
The study points out the fact that most financial directors remain optimistic about the evolution of their own activity sector in 2018.
“Financial directors remain optimistic about the evolution of the their own activity sector, and the evolution of their own organization, 89% of them are confident in prospects of their organization in 2018; 63% estimate an income growing tendency in the next 12 months, and the most frequent growing tendency has in view launching new products and services,”the study shows.
Staff recruitment and retention is a high priority in 2018 for 66% of respondents, while 40% of financial directors estimate a major salary cost increase in the next 3 years.
Data published in the report “Tendencies and priorities in 2018: Opinion poll of financial directors in Romania” is based on an opinion poll whose respondents were 76 financial directors and chief accountants in Romania, representatives of companies in activities like manufacture, banks, auto industry, technology, consumer goods and investment management, 80% of whom work in companies with business figures of over 35 million lei.
KPMG is an international network of member companies supplying audit services, fiscal consulting and business consulting in 154 countries and has over 200,000 professionals in the whole world.