The CEOs and CFOs of our region have to steer through a storm that combines relentless regulatory change, new controls in government systems, an unfavorable exchange rate and enough uncertainty to tempt paralysis, whether from over-analysis or from “giving time” for a stability that will be slow to arrive.
A recent study by Source Global Research, a UK firm that surveys executives about their business improvement needs, confirms it: the percentage of executives who say they are very uneasy about volatility rose from 35% to 55% this quarter, and most do not expect the uncertainty to ease soon.
there are management disciplines that transcend cycles of boom or crisis
However, there are management disciplines that transcend cycles of boom or crisis. Working on them is always good; in a crisis it is done with more prudence and a sharper focus on the budget, but their value is not in question.
At our sister company EXYGE, we sum it up like this: working on these topics is always good, and more is better, as long as that “more” means process clarity, reliable data, effective controls and automations that remove friction from the business. With more than 140 projects at EXYGE and almost 250 in my professional life, I can say that the approach that works must be aligned with international standards and methodologically sound, but at the same time practical and results-oriented, not focused on hours of work.
What does change in a crisis: how we prioritize (and how we prove ROI)
Source Global’s research suggests four keys for executives under pressure to address the problems that transcend business cycles:
1. Speak plainly about your real barriers: what are the “top 3” recurring operational problems that keep coming up year after year in my annual planning?
2. Focus on the improvements I value most today: finance (impact on revenue or cost), risk or regulation, and productivity (doing more with what we have).
3. Deliver ROI from the start: this does not mean an improvement initiative becomes a revenue generator, but every improvement we take on must have clear time and results targets, in a relatively short term. Vanity projects, or projects with too long a horizon, should be deprioritized.
4. Ask ourselves what is stopping us from working on these topics right now: if the topics we have identified are recurring problems, we must address them immediately, even with little or no budget. Something can always be done now.
The other thing that changes is how we approach those initiatives:
- Use a trusted partner, where real value is seen early in the process and can be measured beyond interpretation.
- Establish a baseline: where do we stand? Have simple KPIs that are easy to identify and measure before starting.
- Track and communicate quantifiable impact throughout the project, to build “improvement momentum” and influence the culture and engagement of your people.
- If you use a third party (consultant, implementer or other improvement service provider), make sure knowledge transfer is part of the measurable value of the initiative. Projects that do not generate repeatable value without the provider tend to fade over time.
Where the immediate value lies in the back office (and how we activate it)
1) Gather operational evidence, not opinions.
Map how your people work (processes, costs, productivity, errors and rework) and identify standards, good practices and automation where it hurts most.
Depending on the level of process maturity in your company, this can include process mining and monitoring, analytics and KPI benchmarking to give traceability to the change. However, companies with very modest baselines can also start without much preamble.
2) “Few weeks” automations that everyone needs.
Typical cases that speed up cash, reduce operational risk and free up administrative time:
- End-to-end reconciliation from payment methods (for example, local instant payment systems and cards) through to accounting and treasury, with fast cash application for accounts receivable.
- High-volume processes with “loose pieces”: travel advances and expense settlements, petty cash settlements, requisition requests and approvals against budget, and other approval and signature flows.
- ERP-agnostic integration and connectivity through BPM, RPA, AI, cognitive OCR, AI-enabled digital banking and document management, so that changes persist and scale.
- These “hygiene” improvements vary little between companies, so look to scale repeatable solutions that maximize time-to-value.
What matters is being able to move forward persistently and steadily, whatever the speed of your change.
We have dedicated a lot of time and effort to curating an ecosystem of solutions, both for those who have nothing yet and for those who have already invested in certain technologies and providers. What matters is being able to move forward persistently and steadily, whatever the speed of your change.
3) Governance and performance management that doesn’t collapse.
Having the right indicators and measuring them constantly is only part of the work. To move the needle on business performance, you need the discipline to do something with that information consistently.
In the past we have designed, and even operated when needed, an independent KPI comptrollership, with dashboards and reports that went to the management or executive committee to support decisions and compliance matters, acting as the “uncomfortable conscience” of the senior team.
Why now and not later?
Because waiting doesn’t work: volatility will not ease in the short term, and standing still means giving ground to customers and competitors who are moving.
Because money demands certainty: in a crisis, finance, risk and productivity top executives’ shopping lists, as long as they see early, proven value.
And because traction is available: if you focus your efforts on the “top 3” of your real recurring barriers, whether in boom or crisis, any effort applied to them will create real value. And once they are solved, they will make way for three other problems in the following cycles.
A call to action for CEOs and CFOs
Don’t leave these improvements “until the storm passes”. Putting back-office processes, data and controls in order will never be a luxury; it is an EBITDA multiplier in any climate. Prioritizing them today is a responsible management decision.
We help people work better, regardless of the ERP they have, their industry or the current maturity of their processes. An ecosystem of applications, technology alliances and a capability-building model focused on transfer allow us to deliver value quickly, connecting to internal systems and stabilizing the last mile safely.
The most important thing is your determination not to stand still.
If you already have an internal team or another provider addressing your needs, congratulations! The most important thing is your determination not to stand still. Give traction to your method, your technology and your team.
From our archive. Originally published in Spanish on LinkedIn on 20 August 2025; translated into English. Read the original (in Spanish).