Finance functions produce output. Boards and investors need insight. IDG bridges that gap: identifying the value drivers that matter, building reporting around them, and providing the independent financial intelligence that senior stakeholders actually use to make decisions.
Many finance functions are built around processes. Reporting is produced because a process produces it, not because a decision requires it. Boards get detail when they need clarity. C-suite and Board members receive a P&L when they really need to understand which value drivers are performing and which are at risk.
The result is a function that is busy but not strategic. Reporting cycles are completed. Numbers are accurate. But the question the board actually wants answered, are we on track and if not why, goes unanswered until it is too late to act.
IDG builds reporting and analysis around decisions, not processes. We identify the key value drivers, construct the analytical framework to track them, and produce the output that gives boards, CFOs and investors a clear, independent view of performance. We bring the credibility to operate at that level and the independence to say what needs to be said.
We work across the full scope of finance performance: from the operating model and processes that produce the numbers, to the insight frameworks that make those numbers mean something to the people who need to act on them.
We redesign the structure, processes and capabilities of the finance function around what the business actually needs. We define the right split between transactional, control and business partnering activity, and build a finance function fit for the demands being placed on it, not one designed for a world that no longer exists.
We identify the metrics that drive business value and build reporting frameworks around them rather than around the existing process architecture. Boards, investors and ExCos receive a clear, decision-ready view of what is working, what is at risk and what needs to change. We have built and operated these frameworks where standard management reporting was not fit for the scrutiny being applied.
We identify and eliminate the manual processes that absorb finance capacity, introduce error risk and slow the close cycle. We design and implement automation that is proportionate, well governed and genuinely adopted, not deployed in a pilot and left to drift, freeing up finance resource for higher value activity.
We provide finance leadership within broader transformation programmes, ensuring the financial aspects of major change are properly governed, correctly accounted for and accurately reported. We bring the senior finance presence that transformation programmes require but rarely have from an independent standpoint.
A PE stake, a refinancing, or a board reshape has raised the bar. Stakeholders want a clear view of value drivers and transformation impact, but the existing management pack was built for a different audience and cannot answer the questions being asked.
Reporting is accurate and timely but does not tell the board whether the business is on track. The signal is lost in the detail. You need reporting rebuilt around the few drivers that actually move performance.
A significant transformation is under way but its impact on business performance is not surfaced at strategic level. Management and investors cannot see whether the programme is delivering. You need the financial story of change made explicit.
Close cycles complete and numbers reconcile, but manual effort is high and business partnering is thin. You need an operating model that shifts capacity from processing to insight, built by people who have run finance functions, not just reviewed them.
A privately-owned travel insurer with a new PE minority shareholder engaged IDG to transform its change reporting capability, moving from process driven detail to strategic decision making insight.
The insurer had recently sold a minority stake to a private equity investor, increasing commercial scrutiny of performance. The existing finance and management reporting was not equipped for this environment. Output was detailed and process driven. The board, ExCo and PE investor were not getting transparency over key value drivers and transformation performance.
The reporting function lacked the analytical architecture to surface what mattered. Key value drivers were not clearly identified or tracked. The impact of a significant change agenda on EBITDA was invisible at strategic level. Senior stakeholders were reading detail when they needed clarity. The function was producing output, not insight.
We identified the most important value drivers across two streams: BAU trading performance and a significant change and transformation agenda. We rebuilt reporting around those drivers, delivering an MVP rapidly so stakeholders could validate the approach before full build out. The result was a monthly output to the board and PE investor that drew strong feedback from both audiences, with IDG operating credibly at ExCo, board and PE level throughout.
Talk to us about what better financial insight and efficiency looks like for your board, your investors, or your CFO.
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