New Ways to Work

Keep up to date and on track with this month’s top topics, including meeting in person, adopting rolling forecasts, and creating the hybrid office.

News and insights to keep you up to date and on track: meeting in person, adopting rolling forecasts, and creating the hybrid office.

Deloitte Study: Corp. Travel Increasing But Full Recovery Unlikely

Adam Perotta for Business Travel News | @btnonline

With companies beginning to return to in-person work, will business travel bounce back? Deloitte examines the factors influencing companies’ decisions about their travel budgets and the potential timeline for business-travel recovery.

“Nearly 70 percent of companies included in Deloitte’s research planned to reduce travel frequency in a bid to improve the bottom line, while 45 percent will require stricter compliance with travel booking policies.”

More from Center on managing budgets: Why It’s Time for a Corporate Card Program

Counterintuitive Lessons on How to Get Better as You Scale, From Twilio’s Jeff Lawson

First Round Review | @firstround

Seven tips from an experienced startup CEO for avoiding the bureaucracy and bloat many companies experience as they grow.

“If it’s a process or something that you do 100 times a day, that’s a good area to optimize and figure it out from first principles…If you get better and better and better at it, you’re going to build a stronger company.”

At Center, we believe fiscal culture is company culture. What’s yours?

When Do We Actually Need to Meet in Person?

Rae Ringel for Harvard Business Review | @HarvardBiz

Employees are returning to the office, continuing to telework full-time, or somewhere in between, but with varying work setups and schedules, teams need to examine when meeting in person is crucial. Here are six questions to consider when deciding when—and how—to gather.

“We need to reframe the conversation and focus on what we’re actually trying to achieve rather than where, precisely, we’ll be sitting when we achieve it. This involves examining the precise nature of the tasks in front of us, our specific objectives, and the weight we attach to the ones that compete, like efficiency, effectiveness, camaraderie, and mental health.”

More on empowering teams to grow and be more strategic: How Finance Teams Use Their Time

Managing Risks and Opportunities: Rolling Forecasts and FP&A Scenario Planning

Kristine Muromachi for FP&A Trends

The uncertainties of the pandemic proved challenging for FP&A professionals using traditional methods. Here’s the case for considering moving from traditional forecasts to rolling forecasts and scenario planning to better navigate future obstacles.

“The pandemic forced FP&A practitioners to reassess and adapt our approach to planning, forecasting, and bring to the forefront the importance of scenario planning.”

More on how new tools can help finance increase strategic impact: Is Your Finance Team Under Pressure? Eight Ways Center Can Help

What to Embrace (and What to Ditch) in Your New Hybrid Office

Diani Shi for Fast Company | @FastCompany

Creating office spaces that foster productivity, teamwork, and creativity is an ongoing challenge. Here are ways to make the new hybrid-office model work for all employees.

“Modularity is essential. [Companies can] think about ways to allow small groups to informally connect in a semi-private space. [But] it’s key to think about how to combine the physical and the virtual experiences and make sure that both groups have an inclusive experience.”

More reflections on pandemic learnings: 5 Reasons Finance Teams Shouldn’t Return to Business as Usual

How To Get (and Keep) Others Committed To Change

Nancy Duarte | @Duarte

Committing to change can be hard for employees. Clarity and good communication are crucial for securing long-term buy-in.

“Getting people to sign on to an idea is just the first step. Next, leaders have to convince people to keep forging ahead when they face opposition and would rather give up.”

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