All too often, the spotlight on the benefits of digitalization, automation, and software is solely focused on the potential for efficiency. Cold facts about time and money saved for the company. I believe that the human aspect deserves a much larger place when we talk about the benefits of transforming the way we work.
This is especially important in finance, accounting, and financial management. Findings from a study by Robert Half, a leading global HR consulting firm, show that the finance department scores the lowest in terms of workplace satisfaction and how fulfilling they find their work.
| Rank | Level of happiness | Level of interest at work |
| 1 | Marketing and Creative | Marketing and Creative |
| 2 | Human Resources | Legal |
| 3 | Legal | Human Resources |
| 4 | Technology | Technology |
| 5 | Accounting | Administrative |
| 6 | Administrative | Financial Services |
| 7 | Financial Services | Accounting |
| 8 | Finance | Finance |
This is serious and thought-provoking reading that should be taken seriously if we want talents and brilliant minds to choose your company as their career path.
As economists, we must always consult past financial records to make good choices for the future financial situation. Similarly, in this case, we must look to the past to find a framework that can open doors to a future where the finance department is less about spreadsheet archaeology and more about strategic value creation, meaningful work, and deep collaboration.
So, hop aboard Profitbase’s time machine and join me in 1959!
The Finance Department through Herzberg’s Two-Factor Theory
To understand how the finance department can achieve greater job satisfaction, the thinking behind Herzberg’s Two-Factor Theory from 1959 is an excellent place to start. Briefly explained, the theory proposes that there are two categories of factors that affect people’s satisfaction and motivation at work:
An important point of the model is that one must view satisfaction and dissatisfaction as two different and partly independent states—not two extremes on the same scale.
Back to the Future
Now that we have learned the Two-Factor Theory, let’s look at the daily work of the finance department and how much time must go into hygiene factors and motivational factors.
We know that in Norway, many work with spreadsheets as their only tool for financial management, using them for budgeting, forecasting, cash flow statements, etc.
Therefore, it is not far from the truth to divide the working time spent on various tasks as follows:
As we can see, a lot of time is spent finding, compiling, and maintaining financial data. This requires a lot of time and resources for manual entries and routine tasks. These tasks, while necessary, do not bring joy to work and have long been a source of dissatisfaction in the workplace.
Anja Hauståker from Norway’s Best Group said it best when Profitbase visited her in 2023:
“There aren’t many who find joy in transferring numbers from one spreadsheet to the next. It’s much more fun to analyze the numbers than to create them yourself.”
Other relevant findings supporting the hypothesis that doing everything manually with spreadsheets does not create the most rewarding work environment include Egon Zehnder International’s survey among Norwegian CFOs, which revealed that the least liked tasks are accounting and reporting.
Conversely, the same survey showed that the most liked tasks clearly favored business development and strategic work.
This indicates that many finance departments spend most of their time on what they like the least. Reflecting on this, the findings from Robert Half presented at the beginning of this article become less surprising.
Automating Hygiene Factors Can Pave the Way for Job Satisfaction
After all the depressing reading you’ve had to endure so far, your million-dollar question is probably: what can be done?
As the CEO of a software house that delivers software for financial planning, I might be slightly subjective, but I still think I have a good point in arguing that CFOs and their teams should supplement spreadsheets with more suitable software. Especially if the company you work for deals with large figures, many employees, and significant complexity with multiple contributors.
Having a platform as a base means that all the time previously spent gathering and maintaining spreadsheets is no longer necessary. This opens the doors to spending more time analyzing the numbers, working with others, and engaging in strategy and business development. Or, through the lens of the Two-Factor Theory: there is more time for motivational factors that contribute to job satisfaction, motivation, and how interesting one finds the job.
To provide an alternative illustration of how working time can be allocated when not everything is done in spreadsheets:
This way, more time is allocated to tasks that bring job satisfaction and motivation, leading to a more fulfilling work environment.
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