How should savvy leaders dealing with uncertainty and preparing themselves for success when the recovery starts? Right now many companies are curtailing their investments in IT, but this might be a bad idea, says Oracle CFO Jeff Epstein.“Continued IT investment is a proven way to lower your operating costs and improve your competitive capabilities,” he says.

In this updated special report, learn how CFO Epstein is getting results from finance automation and access to better business intelligence, plus get insight into the strategies recommended by top executives and strategists. Plus, get tips for making it easier for IT and Finance teams to communicate (and get things done).

Fine-Tuning Oracle’s Finance Organization
Oracle’s new CFO, Jeff Epstein, talks about his goals for Oracle’s finance organization:“When I sign Oracle’s quarterly financial statements as the CFO, knowing that we’re using Oracle technology for our reporting gives me confidence and assures me we’re doing what’s right when we recommend the same strategy to our customers.”

Getting Ready for the Recovery
Oracle CFO Forum looks at how companies are positioning themselves now for better times: “Our goal at the Oracle CFO Forum was to give customers some high-impact, proven strategies that could make a difference right now in their ability to compete in today’s economy,” says Sonny Singh, senior vice president of Oracle’s Industries Business Unit.

Oracle CFO Summit Showcases Strategies for Capitalizing on the Economic Downturn|
Although the world’s economies may be in for a protracted downturn, savvy companies will continue to invest in strategic IT and business-process optimization projects to give themselves a competitive advantage when better times return.

Team of Rivals
Why do IT and finance leaders have trouble communicating and working together? Although the two disciplines have many intersections, IT tends to be about creative leaps and trying new ideas and technologies. Finance requires precision and accountability, a constant measuring of risk versus reward. Find out how they can work together to preserve business in tough times.

Four Steps to Reducing Financial Overhead
As finance and accounting organizations wrestle with achieving globalization, driving revenue growth, and complying with new and changing regulations, they also struggle to drive costs out of organizational processes. In most companies, the CFO has already led the drive to implement financial management software to automate payables, receivables, general ledger, and more—and ensured that automated financial processes are well documented, repeatable, and reportable.