The Business of Treasury report for 2022, which is based on a survey from the members of the ACT, has revealed a few notable new trends. Below are 6 charts that tell a bit of this story.
This year, The Business of <a href=”https://treasuryrecruitment.com/”>treasury jobs London</a> has reached one of the most volatile periods in its decade lifespan of research. In the process of still trying to recover from Covid-19, and Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine this is a representation of the largest geopolitical disaster in decades.
Treasurers are constantly dealing with risks and they are placed well to face different challenges that they are presented with on a regular basis. However, the current crisis will have dramatic impacts on certain businesses, and their treasurers. They will now work on an entirely new context, and we think the title explains it all: Treasurers On High Alert.
We recommend reading the <a href=”https://bizfluent.com/how-5097627-write-comprehensive-report.html#:~:text=By%20definition%2C%20a%20comprehensive%20report,discuss%20a%20company’s%20financial%20situation.”>comprehensive report</a>, but if you are limited on time, these 6 charts convey some of the key highlights:
<h2>• Liquidity And Capital Management Remains Key</h2>
When looking at the first chart, there are indications that treasurers are still overestimating the time they plan to spend on automation and technology, along with business strategy. They are underestimating the time they plan to spend on liquidity and capital management. Yet, it is a fact that liquidity and capital management continue to be the central-focus of a treasurer’s work.
With this in mind, and as the <a href=”https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/COVID-19_pandemic”>COVID-19 pandemic</a> continues to recede, we have noticed a ramping up across many other activities. All this is keeping treasurers and their typically small treasury teams very busy.
<h2>• Treasurers Are Defining The Strategies</h2>
This is one of the stand-out findings. For the very first time, a lot more of the treasurers are defining strategies rather than just responding to different requests. This indicated that treasury has started to transition from being reactive into proactive. We are also finding that the board relations appear to be much stronger.
The important question about these findings is whether these strategy-setting prominences are going to continue. For certain treasurers, these increased interactions with the boards were only temporary on a “needs-must” basis. But a lot more of the treasurers that increased these interactions have appeared to keep this going when compared to those that allowed it to fall away.
<h2>• Prominent Challenges For Treasurers</h2>
When asking treasurers questions about their business and professional challenges, many pointed to people management and recruitment which included looking after the well-being of staff as one of their main concerns. They have also said that these challenges will probably increase over the short-to-medium term. This is not surprising. Treasurers were forced to shift teams in and potentially out of the “work from home” situation, at very short notice, and the significant task of having to rethink a wider transformation when it came to their workplaces. However, it does appear as if “hybrid working” is something that is likely to stay. This could be one of the important incentives for prospective and current employees.
<h2>• Stigma Surrounding Mental Health Has Started To Recede</h2>
Mental wellbeing is still one of the core focuses for treasurers and businesses, and it has become a “normalised” issue. It is highly encouraging that stigmas surrounding mental health problems seem to be in a receding phase. The company numbers that have had concerns about “mental health” has dropped by 7%. This indicates that a lot more businesses have implemented improved policies when it comes to these issues and that workers have started building resilience after the devastating impacts of Covid-19. Sadly, we might see these numbers reversing as the inflationary pressures and negative impact of global events, will be experienced by treasurers. The ACT (Association of Corporate Treasurers), will continue to monitor this.
<h2>• Barriers To Career Progression</h2>
<h2>What Are Treasurers Seeing As The Primary Barrier To Career Progression?</h2>
In the year 2021, it was all about strategy/leadership, yet in 2022 it has turned to efficient working skills (like time management). This appears to be one of the main problems for younger treasurers. Leadership has become even more relevant for the treasurers with more experience. The ACT has placed a focus when it comes to these areas, along with behavioural skills and technical knowledge when it comes to qualifications.