Two thirds (66%) of finance leaders say their team is unable to keep pace with the speed of e-commerce. That’s according to an investigative report by Hokodo, the provider of flexible payment terms for European merchants and marketplaces, in partnership with the B2B Ecommerce Association. 

B2B e-commerce is going through a fast-paced evolution – with the market set to total $2.641 trillion in 2024 – but Hokodo’s report has revealed that many finance functions aren’t future-proofed. In fact, its pan-industry survey of CFOs and finance leaders found that nearly a fifth (17%) of finance leaders feel that their finance team isn’t prepared for the future.

The barriers to finance functions being future-proofed come down to a lack of balance between growth versus control. Almost half (46%) of those surveyed are struggling to strike a balance between financial controls – the policies used to manage financial resources and ensure the accuracy of reporting – and strategic growth initiatives. When asked whether e-commerce has made managing financial controls more difficult, the majority (39%) of finance leaders agreed. Only 5% strongly disagreed. 

Louis Carbonnier, Co-founder and President of Hokodo, commented: “Despite the fact that the B2B commerce industry is digitising at a high speed, our investigation has found that finance teams are facing numerous barriers and simply can’t keep up with the pace of e-commerce. Future-proofing starts with tech enablement of the finance team. Whether it’s through reports like this or our digital trade credit offering, our mission is to ensure all finance leaders are ready to face the future of B2B commerce.”

On top of striking the right balance between growth and control, finance leaders are facing obstacles around cash flow and payment terms. The survey revealed that the top three challenges for finance leaders are working capital management and cash flow unpredictability (66%), cutting costs (49%), and managing payments and payment terms (44%).

Worryingly, these challenges are stopping finance leaders from being able to innovate and ensure that their finance function is future-proofed. The survey found that other key barriers to innovation are budget constraints (66%), resistance to change (54%), and lack of capacity (37%).

Christopher Gee, UK Lead at B2B Ecommerce Association, added: “It’s reassuring to see this report offer a pragmatic approach to automating finance processes. This report provides timely insights and valuable strategies for anyone navigating the complex world of B2B finance, balancing efficiency with growth.”

The report, titled ‘Hokodo Investigation: Are Finance Leaders ready for the digital transformation of B2B commerce?’, features actionable advice for finance leaders and is available to download here.