What’s the PURE framework?
The PURE framework is a strategic approach to evaluating and addressing business challenges.
It stands for Painful, Urgent, Recognized, and Expensive, providing a structured method to assess the severity and impact of organizational issues. By quantifying each dimension objectively, businesses can prioritize problems that meet multiple PURE criteria, ensuring resources are focused on high-impact, transformative solutions. This systematic approach enables organizations to identify their most critical challenges, prioritize strategic initiatives, allocate resources more effectively, and drive meaningful operational improvements.
The PURE framework guides companies in developing targeted strategies that address root causes, ultimately leading to more efficient problem-solving and enhanced business performance.
P - Painful
Characteristics of a painful business problem:
- Causes significant operational inefficiencies
- Creates recurring frustration for multiple stakeholders
- Generates measurable negative impact on productivity or revenue
- Involves repetitive manual workarounds
- Produces consistent friction in business processes
U - Urgent
Key indicators of problem urgency:
- Immediate financial or operational consequences
- Time-sensitive resolution requirements
- Potential for escalating negative outcomes if not addressed quickly
- Alignment with strategic business objectives
- Imminent regulatory or compliance deadlines
R - Recognized
Signs of a recognized problem:
- Acknowledged by leadership and key stakeholders
- Clear understanding of problem’s root causes
- Documented impact on business performance
- Consensus about need for transformation
- Existing informal attempts to mitigate issues
E - Expensive
Measuring problem’s financial implications:
- Direct monetary losses
- Opportunity costs
- Productivity drain
- Potential future penalties or risks
- Resource allocation inefficiencies
Leveraging the PURE Framework for CFO Technology Assessment
The PURE (Painful, Urgent, Recognized, Expensive) Problem Solving Framework can also offer CFOs a powerful tool to evaluate and optimize their accounting and finance technology stack. By applying this systematic approach, financial leaders can identify critical issues, prioritize solutions, and drive strategic improvements in their technological infrastructure.
Applying PURE to Accounting and Finance Technology
Painful: Identifying Operational Inefficiencies
CFOs can use the “Painful” aspect of PURE to pinpoint technology-related issues that are causing significant operational friction:
- Manual Data Entry: Assess the extent of repetitive, time-consuming data input tasks across financial processes.
- Reporting Delays: Evaluate the time lag between data collection and the generation of financial reports.
- System Integration Issues: Identify disconnects between various financial software that lead to data silos or inconsistencies.
Urgent: Recognizing Time-Sensitive Challenges
The “Urgent” component helps CFOs prioritize technology upgrades based on immediate needs:
- Compliance Deadlines: Determine if current systems can meet upcoming regulatory requirements.
- Financial Close Bottlenecks: Assess whether existing technology hinders timely period-end closings.
- Real-Time Decision Support: Evaluate the ability of current systems to provide up-to-date financial insights for strategic decision-making.
Recognized: Gaining Stakeholder Consensus
The “Recognized” element ensures that technology issues are acknowledged across the organization:
- User Feedback: Collect and analyze input from finance team members about system pain points.
- Executive Alignment: Ensure C-suite understanding of how technology limitations impact financial performance.
- IT Partnership: Collaborate with IT departments to validate technical challenges and potential solutions.
Expensive: Quantifying Financial Impact
The “Expensive” factor helps CFOs build a compelling business case for technology investments:
- Productivity Costs: Calculate the hours lost to inefficient processes or system workarounds.
- Error-Related Expenses: Estimate the financial impact of mistakes due to manual processes or outdated systems.
- Opportunity Costs: Assess the potential revenue or cost savings missed due to technological limitations.
"The PURE Framework empowers CFOs to help in transforming technology assessment into a strategic advantage for efficient problem-solving and sustainable growth"
Strategic Benefits for CFOs
By applying the PURE framework to assess accounting and finance technology, CFOs can achieve several strategic benefits:
- Prioritized Investment: Focus resources on technology upgrades that address the most critical and impactful issues.
- Stakeholder Alignment: Build consensus around technology needs by clearly demonstrating the urgency and recognition of problems.
- ROI Justification: Develop stronger business cases for technology investments by quantifying the expensive nature of current limitations.
- Continuous Improvement: Establish a systematic approach to regularly evaluate and optimize the finance technology stack.
Implementing PURE for Technology Assessment
To effectively use the PURE framework, CFOs should:
- Conduct a comprehensive audit of current accounting and finance systems.
- Survey finance team members and other stakeholders to gather insights on pain points.
- Quantify the impact of technology limitations on financial performance and operational efficiency.
- Prioritize technology upgrades based on the PURE criteria, focusing on solutions that address multiple dimensions.
- Develop a strategic roadmap for technology implementation, aligning with overall business objectives.
By systematically applying the PURE framework, CFOs can transform their approach to accounting and finance technology, ensuring that investments are strategic, impactful, and aligned with the organization’s financial goals. This methodology not only optimizes current operations but also positions the finance function to drive broader business transformation and value creation.
Example of a PURE Problem using Mondial’s Financial Reporting and Consolidation Solution
Painful:
- Manual data entry errors cause mismatched balances (e.g., $500K discrepancy last quarter).
- Teams waste time arguing over misaligned charts of accounts instead of strategic analysis.
- Near-misses with non-compliance penalties due to inconsistent IFRS/local GAAP reporting.
Urgent:
- Upcoming merger requires consolidated financials for investor reporting in 90 days.
- Regulatory audit in Q2 will impose fines if subsidiaries’ data sovereignty laws are violated.
Recognized:
- CFO admits: “We’ve outgrown spreadsheets. We lose 3 weeks every quarter fixing eliminations.”
- Board mandates automation after a $200K penalty for late statutory filings in Brazil.
Expensive:
- Delayed mergers due to reporting errors cost $1.2M in lost synergies last year.
- Hiring temporary staff for year-end closes adds $300K annually.
How Mondial Solves This PURE Problem
Unified Global Operations
- Automatically harmonizes data from all ERPs into a single interface, eliminating manual reconciliation
Simplified Intercompany Eliminations
- Flags mismatched transactions in real time and auto-generates elimination entries .
Multi-Standard Reporting
- Instantly toggle between IFRS and local GAAP views, ensuring audit-ready compliance.
Data Sovereignty Compliance
- Stores subsidiary data on local servers while enabling centralized reporting.
Your next steps...
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