Many finance teams still rely on outdated FX processes that expose them to unnecessary risk. Here we outline what leading organisations do differently to build agility and confidence.
Operational excellence is no longer just about efficiency — it’s about resilience, agility, and foresight.
Boards expect more than cost control. They expect management teams to deliver resilience against shocks, agility in decision-making, and confidence in risk reporting.
Events over the last five years — from COVID and supply chain disruptions to inflation and currency volatility — have proven that:
Agility is essential: rigid processes collapse under stress.
Resilience matters as much as efficiency: “just in time” gave way to “just in case.”
Real-time data enables better decisions than historical reporting.
People-first operations drive productivity even in uncertainty.
For finance teams, FX risk management is often the weak link. While other functions digitalised rapidly, FX processes remain manual, reactive, and fragmented. This
disconnect is now in the spotlight.
Despite its importance, FX risk management is often overlooked in operational improvement initiatives. Common challenges include:
Blind spots in exposure - Exposures are spread across subsidiaries and systems, with no single consolidated view. Indirect risks (e.g., supplier/customer exposures) are
often ignored.
Effect: CFOs underestimate the true size and direction of risk.
Unreliable forecasts from Group companies - Local units deliver inconsistent or overly optimistic data.
Effect: Hedging decisions misaligned with actual exposures, leading to over or under hedging.
Manual overload - Reliance on spreadsheets, emails, and manual reconciliations.
Effect: Slow processes, prone to error, and impossible to scale.
Knowledge gaps in the business - Non-finance colleagues don’t understand how contract terms, pricing, or timing affect FX risk.
Effect: Poor-quality data and lack of organisational alignment.
Lack of tools for modelling and scenario planning - Teams can’t test “what-if” scenarios or model exposure accurately.
Effect: Decisions based on outdated assumptions rather than foresight.
Delayed board reporting - Data provided to boards is often three months old.
Effect: Strategic decisions based on the rear-view mirror, not the road ahead.
Reactive mindset - Teams respond to problems after the damage is done.
Effect: Volatility hits margins before action is taken.
Leading finance teams are redefining FX management through the lens of operational excellence. At its core, this means integrating:
People: Empowered finance professionals who understand FX risk, supported by education across the wider business.
Process: Consistent, scalable workflows that enforce discipline, eliminate waste, and accelerate reporting.
Technology: Real-time data, automation, and historical trend analysis that shift FX management from reactive to preventative.
This triad allows CFOs to:
- Gain full visibility of exposures across the business.
- Run live scenario modelling to test strategies in volatile markets.
- Report to boards with confidence using real-time dashboards.
- Prevent FX risk from escalating into financial losses.
Finance leaders exploring operational excellence in FX typically face three paths:
Build in-house
This approach allows for solutions tailored to internal needs, but it is expensive, slow to implement, and requires specialist resources.
Buy single-purpose tools
These provide quick wins and are often cheaper upfront, but they have a narrow scope, can be difficult to integrate, and typically only address specific tasks (e.g., exposure tracking).
Partner with a full-service provider
This combines technology with specialist expertise, delivering an end-to-end solution across exposure, hedging, reporting, and compliance. The key to success lies in strong partnership alignment.
The most effective organisations recognise that technology alone isn’t enough. Operational excellence comes from embedding new ways of working, not just adopting tools.
Operational excellence in FX is not about efficiency alone. It’s about building resilience, preventing risk, and giving boards and investors the confidence that your organisation is in control — even in volatile markets.
Tenora recognises that the FX industry needs transformation. Finance leaders can no longer rely on fragmented processes or rear-view reporting — operational excellence demands real-time visibility, proactive risk management, and integrated ways of working.
If you'd like to learn more about how we're transforming the FX industry, get in touch.
