Accenture commissioned the survey of more than 200 executives to determine whether loss of control remained an issue for executives now that more stringent compliance standards -- both mandated and voluntary -- have become commonplace.

According to the findings, 51 percent of all respondents said the concern over the ability to maintain governance and compliance best practices stands -- or has stood -- in the way of a decision to outsource finance functions. However, 43 percent of the executives surveyed who had already outsourced a finance process said that outsourcing had actually improved the quality of governance and compliance at their organizations.

Similarly, 73 percent of respondents who had already outsourced a finance process said that outsourcing increases the rigor of business processes because outsourced processes are better defined and documented, leading to greater clarity and accuracy of financial figures.

In addition, 56 percent of the respondents said outsourcing providers are better equipped to deal with frequent changes to tax codes and accounting rules, while also providing an increased level of visibility into processes and transparency of information.

"The findings show that executives increasingly believe that outsourcing of the finance function can enhance an organization's ability to ensure effective governance and compliance," said Barbara Duganier, vice president, Accenture Finance Solutions. "We believe that this significant shift in mindset is led by companies that have already outsourced their finance functions. As companies seek to achieve high performance in their business, we expect that trend to continue."

Also, respondents noted several areas of compliance and governance that are/would be of particular concern to them when outsourcing finance functions, including: 

• The quality of financial reporting provided to the management team by outsourcing service providers (64 percent) 
• Service provider's knowledge of the respondent company's unique requirements and controls to prevent fraud (60 percent) 
• Compliance with tax laws and accounting standards (50 percent) 
• Transparency of accounts for auditors' visibility (36 percent)  

Respondents said the top finance functions that should be continued to managed internally are budgeting and forecasting, treasury and cash management, Information management and analysis, and financial risk management.