Over the last few months, I’ve been having more and more conversations with companies kvetching about their internally built billing systems.
In one conversation, a chief accounting officer told me their company is desperate to replace their aging, homegrown billing system because it’s blocking them from implementing the initiatives that will fuel their next stage of growth: cross-sells, annual contracts, and more. Another finance leader flagged a looming compliance risk, realizing their current billing setup simply isn’t built to handle the regulatory demands coming their way.
And a revenue leader shared how, as their company started courting much bigger customers, their billing system suddenly became a bottleneck. The ability to do complex deal structures, custom contracts, and one-off pricing plans were sitting on the docket, waiting for some future upgrade that was itself blocked by even more urgent customer features.
How did they get there? Their engineering culture.
Of course, Engineering is the lifeblood of any technology company. In the early startup days, often everyone is an engineer! And so the modus operandi is: see a problem, code a solution. I’ve spoken to many companies where the internal billing system “was built by the founder 10–15 years ago.” I think Zuora managed all expense reports for our first five years on something I hacked together one day while on vacation in Hawaii.
They even have a term for this: NIH (Not Invented Here) — that’s when engineering teams resist external solutions, convinced that if they didn’t build it themselves, it won’t be as good or won’t fit their needs. And the truth is the best engineering teams often have the best NIH mindset — that’s how you create breakthrough innovation.
However, there comes a time when the business has grown to such a point that it’s more than Engineering can handle on their own, where the needs of a growing customer base and the dynamic market require them to focus on the company’s core mission.
That’s where many companies find themselves today. So what to do?
Well, more and more companies are realizing that their billing solution is actually a financial system. I mean, makes sense right? The system touches money. But more than that, Billing is actually part of a broader process called Order-to-Cash (O2C).
Order-to-Cash is the full journey of revenue flow — from when a customer places an order, asks for a quote, or puts something in a shopping cart, to when the company collects payment and captures the revenue on their financial statements. It’s more than just billing; it includes contracts, invoicing, collections, revenue recognition, and reporting. In other words, it’s the backbone of how money moves through the business.
So what happens when engineers are the driving force behind an O2C or finance system? It’s a ticking time bomb — and they’re not equipped to diffuse it.
O2C is not an Engineering challenge; it’s a Finance challenge.
This is why Finance should be in the driver’s seat.
Out of all the groups in a company, Finance is the only one uniquely positioned to tame any O2C challenge. They don’t just see billing as a technical issue — it’s a core financial function tied to revenue, forecasting, and compliance. Unlike Engineering, which focuses on building features, Finance connects every piece of O2C, from contracts to invoicing to revenue recognition. They “see the elephant” like no one else in the business can, understanding the full scope rather than just fragmented parts.
Finance leaders alone are equipped to manage the complexities of new pricing models, ensure compliance with regulations, and maintain the strategic oversight necessary for scaling operations. By placing Finance in charge, companies can align technology investments with business goals, improve internal controls, and ensure that revenue flows are accurate and efficient — ultimately driving growth and compliance.
But when Finance doesn’t lead O2C, companies risk compliance failures, revenue leakage, and operational inefficiencies. Financial regulations and accounting standards (SOX, ASC 606, and IFRS 15) require constant oversight, and gaps can lead to costly audits. Without Finance taking the lead, revenue data becomes unreliable, cash flow suffers, and decision-making slows. Delays in closing the books disrupt financial planning, while outdated systems make it harder to launch new pricing models or support complex deals. Finance ensures stability — optimizing collections, reducing risk, and giving the company the financial clarity it needs to scale.
Finance, take the wheel
Here’s the good news: companies have everything they need right now to turn this around. People, rather: CFOs, chief accounting officers, controllers, VPs of finance. Finance Team, it’s time to put on your capes. You’ve got work to do!
Let’s be clear: Engineers play a critical role in enabling O2C, but they shouldn’t be the ones designing or managing it. Finance needs to own this process, with the right technology and support.
What would change look like? Well, in the coming weeks, we’ll talk about approaches including moving Deal Desk from Sales Ops to Finance, embedding IT resources in Finance, unifying O2C onto a single platform, and investing in automation — all moves finance leaders are making to lead the transformation of their billing process. We’ll also share case studies of companies that are doing this well. Anything else you want us to talk about, throw it in the comments.
But don’t wait until then to start having conversations about your billing solution. If you’re a CEO, sit down with your CFO and ask them what their view is.
If you’re a CFO, reflect on if you have the tools, resources, and controls that you need to be successful.
If you’re in technology, ask yourself if this is what you really want to be working on.
