A new study has revealed that chief financial officers feel their IT colleagues lack understanding of the business strategy, whilst chief information officers find that the finance department fails to communicate goals effectively.

The survey of more than 130 senior finance professionals and IT executives across Europe, titled 'Are CFOs from Mars and CIOs from Venus?', found that the pressure is increasing on both parties to share the same agenda, but that neither group is clear about how best collaborate in order to add value to the business.

Commenting on the research, Grant Waterfall, technology assurance partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers said: 'The perception gap between CFOs and CIOs is revealed in their answers to questions on leadership, the ability to collaborate, long-term strategic thinking and planning. Overall, CIOs express a much better opinion of CFOs than vice versa. IT’s biggest complaint was a lack of communication, even a sense of ‘financial snobbery’. Where CIOs were reporting to CFOs rather than directly and collaboratively to the CEO they felt a distinct lack of influence both at operations and board level.'

The report also highlighted that CFOs wanted IT to be up to 'scratch' on what they felt was needed to run the organisation effectively whilst CIOs thought that their departmental priorities had been sidelined and seek to gain a more equal partnership.

The underlying problem brought to light seems to be that IT –speak is considered another language by the finance department and that CFOs use a language 'foreign' to their CIOs.

Tom Gunson, partner PricewaterhouseCoopers said: 'The tension between CIOs and CFOs is well known and it is about time it was addressed.'

'To help develop a common language between finance and IT, organisations should consider rotating their people through each department (and the business) as part of their cycle of experience' he added.