Is managing company finances a tightrope act? Between tracking budgets, processing payments, monitoring spend and all the rest — you need an easier way to tame the chaos without an accounting degree.
That’s where smart finance software comes in, automating the drudgery so you can focus on the big picture not spreadsheet hell. Read on to see 5 ways the right all-in-one platform will help you grow by controlling dollars and cents today…and predicting and preventing problems tomorrow.
Table of Contents
1. Find a Solution That Fits Your Needs
Let’s be real – no two company financial systems are the same. Business models, org structures, payment flows and planning priorities vary even within the same industry. That’s why one-size-fits-all accounting software ends up constraining versus liberating productivity for niche use cases.
Instead, look for flexible tools like Procure Desk that map to your workflows not the other way around. The right technology integrates with your existing systems and apps using open APIs and customizes menus, reporting and features to fit your needs. This tailored approach minimizes disruption across your finance environment.
Also look for user-friendly interfaces, multi-platform access, robust data security, transparent pricing and responsive customer support to show the provider gets your growth journey. Choosing the right foundation now makes adding future features a doddle.
2. Get Rid of Repetitive Tasks So You Can Focus on Strategy
What finance tasks are eating into your bandwidth for leadership? For most companies, important but mundane tasks like payroll, invoicing, reporting, payment processing and approval workflows fall into this bucket. Finance software like OnPay automates these repetitive tasks so your team can focus on the big picture not the small stuff.
For example, your controller should be analyzing cash flow trends for growth insights not chasing down late customer invoices. Automated reminder, follow-up and reconciliation tools do those administrative tasks instead.
Similarly, real-time reporting and instant KPI dashboards enable leaders to model and benchmark spend scenarios rather than compile monthly reports. When platforms do the drudgery, human finance pros can operate at their highest level – as evaluators, predictors and strategists.
3. Unify Data for Real-Time Decision Making
Data scattered across old-school spreadsheets and reports guarantees delayed, siloed and wrong leadership decisions. Instead, cloud-based finance software unifies data enterprise-wide in real-time.
Need to budget across sales, marketing and ops? Dashboard visibility gives everyone visibility. Want to model new hire or expansion plans? Scalable modelling does scenarios in seconds. By accessing unified records teams can pivot faster with alignment.
Streamlined software also eliminates version control hell from files emailed and resaved across local drives. Everyone references one source of truth for each metric. Surface level intuition becomes data driven.
This centralization of data means your financials are accurate and up-to-date so you have a complete view of your company’s financials.
4. See into the Future with Predictive Analytics
While reviewing past monthly spend helps set budgets, smart leaders want data on future needs and risk factors BEFORE they impact growth paths. Modelling dementia requires advanced, automated analytics across all aspects of enterprise finance.
Algorithms uncover hidden relationships, trends and outliers and extrapolate probability for scenarios like:
● Revenue changes based on new client verticals
● Capital required for Q4 hiring spree
● Accounts payable defaults based on inflation projections
With predictive intelligence executives can make decisions that mitigate surprises and pounce on opportunities early. It’s like radar for potential icebergs LONG before you need to adjust course. With a clear view of your financials, you can make strategic investments and control spend.
5. Get the Fundamentals Right, Then Scale Your Differentiation
Before you get to the advanced features make sure you’ve got the financial fundamentals right like budgeting, processing payroll, invoicing and reporting. Once those core competencies are running like clockwork THEN you can start to scale your edge via:
● Automated customer statements
● Custom billing workflows
● Mobile receipt processing
● Client portals and self-service payments
● Advanced revenue analytics and equity management
Building on top of solid foundations future proofs your financial operations. Get the basics right then scale the specialized tools to your evolving needs.
Conclusion
Instead of digging through ledgers and number grids modern leaders need flexible software to simplify money through automation, centralization and predictive power. Choose user-friendly financial platforms that give you real-time visibility, scenario planning and streamlined workflows and still fit your company’s unique needs.
The technology does the boring reporting so you can drive the strategy. Data is integrated in one place for team alignment. Advanced analytics sees far out. Prioritize solutions that scale from the basics to the edge so you’re financially strong no matter what the economy throws at you.
