Spreadsheets have been used by businesses to monitor corporate spending for a very long time now. The biggest impediment to effective T&E management is a lack of technological adoption. Automation is the way to go if you want to maximize efficiency and save time and money. This is where online cost management software comes into play.
Why spreadsheets are not suitable enough for modern businesses anymore? Let’s look at some of the reasons.
1. Spreadsheets are susceptible to human error.
Errors are unavoidable when numerous people utilize the same spreadsheet. Formula mistakes have a cascading impact and might affect multiple sheets, making it tough to locate and correct the errors.
2. Spreadsheets encourage expenditure fraud.
The use of spreadsheets for cost management invites fraud. Because there are no security controls in place, data can be deleted or altered after expense approval. Audits are made extremely difficult by the inability to link receipts.
3. Spreadsheets are rigid.
Automated data validation guarantees that staff adheres to their budgets. While spreadsheets provide some validation, they are not adaptable enough to handle ad hoc instances.
How Expense Management Software beats Excel Sheets?
I. A more efficient method of working.
A cloud-based design eliminates this delay by providing a central financial team with rapid access to any reimbursement data entered into the system. Costs that would normally take days or weeks to process can now be addressed in a matter of minutes or hours.
II. Automated processes take the place of manual tasks.
Webexpenses incorporates automation, with expenditure data created, compiled, and saved without the need for manual intervention. Finance professionals may focus on correctly managing and monitoring out-of-office costs by eliminating repetitive and time-consuming data entry duties.
III. Enhances compliance and fraud prevention.
The capacity to automate processes enables a cloud-based system to protect a corporation from the hazards of error and fraud in ways that traditional techniques cannot.
Finance teams can set spending restrictions that will send alerts anytime a limit is exceeded by a submitted claim. It enables faults to be quickly discovered and rectified. The system can also automatically detect duplicate costs, which is a common user error that is difficult to detect when using spreadsheets.
IV. Improves management visibility.
Because spreadsheets lack data linkage, any type of financial reporting is time-consuming and labor-intensive. An expense management solution enables rapid access to up-to-date information on all aspects of reimbursements. Web expenses include integrated reporting capabilities that make data easy to obtain and edit.
It sheds light on areas of corporate costs that have previously been hidden in the shadows. It enables processes to be constantly streamlined.
V. Integration with third-party software.
Spreadsheets do not connect with other systems, resulting in data silos. This is problematic because expense data is used in various back-office processes such as accounting, sales, budgeting, and payroll. Expense management software integrates with many applications, allowing spending data to flow throughout the financial department.
TrackEx, a cloud-based workplace travel and expense management program, makes it simple for employees to plan work-related travel and for companies to track their expenses. Budgeting, user and role management, accounting, audits, and compliance are also handled by TrackEx.
Companies can utilize this to address challenges such as controlling travel expenses, increasing visibility, reducing the risk of poor spending decisions, satisfying employee booking preferences, and customizing the complete package. TrackEx can assist you in saving up to 70% of your time handling these travel expenses. Sign up for a free trial or contact one of our business executives to learn more.