The lack of robust and efficient finance management tools has been identified as a key culprit as to why 97 per cent of Australian finance leaders are struggling to manage their business’ finances.
This was revealed in the latest Airwallex Spend Management Report by Australian-founded finance platform Airwallex, which surveyed 500 senior finance leaders, including chief financial officers, of Australian headquartered companies, to identify the most pressing challenges and issues they are facing in spend management.
The survey noted that overall, 88 per cent of respondents are facing challenges managing their global spend and expenses. Furthermore, 74 per cent admitted that their company’s current systems are inefficient and unreliable, which is seen to not only have contributed to their business’ stunted growth but also strained their relationships with suppliers and employees.
Drilling down on the matter of finance management challenges, 63 per cent acknowledged that they are still managing expenses manually, often relying on ‘archaic’ applications like spreadsheets. Overall, 60 per cent have either different tools or different processes for managing spend outside of their home market, which is seen as an indication of a lack of a unified approach to finance and spend across borders. However, 44 per cent shared that they are not satisfied with their current spend management solution while 51 per cent don’t believe their current systems provide adequate visibility into cashflow across regions.
Shannon Scott, SVP, Global Head of Product at Airwallex said that legacy systems and an increasingly global workforce are making it more difficult for finance leaders to manage spend and expenses.
“Adopting more sophisticated financial solutions can be a game-changer for Australian businesses as they look to accelerate their growth beyond orders. A spend management platform that can handle cross-border transactions, multi-currency management and integrated vendor spend and employee expense processes can save businesses time, money and effort and be the lever that boosts growth and efficiency,” Scott said.
