Budget and Forecasts

Introduction

A budget reveals the structure or direction of a company's finance, while the forecast tracks whether the company is meeting its financial goals as outlined in the agreed budget.

Typical Problems

Due to the complexity of creating and maintaining budgets, departmental information is often held in spreadsheets off the finance system.

Actual vs budget reporting is a challenge, due to the lack of real-time data, which in turn can lead to overspending.

Solutions

Integrated budget and forecast tools in cloud accountancy systems allow you to store budget information and report directly, either through scheduled reports or dashboards, without the requirement to export data out of the system first.

Budgets and forecasts can still be uploaded via spreadsheets if required but are easily maintained and shareable once imported.

Benefits/ROI

Real-time insights into actual vs budget performance provide greater control of finance spending.

Reports can be delivered automatically to budget holders to help inform decisions.