Base Your Business Spend Forecast on Data Not Folklore

What’s the weather like with you today?

It’s important because today, 15 July, is St Swithin’s Day. And according to folklore, the weather today dictates the weather for the next 40 days. So if it rains today, it will rain for the next 40 days. And if it’s sunny, you can expect 40 days of sun.

If only the British weather was that predictable as that!

As the Royal Meteorological Society says, the myth doesn’t stand up to much scrutiny: “Since records began, not a single 40-day drought has occurred anywhere in the UK during the summer months, and there has been not one instance at any time of the year of 40 consecutive days of rainfall.”

Traditionally, predicting your business spend has been about as easy as predicting the British weather.

But just as you should always pack an umbrella and sunscreen when you head out into the British summer, so you should equip your business finances to be prepared for anything.

With SAP Concur solutions you can make it easier to forecast and control business spend – not only over the next 40 days but also over the next 40 weeks, 40 months and beyond.

Here are just some of the ways they do this.

Practical Tools That Give You Time and Data

Perhaps the biggest advantages of an automated finance solution such as the SAP Concur platform, is that they give you the two things you so often lack: time and data.

Automated solutions save you time by automating the repetitive, manual data entry that’s central to a paper-based process.

In fact, research shows that Concur Invoice users typically see a 46% improvement in overall staff productivity and reduce the time it takes to process invoices by 75%.

This gives you time you can devote more attention to the forecasting and analysis elements of your role.

With automated finance solutions, you get a lot more data than you get in a manual process too. What’s more, it’s much more easily accessible. SAP Concur solutions are cloud-based, so you can access information at the click of a mouse, wherever you are. No more hunting through filing cabinets or Excel spreadsheets to find the information you need.

Practical Tools That Help You See Spend Before It Happens

SAP Concur solutions also help you see spend much earlier – and even before it happens.

With Concur Expense employees can upload their expenses on-the-go using the Concur Mobile app. It means you get visibility of spend much earlier in the process.

Purchase Request gives managers the ability to approve or reject expense requests before a PO is created, which gives you more control of spend. It can be accessed via the Concur Mobile app, so spending approval can happen quickly and easily from anywhere.

Practical Tools to Help You Forecast and Predict Spend

SAP Concur solutions give you a single, reliable source of discretionary spend data. This opens up new possibilities for analysis you can use to influence the bottom line. The data is near real-time too, which helps enhance your agility.

Your SAP Concur solutions have a range of standard reports you can access. You can enhance these with additional solutions that help you drive even more value.

For example, Budget gives you a near real time and consolidated view of your budget. Intelligence gives you actionable insights into your Concur Travel, Expense and Invoice data. With Consultative Intelligence you have a designated SAP Concur reporting consultant for expert, one-to-one help with all your data and analytical needs.

Take Control of Business Spend Forecasting with SAP Concur Solutions

Using the weather on St Swithin’s Day to forecast the weather for the next 40 days might not be a good idea.

But you can use SAP Concur solutions to help you forecast spend for your business. They will give you the information you need to help you be better prepared no matter what happens.

Happy St Swithin’s Day!