Cash flow

The hidden cost of manual
financial management

Cash flow – The hidden cost of manual financial management

Why you need a future-ready finance function

For professional services firms, effective cash flow management is vital to maintaining business continuity, funding growth, and navigating periods of change such as mergers or client churn. Automation is critical to effective cash flow management. It helps to eliminate manual errors, speed up forecasting, and ensure real-time visibility into financial health. And while most organizations have some level of automation within their financial management processes, it is not full automation for many.

46%

_^Only
46%

^{of cash flow management is automated, on average}

Switching between different systems to manage cash flow is such a headache
(for my organization).

IT decision maker,
Engineering, US

Cash flow – The hidden cost of manual financial management

Respondents report that nearly half (46%) of their cash flow management processes are automated — yet even with this partial automation in place, 88% still struggle to manage them effectively.

Average percentage of automated cash flow management

Cash flow – The hidden cost of manual financial management

Tools used for cash flow management and reporting

So, what is behind the disconnect?

Most firms are still juggling multiple tools to manage their cash flow. On average, they use three different systems, with 44% still relying heavily on Microsoft Excel.

Tools used for cash flow management and reporting

3 tools on average

This is corroborated by a Deloitte study which found that many finance teams still rely on manual and excel-based workflows that delay financial close, forecasting, and operational reporting.

Deloitte,
“The Future of Financial Automation”

Cash flow – The hidden cost of manual financial management

Senior decision makers share their views

This patchwork approach creates silos, duplication, and manual workarounds that drain time and introduce risk. Respondents report that the top three impacts of manual intervention in cash flow management are increased processing times, increased operational costs, and increased risk of errors.

The data tells one part of the story, but the lived experience of senior decision makers brings the issue into sharper focus:

“We don’t have real-time access
to cash flow forecasts.”

Finance decision maker,
Management Consulting,
UK

“Cash flow management is based on manual recording which is prone to errors and affects the accuracy of decision making.”

Finance decision maker,
Accountancy and Financial Advisory Services, Netherlands

“My firm’s cash flow forecasts are inconsistent and untrustworthy.”

Finance decision maker,
IT and Tech,
US

“Effectively tracking spending is challenging, and a streamlined system would help prevent overspending while improving forecasting.”

Finance decision maker,
Management Consulting,
UK

Cash flow – The hidden cost of manual financial management

For professional services firms — where people are usually the primary asset and salary, sub-contractor fees, and operational costs must be tightly managed — inefficient cash flow management processes can have a significant impact on performance, profitability, and planning.

While financial management processes with partial automation and disparate systems can be inefficient, leaving gaps for lost time and errors to occur.

To truly unlock value, organizations need cash flow management solutions that seamlessly integrate and provide real-time visibility, reducing the time finance teams spend reconciling figures, and allowing them to proactively manage working capital, forecast accurately, and drive stronger financial outcomes.

5 reasons for cash flow management and planning