CLA’s Sage Intacct Spark #2: Sage Intacct Budgeting and Planning – Google Maps for Business

• October 25, 2018
• Kathy Jastrzebski

Imagine driving alone, along a pitch-black, forest-lined, highway in Germany in 2005 at 2am. Google Maps on smartphones don’t yet exist. You planned your road trip (even gas stops) only to realize as you pull up to the gas station that not only is it closed, but, there’s also a less-than-friendly looking character strolling towards your car. What do you do?

In 2005:

1. You risk it and ask the fellow if they can help you get gas. (Ski masks in the middle of July are normal, right? I just happened to leave mine at home on this road trip to Italy).
2. You keep driving hoping you see another well-lit gas station soon.

Fast Forward to 2018:

1. You open up Google Maps.
2. Do a quick search to find the next nearest gas station.
3. Check their hours.
4. Check that your car will make it that far and you’re on your way.

The ability to come up with a back-up plan and pivot is a lot easier in 2018.

A strong budgeting and planning software, just like Google Maps on a smartphone, allows you the foresight you need to better run your business. With the right tools in hand, you become more agile; quickly adapting to new information, building out what-if scenarios and deciding on the best possible course of action.

Sage Intacct Budgeting and Planning

Until recently, Sage Intacct had two very different solutions for budgeting most clients resorted to: Adaptive and Excel. Not much existed in between (especially not with a bidirectional sync). With limited options, customers either lived with the endless maintenance cycle of Excel spreadsheets which mostly did the job, or purchased Adaptive. Queue Sage Intacct’s acquisition of Budgeta, now known as Sage Intacct Budgeting and Planning.

If you haven’t yet heard of the tool, you can watch a quick demo here.

Recently, I had the opportunity to watch the 3-part self-paced training. New knowledge in hand, I’d like to give you a sneak peak at 3 neat features worth spotlighting:

Spotlight #1: Collaboration and Sharing

Share your budget with managers. Either share a portion, for example just the Engineering Department budget, or the whole thing. Given that managers are the closest to and most knowledgeable about their budget means a single, more accurate source of truth.

Spotlight #2: Modeling and Assumptions

Establish assumptions to create models when building your budget based on information you have. Transition your finance team from Excel workbook maintenance mode to true financial analysis. Thus, giving you a clearer picture of the future and allowing you to plan for various scenarios.

Assumptions:

Model:

Spotlight #3: Interactive Dashboards

An interactive dashboard means you can apply and modify assumptions to a dashboard while presenting to key decision-makers. You can, at the time of presenting, depict “what-if” scenarios in a visual and therefore, impactful manner. Answer questions like, “what would a change in employee bonuses from 10% to 20% do to our budget?” “Or, how about a quarterly quota increase?”

Final Thoughts

The tool comes across as very intuitive, allowing the end user to focus on creating what is most important: accurate and actionable financial plans, rather than being an Excel workbook maintenance worker.

Interested in learning more about Sage Intacct Budgeting and Planning? Reach out to us here. Missed the first spark? Find it here! Or read our Sage Intacct Budget Tips and Tricks here!

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Tags: Budget, Forecast, Sage Intacct Budgeting and Planning, CLA Sage Intacct Spark, Integrations, Platform Applications and Add-Ons | 1 Comment »