Financial management is at the heart of managing tech companies in these times of crisis. Having the right information in real time is a crucial element for good monitoring of your activity, whether it is a start-up, an SME or a large company. Unfortunately, communication is often hampered between managers and accountants, as is the use of obsolete tools.
Adopting the right tool to manage your entire financial management is key for all managers and their management teams. What are the points of attention to be had and what are the latest functional developments that any financial management solution worthy of its name must have?
To talk about it, we welcomed Arthur Waller, founder and CEO of Pennylane.
“A race against time”
Founded four years ago with the ambition of creating a “single source of financial truth,” Pennylane has faced many challenges in achieving its goals. “The main challenge is to succeed in covering a whole range of functionalities”explains Arthur Waller. For two years, a team of 180 people has been working in the Tech and Product divisions to develop the platform. “The main challenge for 4 years has been to race against time to release all the necessary features. »
This ambition announced from the start had a significant impact on the company. “We couldn’t have done it if we hadn’t set the right level of ambition from the start”he adds, recalling that the engineers were thus able to anticipate the communication of the bricks with each other.
Find the full interview with Arthur Waller, founder and CEO of Pennylane:
Customer experience and service
Pennylane is aimed at three types of users: accounting firms, small businesses (notably clients of accounting firms), and mid-sized companies. “Today, our largest clients are mid-sized companies with more than 1,000 employees and a turnover of several hundred million euros. They often have an accounting and finance team internalized within the company”explains Arthur Waller.
The company currently counts more than 80,000 SMEs among its clients, or nearly 3% of French companies. Faced with historical players like Cegid or Sage, Pennylane focuses heavily on customer experience and customer service. Its employees are also the first users of the tool.
“We use Pennylane to invoice our customers, by monthly subscription (everything is automated in the accounting), we use it to manage all our purchases, and expense reports. Now, we use our Pennylane pro account to pay our shopping bills, our salaries, etc. And of course, we use it for our accounting,” summarizes the founder of FinTech.
“The first return on investment is the time saved. Accounting firms estimate they gain up to 30% productivity using Pennylane »details Arthur Waller. In addition, Pennylane contributes to operational gains. “Customers who invoice via Pennylane get paid faster because we have automatic reminders in place. » Finally, one of the significant advantages is attracting and retaining talent. “It is difficult to recruit in the finance and accounting sector. Young talents want to have cool tools to work on”he continues.
How to deploy an accounting tool internally?
To conclude this interview, the founder of Pennylane returned to the key steps to keep in mind when wanting to deploy an internal accounting tool.
“Properly map financial flows”. This is the first advice Arthur Waller gives. This means understanding in detail all aspects of financial operations, including purchases, sales and banking transactions. “It is essential to map precisely where these flows come from and where they are heading. This step is fundamental to creating a tool that will meet the specific needs of your business. »
The CEO of Pennylane also emphasizes the importance of appointing an “internal leader” who will serve as “conductor” for the project. He must be able to motivate and supervise team members so that they effectively adopt the tool. “It’s good to create a tool, but people need to adopt it to get the full value from it”he concludes.
Read: PENNYLANE: the ally of accountants and businesses to optimize financial data
