Systems for analysing spending are of such a great importance that cannot be overstated.
It's never fun trying to make sense of disparate spreadsheets that have merely thrown together spend data drawn from one sector to another across your enterprise.
But with a comprehensive spend analysis system in place; it becomes easier for a business owner to control risks and costs.
Features of an Effective System An effective spending analysis management system of company-wide spending is typically enriched with reliable spend data that is available on demand.
Such a unified spend analysis solution offers a classified and consolidated analysis of spend data enriched by useful insights into the spending of the enterprise.
Some of the features of an effective spending analysis system include:

• Data Extraction and Classification
• Role-Based Dashboards
• Lower Supply Risk
• Expert Advice
• Guaranteed Compliance
• Peer Benchmarking
• Networking & Knowledge-Sharing
• Faster Adoption and ROI

Key Business Drivers The following key business drivers and market conditions make spend data analysis a corporate priority:

• Continued pressures for reducing costs in the face of increasing supply, energy and transportation prices, as well as new supply constraints.
  
• Pressures to make sure that the enterprise complies with negotiated contracts.
  
• New regulations requiring that organizations establish and document business controls, systems and processes for ensuring auditing and compliance, and procedures for reporting and tracking material business information.
  
• Pressures to extend the value of existing procurement, sourcing and ERP technology investments.
  
• Goals for improving inventory management and product development operation, by eliminating waste and unnecessary or redundant parts.
  
• Increased availability of packaged software services and applications for the automation, streamlining and enhancement of processes for spend data extraction, classification, cleansing and analysis.
  

Benefits of an Effective System With an effective spend analysis system in place, businesses are able to make improved buying decisions as well as negotiate with greater confidence.
This is because they are constantly up to date on:

• Total combined spending with intelligent classification
• Aggregated spending among suppliers
• The greatest risks in the supply chain
• Supplier risk and diversity information
• Strategies for supply base rationalization
• How their spending compares to their peers in the industry

All in all, spending analysis provides the business with greater insights into their spend data, which can help in identifying various opportunities that they weren't aware existed.
In this way, the business owner is able to make informed decisions on how to improve various processes within their organization for enhanced profitability.