Finance leaders don't spend their time on spreadsheets

A 2021 PwC Finance Effectiveness Benchmark Study shows that finance leaders play a bigger role than ever in shaping strategy—both financial and operational. Today, top finance leaders spend up to 73% of their time analyzing data and turning it into clear, actionable insights.

Just a few years ago, the numbers looked very different. Back then, finance profiles spent 47% of their time on analysis and 53% on data collection. The shift is clear: finance teams now focus more on business thinking, creating greater value for the company.

Why spreadsheets just don’t cut it

1. They’re hard for everyone to use

Most people can do simple formulas and create charts. But advanced functions? That usually falls to the spreadsheet hero in the team. So while basic tasks are ok, deeper insights often get lost. Reporting tools like BrightAnalytics work for anyone, financially trained or not.

2. They’re error-prone

A typo, wrong formula, or mis-selected data range can cause big mistakes. And finding those mistakes later takes hours. With a reporting platform, data is pulled automatically from systems like accounting, ERP, or CRM and it goes through health checks to keep reliability high.

3. They don’t scale

As your company grows, the amount of data and formula complexity increases. Spreadsheets slow down, crash, or force you to delete history to avoid issues. That means losing important benchmarks. BrightAnalytics, in contrast, handles large, complex structures and preserves historical data across departments or business units.

4. They waste time with manual updates

Getting up-to-date numbers often means chasing departments, juggling different spreadsheets, and updating files with names like FinalReport_v10-update or FinalReport-v11-finalB. By the time you’re done, the data is already out of date.

The Better Way: BrightAnalytics

• One version of the truth with one click. Everyone sees the same accurate, current figures.

• Actionable insights: Real data you can use for strategic decisions. For example, a cigar manufacturer found a large water leak because cost increases were obvious in BrightAnalytics.

• Faster decisions in the field: At Serax, sales reps see a retailer’s full history in just ten minutes—on site.

How to move forward

If you’re a finance leader looking to reclaim time for work that really matters:

• Start small. Automate a part of your reporting first.

• Replace manual Excel-based reports with an automated, reliable platform.

• Use dashboards and clear reports to share insights with everyone.

Do this well, and you’ll spend less time fixing spreadsheets and more time driving strategy.

Want to know more? Discover how our platform works.