A Guide to Building a Winning Business Case for Accounting Automation

Accounting is a daily grind, especially for small teams at high-growth companies responsible for revenue reporting. Every month your transaction data needs to be downloaded, organized, standardized, explained, summarized, etc. Gaps need to be filled. Errors need to be fixed. Transactions need to be reconciled. Changes in deal terms need to be accounted for. Oh, here’s an audit for good measure. The laundry list of tasks to prepare for month-end close is endless. It’s a tedious, repetitive spin cycle (check it out, two laundry metaphors in the same paragraph!). The struggle is real. 

If you’ve had enough and are ready for change, that’s great. But you may not know how to bring about that change. That’s why we’ve created a comprehensive guide to help you build a compelling business case for accounting automation.

Why frustrated accountants need this guide

Accounting automation is a game-changer. I know, literally every software provider in every category says this. But look at this list of proven benefits and ask yourself how different every month would be if these were true for you:

• No need to download a zillion transaction reports from your different PSPs
• All your transactions automatically aggregated, organized, standardized, linked, enriched, and checked for compliance with GAAP, SOX, ASC-606 and other industry regulations
• Customizable rules to handle common and unique treatments for discounts, payments, refunds, etc.
• Journal entries automatically created and summaries posted directly to your ERP
• Waterfall, Reconciliation, JE Completeness and other valuable reports ready to export and share up the chain

Your monthly checklist of manual tasks is painful. And the value of accounting automation is painfully clear. But convincing your stakeholders can be a daunting task. That’s where our guide comes in, offering you step-by-step instructions, pro tips, and practical worksheets to make your case unassailable.

Key components of a business case

First, let’s define what a business case is and outline its key components.

Definition:

A business case is the formal process and documentation that outlines a problem, explores benefits and risks, and establishes justification for adopting a proposed solution. That last part is the key. The singular purpose of a business case is to convince decision-makers about the value of the solution so they will agree to move forward with it. A good business case is comprehensive and persuasive.  

Key components:

• Stated problem and opportunity: clearly identify and articulate the specific issues your team is facing
• Business impact: explain how solving these problems will benefit the organization
• Key stakeholders: identify who needs to be convinced and how the solution affects them
• Potential solutions: present accounting automation as the best option
• Costs and ROI: detail the financial implications and expected returns
• Implementation expectations: outline the timeline and steps for rolling out the solution

3 critical steps to building your business case

1. Start with the problem: describe in detail why you need accounting automation. Make sure the decision-makers can fully appreciate your situation and the urgency of solving it.
2. Anticipate stakeholder questions: prepare answers to common questions stakeholders may have about benefits, costs, implementation, and ROI.
3. Outline business impact and ROI: show how automation will help the company achieve its financial goals, reduce the time to close books, save on audits, and more.

3 worksheets to jumpstart your process 

The highlight of our guide is a set of editable worksheets to help you get started. These practical worksheets are designed to help you capture your initial thoughts and begin effectively organizing the guts of your business case.

Get started with these worksheets: 

1. Explaining the Problem: capture the main issues and their impacts
2. Questions to Anticipate: list potential questions from stakeholders and prepare your answers
3. Business Impact & ROI: frame the expected impact and ROI of accounting automation on your team and the broader business

These worksheets are crafted to make the intimidating task of building a business case straightforward and manageable. By breaking down each element into digestible parts, you can build a strong case that highlights the urgency and benefits of accounting automation.

Ready to get started?

Don’t let the complexity of your revenue accounting processes hold you back. Download our free business case template today and take the first step towards transforming your accounting operations.

👉 Download the free business case template now

👉 Watch our webinar on building the business case

👉 Ready to see Leapfin in action? See it work using your data

Leapfin is here to support you. Our team of CPAs, finance operations leaders, and former CFOs are ready to help answer your questions and offer guidance as you build your business case. 

Join the ranks of accounting and finance pros at Canva, Reddit, and SeatGeek who have successfully automated their accounting processes with Leapfin.