Finance teams continue to be asked to do more with less. Also, they’re being asked do it faster with minimal errors.

Meanwhile, most are armed with just Excel – error prone, time consuming, and not scalable for growing analytical needs. It’s a tough challenge to answer.

In fact, recent research from Ventana Research and KPMG has found:

70 percent of companies still use spreadsheets across planning and forecasting processes

62 percent of companies are buried in basic duties with little time for more analytical work

50 percent of most finance organization’s time is spent on operational processes

30 percent of most finance organization’s time is spent on financial reporting and control

Only 20 percent of most finance organization’s time is spent on adding value by improving financial performance.

Most finance personnel aren’t just looking to automate these tasks, they want to be able to provide meaningful analysis that can drive business growth. It’s better for career advancement, employee retention and the business as a whole.

To address these needs, at the recent SuiteConnect event at Oracle OpenWorld, the NetSuite EPM team launched SuiteSuccess Planning and Budgeting for NetSuite. The Planning, Budgeting and Forecasting solution is built on Oracle Planning and Budgeting Cloud Service.

Based on Hyperion Planning, the Oracle PBCS is part of the Oracle EPM Cloud suite and is the leader in cloud planning and budgeting with more than 2,500+ customers worldwide.

This NetSuite version of SuiteSuccess Planning and Budgeting includes integration to NetSuite utilizing NetSuite Saved Searches, drill back to NetSuite from SuiteSuccess Planning and Budgeting, Operational Expense Planning, Capital Expense Planning, Personnel Planning, Revenue Planning, Financial Statements, interactive dashboards, multi-currency and Smart View MS Office integration.

At a dedicated SuiteConnect session, attendees got a chance to see how NetSuite SuiteSuccess Planning and Budgeting utilizes driver-based plans, flexible workflow and process management, unlimited versions, what-if scenarios, and ad-hoc reporting (browser and Excel) to help companies reduce planning cycle times, improve forecast accuracy.

Already, more than 10 customers have adopted the solution. Some chose NetSuite SuiteSuccess Planning and Budgeting over competitors because of the flexible user interface (browser or Excel), time granularity (monthly, weekly, daily) for planning, scalability for planning for many components (SKUs), and Smart View ad hoc planning capabilities. Others replaced competitive products because of its scalability, the need for more robust reporting, and the ability to manage multiple hierarchies.

Already the returns have impressed. Early adopters of the Oracle solution have reported:

38 percent less time in planning process

32 percent less time creating management reports

50 percent increase in forecast accuracy

NetSuite SuiteSuccess Planning and Budgeting is available now.

To learn more, please visit the Integrated Planning, Budgeting and Forecasting website.