Managing budgets with spreadsheets might work for a small team, but as your business grows, complexity multiplies. Finance teams are expected to keep spending under control, respond to shifting forecasts, and give department heads more autonomy. But that’s hard to do without the right tools.
That’s where budget management software comes in. With real-time visibility, approval workflows, and smart controls, it helps companies track budgets across projects, departments, and teams without losing oversight.
Budget management software helps finance teams plan, assign, monitor, and adjust budgets across an organisation. Unlike spreadsheets, it centralises your budgeting process, connects directly with spend data, and updates in real time so teams always have access to the latest figures.
Key features include:
By using software instead of static files, teams spend less time updating data and more time using it to make better decisions.
Spreadsheets have long been the go-to tool for budgeting. But they were never built for collaboration at scale. As teams grow, so do the risks:
Simply put, spreadsheets don’t scale with your business. Budget management software does.
One of the biggest advantages of budget management software is that it creates a shared space where finance and operational teams can collaborate without friction. It gives finance the control and oversight they need, while empowering other teams to manage their own budgets with structure and accountability.
For finance teams, the benefits are immediate. Instead of chasing down spreadsheets, correcting formula errors, or questioning ad hoc spend, they gain access to centralised, real-time data. This enables faster month-end close, accurate forecasting, and detailed variance reports that highlight where and why actuals deviate from plan. Finance can focus on advising the business, not fixing spreadsheets.
For department leads and project owners, budget management software gives clarity and control. They can log in, see what’s been allocated, what’s been spent, and what’s remaining without having to wait for a report from finance. This visibility helps them make more informed decisions, adjust quickly when plans change, and take ownership of their financial responsibility.
The key is in the guardrails. With configurable budgets, finance sets the parameters ;how much can be spent, on what, and within what timeframe. Meanwhile, operational teams can act within those boundaries, reducing delays and freeing up everyone’s time.
Another major benefit is the ability to build structured budget approval workflows. Whether you’re rolling out a new department budget, approving a one-time event allocation, or adjusting an existing project forecast, automated workflows ensure requests follow a defined path. Approvers are notified, budgets are reviewed in context, and nothing slips through the cracks.
To build approval chains that work for your team size and structure, visit our guide on budget approvals and approval matrices.
Not all platforms offer the same value. When choosing budget management software, look for tools that support:
Summit’s configurable budgets give finance teams full control with zero micromanagement. You can assign one-time or recurring budgets by team, department, vendor, or initiative. Each budget includes its own rules, approvers, and timeframes so you’re always aligned with real-world operations.
With real-time insights and automatic variance alerts, you’ll always know when spend is on track, nearing a threshold, or exceeding expectations. Finance can step in early, rather than react late. And with flexible workflows and permissions, Summit makes it easy to scale your budgeting process without sacrificing visibility or control.
Want to simplify your budgeting process and improve decision-making across your organisation? Talk to us today to see how Summit helps teams stay on top of every dollar spent.