What is a Cash Management System?
A cash management system is a software solution that allows you to record, track, forecast, and report the cash flows of your business. Besides supporting cash flow management, the software offers your organization the capabilities needed to:
- Optimize liquidity and control cash-related processes
- Oversee cash collection, disbursement, and investment
- Ensure financial stability and maximize ROI
Why Should You Use Cash Management Software?
Cash flow management software brings greater visibility, accuracy, efficiency, and control to your cash management processes. It empowers you to make better financial decisions, optimize cash utilization, and improve overall financial performance.
Business benefits of using cash flow management software:
1. Improved Financial Visibility
- Real-time visibility into your cash position
- Monitor your cash inflows, outflows, and overall liquidity
- See the complete picture of your financial health
2. Accurate Cash Flow Forecasting
- Forecast cash flows based on historical data, transaction records, and advanced algorithms
- Foresee cash requirements and identify potential cash shortfalls
- Make informed financial decisions based on reliable data projections
3. Efficient Cash Collection & Payment
- Streamline customer cash collection and payment to suppliers and other recipients
- Automate invoicing, payment reminders, and reconciliation processes
- Ensure timely payments, which enhances your relationships with customers and vendors
4. Enhanced Cash Flow Analysis
- Robust analysis and reporting tools to evaluate your cash flow patterns and identify hidden trends
- Analyze the factors that impact your cash position
- Understand what drives your cash flow and optimize your financial strategies
5. Optimized Cash Utilization
- Identify idle cash balances to effectively utilize your available funds
- Optimize cash utilization and increase ROI by consolidating cash and implementing cash concentration or cash pooling techniques
6. Enhanced Decision-Making
- Get the data and insights needed to make informed decisions about cash management, investments, budgeting, and financial planning
- Use the insights to allocate resources effectively, identify areas for cost savings, and seize growth opportunities
7. Compliance and Reporting
- Automation of compliance processes to ensure adherence to financial regulations and eliminate the risk of non-compliance
- Create detailed transaction records and audit trails to simplify financial reporting and audits
8. Time and Cost Savings
- Automation of cash flow processes by leveraging real-time data
- Save time and improve efficiency by freeing up resources to focus on value-added activities
- Minimize human errors by reducing paperwork
9. Integration and Scalability
- Integrate cash management software with other business applications such as accounting software, ERP systems, or banking platforms
- Facilitate seamless data exchange, eliminates data silos, and bring consistency across different financial and business processes
- Scalable features allow the cash flow management software to adapt to your growing business needs
Cash Management System: Key Features
Off-The-Shelf vs. Custom Cash Management Software
Commercial, off-the-self cash management systems offer a set of standard features that can’t be customized to handle your organization’s unique needs. This is where custom cash management software comes into play.
Here’s a quick comparison of custom cash flow management software vs. off-the-shelf cash management systems that will help you choose the right option:
Evaluation Criteria
Custom Cash Flow Management Software
Off-The-Shelf Cash Management Systems
Features and Functionalities
Exclusive feature list customized to your specific needs
Standard set of features built for the mass market
Development Time
Long development process, but a one time fix
Faster to implement with the vendor’s support
Development Cost
Requires significant upfront investment, but the costs will pay off in the long run
Moderately priced, but forces the user to pay for unwanted software features
Support and Maintenance
Product fixes and upgrades can be prioritized as per need
Risk of unplanned downtimes, support will be based on the vendor’s terms and conditions
Compliance to Business
Built to comply with your organization’s ecosystem and standards
Requires a high level of customization and extra components to function
Third-party Integration
Enables seamless integration with compatible external apps
Inherently inflexible, doesn’t support deep customizations or integrations
Scalability
Highly scalable and adaptable to your future business requirements
Time-consuming and costly customizations needed to address the rising needs
Data Security
Highly resistant to cyber infiltrations, tested thoroughly at each stage of development
Vulnerable to cyber attacks and software glitches
Top Integrations For Cash Management System
Integrating your cash flow management software with other business applications can significantly enhance the functionality and efficiency of the software. It’s important to assess your needs and select integrations that align with your cash management objectives and technology landscape.
Choose the right kind of business applications that need to be integrated with your cash flow management software based on your organization’s size, industry, and operational requirements.
Top Integrations For Custom Cash Management Software
Business Challenges Solved by Cash Management System
Implementing a robust cash flow management system will help your business overcome these challenges and maintain sound financial health.
A Step-by-Step Guide to Developing Custom Cash Management Software
Here’s a high-level overview of the steps involved in the custom cash management software development process:
Define the requirements and objectives of your cash management software. Identify the key features, functionalities, and integrations that you expect from the software.
Design a user-friendly interface that allows users to navigate and interact with the cash management software easily.
Develop the backend infrastructure with the essential logic, database structure, and data models to handle the core functionalities of the software.
Use integration APIs to connect the cash management software with external systems such as ERP, accounting software, banking platforms, etc.
Develop AI algorithms and ML models that leverage historical data, transaction records, and other relevant factors to generate accurate cash flow projections.
Integrate reporting and analytics capabilities that give users insights into their cash flow, liquidity, and financial performance.
Implement robust security measures such as data encryption and access controls to ensure data privacy and prevent unauthorized access.
Thoroughly test and debug the software to ensure that it functions as intended and is free of errors.
Deploy the cash management software in a production environment and provide necessary training and documentation to users.
Continuously monitor and maintain the software, addressing bugs, performance issues, or evolving user needs through regular updates and enhancements.
Cash Management System Implementation Costs
The cost of custom cash management software development will depend on several factors, including:
- The number and complexity of your software’s functional modules, features, and user interface
- The number and complexity of integrations with other platforms, like ERP, accounting software, payroll system, banking platforms, and more
- The volume of data that should be migrated from your legacy applications or spreadsheets to the new cash flow management software
- Automation features required, AI integration, RPA, analytics, reporting, etc.
- The type of cash management software you need - cloud, hybrid, or on-premise
- Proprietary development tools, languages, and frameworks required for software customization
- The level of ongoing maintenance and support needed for the software, along with future enhancements and updates
Cash Management Software Use Cases
Vendor and Supplier Management
Track and manage payment terms and obtain favorable pricing, discounts, and terms by ensuring timely payments and maintaining strong vendor relationships.
Cash Flow Reporting and Compliance
Auto-create cash flow statements, financial reports, and policy documents to ensure compliance with financial regulations and provide stakeholders with transparent and up-to-date financial information.
Payment and Receivables Management
Streamline payment processes and receivables through the automation of invoicing, payment tracking, and reconciliation, auto-reminders, etc., to improve cash collection and reduce payment delays.
Working Capital Optimization
Maximize the utilization of available funds by monitoring and controlling inventory levels, managing receivables and payables, and optimizing cash conversion cycles.
Expense Management
Gain visibility into cash outflows through expense tracking and analysis. Control expenses, identify areas for cost reduction or optimization, and align expenses with your budget.
Custom Cash Management Software Development: Choosing The Right Partner
Here are some key factors to consider when selecting a custom cash management software development partner:
- Make a precise list of your software requirements and the challenges you want to address with the custom cash management software.
- Evaluate the potential development partners to get a fair idea of their technical skills, domain knowledge, project portfolios, and work experience.
- Analyze their values, principles, customer reviews, project scheduling and service quality, costs, development methodology, engagement model, and so on.
- Consider how long it would take for the outsourcing partner to develop the custom cash management software and ensure the timeline meets your expectations and budget.
- Before signing a contractual agreement with a software development partner, understand their terms and conditions properly. Ensure that all rights on the custom software are reserved to its payer (you).
- Review the software development partner’s physical and cyber data security policies and provisions. Be clear on how your data and assets will be handled by the development partner.
- Determine if the cost of the project fits your budget. Understand the pricing terms quoted for regular software maintenance, support, and updates.
How Fingent Helps
Being a top custom software development company, Fingent’s development experience spans multiple industries and advanced tech, including data analytics, augmented and virtual reality, artificial intelligence, robotic process automation, the Internet of Things, and more.
We follow an impeccable workflow and a set of best practices to develop and deliver custom software solutions that improve your competency and profitability. Our end-to-end custom software development process is tailored to meet our clients’ business needs, challenges, and goals.
Want to know how custom software development can add value to your business and improve your customer experience? Contact us to get an extended consultation.
