This chain was constantly surprised by monthly expenses. Store managers made purchasing decisions independently, and head office only found out during monthly reconciliation.

We helped them set up location-specific budgets with clear approval thresholds. Managers could still make day-to-day decisions, but larger purchases triggered a quick review process.

Within six months, their budget variance dropped significantly. More importantly, managers started planning purchases instead of reacting to immediate needs.

Their problem wasn't overspending—it was unpredictable spending. Some months were fine, others showed massive cost spikes that threw off quarterly planning.

We worked with their operations team to identify seasonal patterns and build those into their budgets. They also started tracking commitments before invoices arrived, giving them early warning of upcoming expenses.

The work took nearly a year to fully embed, but they now forecast quarterly expenses with much better accuracy. Department heads understand their spending rhythms and plan accordingly.

Project-based work meant every month looked different financially. They couldn't tell if they were within budget until projects closed, sometimes months after spending occurred.

We helped them assign budget codes to each project and track spending in real-time against those allocations. Project managers got weekly summaries showing where they stood.

The first few months were rough—people weren't used to checking budgets mid-project. But after about four months, it became routine. Now they catch budget issues while there's still time to adjust project scope or timelines.