CFO talks: Konstantin Dzengozov explains how to build finance accountability with spend culture

We recently partnered with independent research house Coleman Parkes to survey 1,000 finance leaders from large organisations across the UK, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Bulgaria, and Spain about the importance and impact of having a defined spend culture.

We sat down with our CFO, Konstantin Dzhengozov, to discuss the results, get his take on spend culture creation, and discuss the place of AI and automation in culture-supporting spending mechanics.

How would you define "spend culture" and why is it so important for businesses today?

Defining and nurturing a healthy spend culture is not a "nice-to-have" — it's a business imperative. Why? Because how a company approaches spending will have a huge impact on its priorities, accountability, and ability to scale.

Konstantin Dzhengozov, CFO and co-founder at Payhawk, says:

“At its core, spend culture is about how your company approaches spending. It includes how you manage budgets, make decisions, and share accountability across your company.

Our recent CFO research found that 85% of businesses understand spend culture, but only 31% actually have a defined culture in place. This is unfortunate but not surprising. And I would say pretty much every company actually has a spend culture, whether it's concerned with giving freedom or very strict. It's just that it's not always tangible — or rather, the finance team hasn't been able to bring it to life for employees."

At Payhawk, we see a healthy spend culture as something that promotes transparency, control, collaboration, and speed. And we recognise that in today’s fast-paced environment, you need to do a lot to stay competitive, including two big things:

• Aligning your team with clear spending rules and accountability
• Empowering them with the right tools to spend as they need without risk

61% of CFOs say a well-defined spend culture is important for business growth.

Why is accountability so important for growing businesses & how can your spend culture support it?

Employee accountability should be a key part of any good spend culture to move fast and maintain control and visibility. 38% of the CFOs said a defined spending culture enhanced accountability in their organisation.

"It's your employees who are creating expenses. Likewise, they're the ones who know what and why they're spending," Konstantin explains.

"It makes sense to give them the right tools to spend while you stay in control; features like card controls, approval workflows, and single-use cards are a good start.

It also makes sense to put spend categorisation directly in their hands. It's 2025, finance teams should not be wasting hours decoding receipts and classifying spend. With a solution like Payhawk, they can instead let their employees do it with cards and the easy-to-use app, featuring categories and custom fields preset by finance and management.

Plus, with real-time reconciliation, native ERP integrations (think NetSuite, Xero, Sage Intacct), and category recommendations supported by automation and machine learning, instant visibility is seamless.

All of this also helps remind your employees that every penny is being tracked. Yes, I know that will sound a bit "big brother" to some people in your business, but it's really a non-negotiable for finance teams. Tracking all spend and getting complete visibility can make the difference between overspending or drifting into fraud risks."

Our customer, the residential healthcare company Wellpointe Inc., shares Konstantin's sentiment. George Kutnerian, Wellpointe's CEO and co-founder, says:

We've empowered our spenders to code their own transactions with Payhawk. And when I say code, I don't mean they're just putting a note next to it; our chart of accounts actually lives in Payhawk… I've given the team a tool to reinforce our expectations and help us build a transparent spend culture.

How can finance leaders empower employee spend and accountability?

Empowering employees is about building a spend culture that lets them know where they stand and giving them the tools to spend responsibly Konstantin explains.

Unfortunately, things can get in the way for CFOs. The survey results were revealing; we asked:

What factors, if any, might stop you from giving more autonomy to your employees?

• 51% fear of fraud
• 47% lack of visibility
• 44% lack of trust
• 39% lack of spend control and risk of overspend
• 35% risk of errors

With Payhawk, your employees have clear spending limits and policies baked into the system — whether they’re using a corporate card or submitting an expense. It’s almost impossible for them to overspend thanks to a mix of features like:

1. Single-use, subscription, vendor, fuel, T&E, benefit, and procurement cards (and more!)
2. Corporate cards with in-built controls that let you set transaction times –— and approve or block spend for specific merchants, categories, countries, regions, and more
3. Fund and expense approval workflows with custom steps and automation (with rules and triggers based on team structure, categories, custom fields, and set limits)
4. Automated procure-to-pay (PO) features
5. Card freezing for lost and stolen cards
6. Autoblocking for late expenses and missing receipts
7. Per diems and easy mileage tracking
8. And much more

“And the thing is, all of this is right in the palm of your employee’s hand. They have their physical corporate card, their virtual card and the app. It’s all there and ready to support them to spend as they need to for work, in a safe but rapid manner. They can feel confident and empowered to spend, knowing all the relevant guardrails are in place,” Konstantin says.

Adrià Vázquez, Finance Director at VICIO, agrees, saying, “Once money is spent, it cannot be retrieved. Anything that slips out of policy could pose a risk to the company. But by maintaining a strong sense of control, we can evaluate the profitability of our actions and continually improve. I am confident that we have control of our expenses thanks to Payhawk's spend controls and real-time view over spend…”

It's not about controlling our team, as we have a highly capable group of professionals; it's about controlling the numbers to anticipate, prioritise, and focus on what matters.

How is AI transforming the way businesses approach spend management and accountability?

“Well, while AI is the most popular topic right now, it’s not only AI that’s working hard here. At Payhawk, our combination of AI, automation, and machine learning work together to do some really heavy lifting,” continues Konstantin.

Our customers saved 55,000 hours last year on manual data entry alone thanks to automation. We match receipts to transactions in seconds with no tedious data entry, automatically approve expenses that meet predefined rules, and flag anomalies in real-time. Together this reduces human error and ensures compliance without constant time-consuming oversight from the finance team.

With our solution, businesses can focus on value-adding activities rather than chasing receipts, doing manual data entry, and constantly communicating spend policies. Our marketing team has said, ‘it’s like putting your spend culture on autopilot.’

Our technologies combine to offer complete visibility over all spend data, too. And the future of that data looks even brighter with AI, with positivity around new insights and data management opportunities.

CFOs are especially hopeful about AI, and in December 2024, our research, The new CFO tech gap report found:

• 87% of CFOs are optimistic about AI, trusting it to take on some of their responsibilities. (Many expect AI to assist with data processing, error detection, and scenario modelling, allowing them to focus on strategic decision-making)
• 48% of CFOs expect team sizes to grow as a result of AI in the next five years

What are the tangible benefits of a robust spend culture?

While our research revealed that only 31% of CFOs have a defined spend culture, it also found that 66% have it high on the agenda.

1. 41% of CFOs are in the process of introducing a robust spend culture
2. 25% intend to make it a focus in the next 12 months

Stephen Wilkinson, Finance and Operations Director at international jewellery brand Astrid & Miyu describes the shift impact in part, explaining:

As a Finance Director, financial literacy outside the finance function is super important. With Payhawk, we've been able to change the spend culture internally and make everyone autonomous for their own budget.

"The findings from this research reinforce exactly what I’ve been hearing in conversations with CFOs globally — there’s a real shift happening in how businesses approach spend culture,” Konstantin says. “CFOs are embracing smarter tools to decentralise budget ownership and foster collaboration across their organisations. It’s not just about improving financial control or efficiency; it’s about creating a culture of accountability that empowers teams to make smarter decisions and align their spending with strategic goals.”

This shift isn't just about adopting a new mindset; it's about unlocking tangible benefits.

Here's what CFOs said they have achieved by embracing a robust spend culture:

• 49% improved financial control
• 47% increased efficiency
• 45% reduced costs
• 41% improved business profitability
• 38% enhanced accountability

Watch Astrid & Miyu's full story below:

Bringing spend culture to life: Five steps to build accountability with smarter tools

Building a strong spend culture isn’t just about establishing rules — it’s about creating an environment where teams feel empowered, take accountability, and know where they stand.

Here are Konstantin’s five steps to make it happen:

1. Make spending policies clear and accessible
“Start by defining your spend policies and make sure everyone knows what’s expected. Educate your teams about why these policies exist and how their choices impact the business. When people understand the ‘why’, accountability follows naturally.”

2. Decentralise budget ownership
“Finance shouldn’t be a bottleneck for every spending decision. Give teams visibility over budgets to let budget owners track spend in real time, set approval workflows, and enable easy communication (like in-platform comments) over any missing spend info — all while keeping guardrails in place.”

3. Use tools that bake control into the process
“Technology should work as an extension of your policies. With tools like Payhawk, you can set spending limits, block transactions, automate approvals, and much more… and put all of this right in the hands of your business spenders.”

4. Automate to save time and reduce friction
“Automation isn’t just about saving time — it reduces errors and frustration, too. Automating things like expense coding, approval workflows, and reconciliation lets your teams focus on more valuable work. It’s about working smarter, not harder.”

5. Support accountability
“Spend culture is about empowering people as much as controlling numbers. Let your teams know exactly where they stand and help them move as fast as possible with confidence by offering them freedom within a framework supported by smart tech.”

Your next steps

Want to take control and drive profitability with a smarter spend culture? Book a personalised demo to talk to one of our in-house experts today.

Why take a demo? You’ll get a personalised, one-on-one walkthrough of our platform with expert guidance tailored to your needs, whether you’re prioritising spend control, global visibility, PO, or all of the above — and more. Our team will provide in-depth consulting, answer all your questions, and ensure you clearly understand how everything works. You’ll get the insights and platform visibility you need, plus an in-depth Q&A — no obligation, just expert support to help you make the right decision.