How Civitta improved financial efficiency with the help of Payhawk

The international management consulting group Civitta has expanded from three offices in the Baltics to operations in 20 countries. Roman Khlibun, Civitta’s Chief Operating Officer (COO), discusses what drove this expansion, how it benefits clients, what sets Civitta apart from competitors, and the impact of implementing the global financial management system Payhawk. He also shares his perspective on the key changes and trends shaping the future of business.

In just 15 years, Civitta has expanded from three offices in the Baltics to a presence in 20 countries - and you’ve just announced your expansion into the U.S. market. What were the key factors behind this growth, and what are your strategic priorities moving forward?

We’ve grown by identifying markets with untapped potential - often in Central and Eastern Europe, the Balkans, and more recently, in developing economies. Importantly, we never believed in serving other markets by just flying in experts from our home base. Instead, we built strong local teams, gave them leadership opportunities, and empowered them to grow the business in ways that made sense for their context.

I call this model an international collaboratory - one that merges global consulting standards with local insight and entrepreneurial ownership. It allows us to deliver high-quality, context-specific solutions while staying agile and responsive to fast-changing client needs.

Our recent acquisition of J.E. Austin marks a major global expansion for Civitta, providing a direct presence in the U.S. — the world’s largest consulting market — and a platform to engage in global development assistance. By joining forces, Civitta and JAA combine their expertise to empower local talent in Eastern Europe while addressing development challenges around the world. The collaboration also creates opportunities to share Eastern Europe’s experience and know-how with emerging markets in Africa, Asia and Latin America.

As for what’s next - we do have plans to open offices in a few more countries in the near future. But we’ll share more on that when the time is right.

This business model demands rapid adaptation to new technologies and evolving market trends. How do you manage it from both operational and financial perspectives?

We believe that discipline and flexibility are equally critical to our growth. Without discipline, growth is limited, and the same applies to flexibility. But what does this balance entail?

From an operational standpoint, we focus on building agile teams and processes capable of responding swiftly to change. We invest heavily in continuous learning, encourage experimentation, and cultivate a culture where innovation is embedded in everyday work. Our decentralized collaboration model empowers local teams to make decisions based on real-time market insights, enabling rapid adaptation without compromising quality or consistency.

From a financial perspective, we uphold a rigorous budgeting and forecasting framework that allows us to strategically invest in new technologies while closely monitoring return on investment. We manage risk by piloting initiatives on a smaller scale before expanding them across markets. This phased approach helps us control costs and ensures that innovation investments deliver measurable value. Additionally, we have gradually digitalized our financial processes

Ultimately, the key lies in integrating operational agility with financial discipline, enabling us to remain innovative and sustainable - and to effectively meet client needs in a rapidly evolving environment.

When talking about finance and digitisation, what processes have you digitised at Civitta and what measurable benefits have you observed as a result?

At Civitta, digitalization is a strategic priority, as it drives the company’s growth. By embracing digital tools, we increase efficiency and make our financial operations more transparent and agile.

We have digitized several key processes, including invoice processing, expense management, and financial reporting. A major milestone in this journey was the implementation of Payhawk as our first global financial management system.

Today, all of our offices use Payhawk. However, only a subset of the team is leveraging its full functionality—primarily offices within the EU. Currently, Payhawk is available in the EEA, UK and US, so our offices outside these regions cannot make payments through Payhawk or use Payhawk cards, yet the system has still significantly streamlined our financial operations.

Overall, this unified platform has simplified approval workflows, enabled real-time expense tracking, and reduced the incidence of manual errors.

Civitta now spans over several countries. What steps did you take to align financial workflows across this complex organisational structure and how has Payhawk helped standardise spend policies and compliance across geographies? How important is speed and control?

Managing finances in such a complex structure was a challenge that required clear rules. We implemented centralized spend policies and standardized workflows while accounting for local specifics. Payhawk became a key tool that automated spend control, approvals, and compliance with local regulations. This gave us both the speed of decision-making and reliable control.

Can you describe the impact Payhawk has had on your teams, especially around multi‑entity management and real-time visibility?

With over 600 active users across our organizational units, Payhawk provided a unified platform for centralized management, approval setups, and transparent real-time spend control. Thanks to flexible approval chains, each payment goes through the proper authorization without unnecessary delays. This shortened month-end closing times and enabled fast responses to budget indicators.

What are the gains you have seen from optimizing all those processes - such as time saved, fewer discrepancies, or improved budget discipline? How are you measuring the return on investment, and what has the finance team said about it?

Previously, approval and reconciliation processes took a lot of time due to numerous manual steps and approvals. Thanks to Payhawk, we reduced invoice processing times on a large scale from days to hours. What was previously done by 10 people in different countries is now done by 1 employee. Automation lowered error rates and improved reporting accuracy. Now our finance teams focus more on analysis and strategic tasks. Even though ROI has not been measured through formal KPIs, the impact is evident: processes are faster, errors have decreased, budget control has strengthened, and user satisfaction has improved.

As you mentioned, You’re leading a company at the intersection of consulting, tech, and innovation. What major shifts or developments do you anticipate shaping the business world in the next five years?

The world is moving very fast, and this rapid pace is one of the main challenges facing most CEOs. Over the next five years, fundamental changes will occur that will significantly impact business, especially at the intersection of consulting, technology, and innovation.

First, digital transformation will accelerate even further as new technologies such as artificial intelligence and automation become integral to how companies operate and compete. These technologies will not only increase efficiency but also enable more personalized, data-driven decision-making.

Second, sustainability and ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) issues will become central to business strategy. Clients increasingly expect consulting partners to help them navigate these complex challenges while aligning growth with responsibility.

Third, the workforce itself is evolving. Remote and hybrid work models are here to stay, requiring new approaches to collaboration, talent development, and organizational culture.

Finally, innovation funding and ecosystem partnerships will play a critical role in driving growth. Companies that effectively leverage collaborative models, combining global expertise with local knowledge, will gain a competitive advantage.

At Civitta, we are focused on staying ahead of these trends by fostering agility, investing in technology, and deepening our commitment to sustainable and innovative solutions for our clients.

Ready to see how your finance team could achieve the same clarity and control with Payhawk? Book a demo today.