Supporting seamless multi-subsidiary spend Wellpointe Inc.

Life before Payhawk

Before Payhawk, the team at Wellpointe Inc. were facing major challenges as they grew. Managing financial processes across multiple entities and geographies was really time-consuming, especially when it came to mergers and acquisitions (M&A). And their old method of handling credit card spend via a banking institution (without deposit) was particularly tedious and painful.

George Kutnerian, CEO of Wellpointe Inc., recalls:

As we started to grow via M&A, we wanted to issue credit cards for individual subsidiaries. However, this was painfully slow and created a complex, manual allocation process that was time-consuming and prone to errors.

George details his success criteria when searching for a solution (and selecting Payhawk) as:

• A solution that will scale: They have five entities now (2023), but growth plans to add on more in 2024 and beyond
• Centralised expense management processes (cards & Accounts Payable) for five Wellpointe entities
• Segmented spend tracking, connected to the correct entity
• The ability to properly categorise expenses at submission
• Real-time NetSuite integration
• Clean receipt capture (not crumpled and/or rejected)

The team was ready for change. Their existing processes not only slowed down their financial closings but also left them with a heavy workload and concerns about data accuracy; they knew there was a better way.

Eliminating spend errors with Payhawk

With multiple subsidiaries and over 250 staff across California, George and the team were looking for a solution to simplify card spending and improve spend control and accuracy.

George explains:

That's when we turned to Payhawk: We use the solution to leverage real-time data to achieve continuous financial closings — and enhance our FP&A capabilities. Payhawk's spend management tools have given us the visibility and efficiency we desperately needed!

Since moving to Payhawk, the Wellpointe Inc. team has transformed its financial management processes. By issuing individual corporate credit cards to its subsidiaries through Payhawk, it has eliminated the previous manual, error-prone allocation processes.

They can now track each subsidiary's expenses accurately and automatically, too, letting them significantly reduce their internal workload and improve data accuracy.

This transformation has helped the team regain complete spend control and account for each transaction in real time.

George continues, "With Payhawk, we have eliminated our manual, error-prone allocation processes. We can also track each subsidiary's expenses accurately and automatically, helping us reduce our workload, improve data accuracy, and regain control over our spending."

Prioritising real-time data and continuous closing for successful M&A

As the head of a business fueled by M&A, George understands the importance of good technology for support with scaling, visibility, and consistency.

One example of how Wellpointe Inc. leverages our technology is to help benchmark within their turnaround strategies for M&A. He explains that for Wellpointe Inc., M&A typically involves a two-year turnaround plan with specific milestones to hit along the way. They know where they want to be by the end of year one and year two, and they track their progress in real time along the way.

George says:

We don't want to be sleeping at the wheel... And so, a tool, technology like Payhawk, helps us see how things are going in real time and benchmark against our game plan. We can pivot and adjust whether it's month two or month three post-M&A, meaning we're not waking up in month nine and worrying that we're not going to hit where we need what we need to hit by the end of year one.

At Payhawk, our technology means the team at Wellpointe Inc. can see real-time spend data, allowing them to pivot and make adjustments early on if needed. This in-depth visibility ensures they're not blindsided and don't risk missing their year-one goals due to a lack of data.

Our corporate cards, completely connected expense management software, and seamless ERP integrations help them stay on track, meet their milestones, and avoid unpleasant surprises down the road.

George describes, "Payhawk's continuous close capability means that our financial data is always up-to-date, letting us make more informed decisions!"

Streamlining multi-subsidiary FP&A

Another important way the team at Wellpointe Inc. uses technology? To zero in and prioritise smart analysis for decision-making within multi-entity management.

George explains:

Payhawk has helped us transition from day-to-day accounting to a more strategic FP&A function. This shift allowed us to focus on higher-value activities, such as analysing variances in key expenses (like food costs across different locations) and making informed decisions to optimise our operations.

The accurate, real-time spend data we provide has helped ensure the team can better measure their performance effectively. George cites the level of data fidelity as crucial in maintaining transparency and driving productivity across the growing organisation.

We're multi-geography within the US… And as an assisted living operator, one of our big expenses is food. But food costs can vary locally. The Payhawk solution helps us investigate those variances and ask: Are they purely local factors? Is it related to the local purchasing person? Is it where we're sourcing from within the local market? Now, we can investigate and answer those questions in a much more efficient manner.

All this means that the Wellpointe Inc. team's data-driven approach has not only enhanced decision-making but also empowered them to stay agile and proactive in a competitive market.

Saving time & promoting accountability across the business with expense categorisation

Unlike many traditional expense management platforms where accounting teams still need to finalise coding (spend categorisation), at Payhawk, we let companies pass the accountability to the actual spenders (who have all the spend information) via in-built customisable coding and fields, saving the finance team huge amounts of time.

George describes:

Payhawk helps us free up the accounting department from what I consider a "non-value-add" activity. A good example is where 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; for us, our chart of accounts actually lives in Payhawk. And so anyone who's spending within Payhawk is empowered to leverage the chart of accounts and code the transaction appropriately. Eventually, I want to get to the point where all spenders code expenses exactly at the point of purchase… and I've given the team a tool to reinforce that expectation and help us build a transparent spend culture.

This empowered way of tracking expenses not only saves the finance team time but also puts accountability in the hands of the spenders and helps build a robust spending culture from the ground up.

George recalls:

Let's say we have a work dinner. I put down my Payhawk card, and the waiter takes it and goes back to swipe it. Now, I've already been pinged on my Payhawk mobile app for that transaction before the waiter's even made it back to the table with my card. That's how lightning-fast it is.

The approach with Payhawk is fast, too, and simple to use, which means no more bottlenecks in terms of tracking and analysing spending.

Leveraging a NetSuite ERP integration as “smooth as butter”

As many growing businesses quickly discover, systems that worked in the startup days don’t cut it as they scale up their subsidiary count, whether through M&A or organic growth. They typically want a more robust backbone to help them understand the business inside and out, covering everything from financials and inventory to orders and customer relationship management.

In an intercompany context, if there's a lot of cash moving between the entities, that's another kind of friction point that necessitates a more advanced ERP system.

At Payhawk, we help customers streamline spending across multiple entities via a single platform and seamless ERP and HRIS integrations. Our solution caters to the needs of established public companies as well as growing SMEs and covers 32+ countries, ensuring efficient global operations in the US, UK, and EEA — or even domestically if more relevant, as in the case of Wellpointe Inc.

As a growth company, we have capital partners and specific reporting requirements. We must segment financial statements for each business or entity and be able to roll that up as well to consolidate reporting. With Payhawk and the ERP integration, we have the data flow in a way that works to support this multi-entity context. The Payhawk integration with NetSuite is so smooth — I'd say it's like butter.

Conclusion

By pairing the right technology (Payhawk) with their talented team, the team at Wellpointe Inc. have maximised productivity and achieved greater financial control.

Our spend management tools have addressed their biggest challenges and helped support their success as they navigate the complexities of multi-entity operations.

George says:

Thanks to Payhawk, we can now focus even more on our mission of providing exceptional care to our residents, knowing that our financial operations are in good hands!

Interested in experiencing the same great benefits? Book a personalised demo today to see how our solutions can support your growing business.