Finance teams are drowning in spreadsheets Finance teams are drowning in spreadsheets, buried under version errors, and waiting on IT just to get a basic report out. Sounds familiar?
If you’re nodding, you’re not alone. McKinsey reports that a significant portion of finance teams still spend most of their time on manual tasks rather than value-added analysis. And according to Accountancy Age, over half of finance professionals feel overloaded by siloed, fragmented reporting tools. This is slowing down the delivery of insights, delaying decisions, and hindering execution.
The result is a finance function that’s stuck reacting instead of leading.
This blog is a reflection of what many teams are battling every day. And it’s also a look ahead at how reporting could work: faster, smarter, and finally, frictionless.
For today, let’s break down what’s broken – and what the future holds.
Is Your Finance Team Still Losing Days to Manual Reporting?
The problem
Finance teams lose an average of 2–3 days per month reconciling manual report versions. That’s time spent tracking down formula errors, fixing broken links, and debating which Excel file is the “final final.”
Despite the rise of digital transformation, much of finance reporting still happens outside the ERP, via exported spreadsheets, pasted pivots, and emailed files. The results:
- Outdated links lead to errors that quietly cascade into dashboards
- Version control becomes a full-time job
- Time is spent reconciling data, not analyzing it
This is inefficient and risky. Errors in board reports or compliance submissions can lead to reputational damage – or worse.
The solution
GL Connect brings reporting back where it belongs: live, accurate, and ERP-connected.
With Excel-native reporting tools that pull real-time data from Oracle EBS and Cloud, teams can skip the export step entirely.
Reports refresh automatically, reflect current data, and retain the familiarity of Excel, minus the patchwork.
No exports. No formulas. No panic before meetings.
Does Every Report Change Still Mean Waiting on IT?
The problem
Need to add a filter? Adjust a parameter? Re-run the same report with updated data? For many finance teams, even the smallest tweak means filing a ticket – and waiting. Sometimes, endlessly.
That delay adds up:
- Insights stall while teams wait in the IT queue
- Decisions slow down when fresh data isn’t at hand
- Frustration builds on both sides of the table
As one finance lead put it, “A CFO shouldn’t need a ticketing system to analyze last quarter’s margins.” Yet that’s the norm in far too many Oracle environments.
The solution
GL Connect flips the script with self-service report building, right inside Excel. Finance users can drag, drop, filter, and refresh without leaving the sheet.
No more code dependencies. No more bottlenecks.
IT gets to focus on strategic work. Finance finally moves at the speed of business.
Struggling with Visibility During Your ERP Transition?
The problem
If your organization is mid-migration from Oracle EBS to Cloud, reporting likely feels like juggling knives. You’re toggling between systems, logging into separate interfaces, or recreating the same report in two environments.
This results in:
- Reporting teams duplicating effort
- Key data getting missed or misaligned
- Leaders losing confidence in the numbers
In this in-between stage, visibility often suffers.
The solution
GL Connect offers a single interface for hybrid reporting – pulling live data from both EBS and Cloud.
- No more patchwork spreadsheets.
- No more context-switching.
- Just one real-time report, spanning both systems, inside Excel.
Whether you’re at the start of your ERP journey or nearly complete, GL Connect keeps your reporting unified and consistent throughout every phase of the transition.
Can’t Trace That Number? Reconciliations Will Suffer.
The problem
It’s the end of the month. A balance is off. You have the top-line figure. But where’s the trail?
For too many teams, the answer is: lost in emails, buried in subledgers, or stuck waiting for access. The impact?
- Month-end close drags on
- Audit prep becomes a scramble
- Teams spend more time chasing data than reviewing it
The solution
GL Connect changes this. With up to 4th-level drill-downs, you can click straight from a GL summary to the originating invoice, without ever leaving Excel.
That means faster reconciliations, cleaner audits, and fewer questions about where the numbers came from.
It’s Time to Expect More from Financial Reporting
The finance office of the future isn’t buried in busy work. It’s not wasting days reconciling exports, waiting on IT, or toggling between systems. It’s fast, confident, insight-driven, and always empowered to act.
But getting there means addressing what’s broken today: the outdated workflows, the fragmented tools, the manual reporting maze that slows everyone down.
GL Connect was built to challenge the status quo, replacing time-consuming workarounds with real-time, Excel-native reporting for Oracle EBS and Cloud.
No more delays. No more guesswork. Just reporting that works the way finance does.
