We needed a solution that wouldn’t compromise our agility and that’s exactly what we found with Spendesk.

Key outcomes with Spendesk

• Eliminated card-passing chaos: No more interruptions for small purchases and shared card bottlenecks

• Project-level expense tracking: Accurate gross profit calculation with client and project codes

• Real-time cash flow visibility: Live spending data instead of month-end surprises

• Streamlined month-end close: Employees upload receipts directly, saving 2 days monthly

• Secure online purchasing: Virtual cards enable autonomous, fraud-protected payments

• Delegated receipt management: Finance freed from manual expense slip processing

About We Are Social

We Are Social is a digital agency managing online presence for multiple clients. With teams across 13 countries handling both internal operations and client purchases – from stock photos and music licensing to promotional items – the team needed agile spend management that traditional corporate processes couldn't match.

The challenges

Before Spendesk, We Are Social faced the classic agency dilemma: managing both internal expenses and client purchases with inadequate tools.

Core issues:

• Two shared credit cards created bottlenecks when multiple employees needed payments simultaneously

• Constant interruptions as employees requested card access for small expenses

• Manual receipt collection and expense reconciliation across multiple countries

• No real-time cash flow visibility for budget optimisation

• Inaccurate gross profit calculations due to misclassified direct costs

• Time-consuming expense processing taking focus from strategic work

• Security risks with shared payment methods

The solution

We Are Social implemented Spendesk to enable autonomous spending for both internal operations and client purchases while maintaining complete financial control.

The comprehensive solution covers:

• Virtual cards for secure online purchases (stock photos, music, promotional items)

• Physical cards for field teams and in-store purchases

• Project and client coding for accurate cost allocation

• Real-time spending visibility and budget monitoring

• Delegated receipt management to card users

• Streamlined month-end reconciliation process

From interruptions to autonomy

The transformation was immediate. Instead of constant interruptions for card access, employees gained autonomous purchasing power through virtual cards. The finance team shifted from manual expense processing to strategic budget optimisation with real-time data.

Project-level expense tracking revealed previously hidden direct costs, correcting gross profit calculations and enabling more accurate client pricing and budget allocation.

The results

Since adopting Spendesk, We Are Social has transformed its expense management:

• Saves 2 full days each month with automated processes

• Accurate gross profit calculation with proper cost allocation

• Real-time cash flow visibility for better budget decisions

• Eliminated payment bottlenecks and daily interruptions

• Enhanced security with fraud-protected virtual cards

• Streamlined month-end close through delegated receipt management

• Complete team autonomy while maintaining financial control

• 100% visibility on spend across 13 countries

Closing the books is now very simple. Spendesk lets me delegate the job of verifying and uploading receipts to the person paying, which is a huge time-saver. The tool is both user-friendly and fun to use, so employees play the game and are far more likely to provide the necessary documents.

Achille Manbou

Ready to transform your agency's expense management?

See how Spendesk gives your team complete autonomy while providing the control and visibility you need. Discover how you could save days every month while improving accuracy and security. Talk to an expert today.