The most valuable resource any of us have is time. We all know that line. But the value isn’t the time itself, it’s what we’re able to do with it. In a corporate sense, saving time on low value tasks and workflows means employees are able to spend it elsewhere.
And there are almost always going to be better uses of time than manually logging into multiple bank portals, downloading disparate reports, and normalizing data by hand.
These repetitive, low-value tasks consume valuable hours that could be better spent on more strategic, high-impact work like improving cash forecasting, optimizing capital allocation, or driving long-term growth initiatives.
While the act of doing these tasks may be low value, the insights that daily cash positioning information offers are not. Gaining real-time visibility into your organization’s cash position is critical. Without it, you’re left playing catch-up, making decisions based on outdated data, and missing opportunities for proactive financial management.
So, it’s work that needs to be done. Fortunately, modern, API-powered solutions are making it possible to gain these insights, without the heavy load of manual work. Let’s take a look at how leveraging the right tools can help you reclaim your time, simplify cash positioning, and unlock the potential for more strategic, value-driven decision-making.
What is Cash Positioning?
Cash positioning is the process of determining an organization’s available cash across all of its accounts. Cash positioning is important to ensure liquidity for daily operations, future investments, and unexpected needs.
Ideally, it provides real-time insight into cash balances, allowing treasurers to make informed financial decisions, optimize cash flow, and plan for growth. Effective cash positioning is a key risk management technique, but can also serve as a lever for growth by allowing cash reserves to be deployed quickly and efficiently.
Why Manual Cash Positioning Processes Fall Short
Manual cash positioning is time-consuming, inefficient, and prone to errors. Treasurers and their teams typically need to log into multiple bank portals, download reports, and manually compile and normalize the data. This fragmented approach not only wastes valuable time but also delays decision-making.
Sealaska were spending upwards of 10 hours per week on these tasks before implementing Trovata.
“We were all manual. We used a spreadsheet that would roll forward every month and we’d update it daily with cash balances. We spent hours logging into various portals, put in the new cash balance, and then manually looked for any decreases in cash or known one-offs to try to project where we’d be.”
McKenzie Knudson, Senior Treasury Analyst at Sealaska Corporation
At Eventbrite, cash balance automation saved them even more time, with 48+ hours every month within their workflow directed towards manual data consolidation and organization.
“With our previous TMS, there was a lot more involvement needed and time required to get everything implemented and set up correctly. With Trovata, we have saved over 12 hours a week from doing manual work, which is a big deal.”
Many treasury and finance teams will use some form of technology to manage their cash data. But even with tools like Power BI or Tableau, you’re still dealing with static data that lacks real-time updates. This means decisions are often based on outdated information, leading to missed opportunities or liquidity issues.
Relying on manual processes to track cash positions keeps your team stuck in low-value work and away from the strategic, high-impact initiatives that move your organization forward.
Accessing Real-Time Daily Cash Positioning Through APIs
The words transformative or game-changing can be a bit overused in tech circles. But the reality is, that’s the best way to describe APIs. The rise of API technology is like the invention of the car. Sure, horses were still around and you had trains and boats to get things from A to B, but nothing offered the same level of functionality and flexibility for transport as the car or truck.
APIs have done exactly the same thing, except for transporting data, not goods and people.
By directly connecting your organization’s bank accounts to a centralized platform, APIs provide real-time, automated updates on cash balances across all accounts. This eliminates the need for manual data pulls and normalization, giving you up-to-the-minute visibility into your cash position.
With an API-first treasury platform, such as Trovata, treasurers can access real-time cash insights from a single dashboard. APIs don’t just save time. They also enhance accuracy by delivering richer data, including detailed transaction metadata, which improves your ability to categorize, analyze, and forecast cash movements.
The speed and accuracy offered by APIs mean you can make faster, more informed decisions about liquidity, investments, and capital allocation. Trovata also enables legacy connections such as SWIFT, with this data automatically normalized and tagged as well, meaning you can maintain a centralized source of truth, regardless of your bank’s technical capabilities.
“We had balances and transactions in PowerBI and some of it tagged for actuals. But we needed a dedicated system to build a solid, sustainable solution to achieve real-time treasury.
I gravitated to Trovata because of the APIs. The daily feed makes data readily available. Transaction tagging allows for easy categorization and a clear picture of cash flow. Logging in provides instant updates, eliminating the need for manual data pulls.”
Bruce Edlund, Assistant Treasurer at Cloud Software Group
Unlocking Strategic Insights with Data Tagging and Categorization
While viewing cash balances is a crucial component of the Treasury function, strategic advisory requires a deeper insight into how cash is moving in and out of the business.
One of the most powerful features of modern API-driven platforms like Trovata is the ability to tag and categorize transactions automatically by type, counterparty, or other key metrics. This opens up opportunities to easily spot and analyze trends and anomalies, optimize cash allocation, or identify performance within specific product lines or business units. All without the need to manually process the data.
This flows through to more accurate cash forecasts, helping Treasurers and finance professionals make more informed investment decisions, and plan capital strategies with confidence.
The Result: Enhanced Treasury Capabilities and Strategic Focus
By embracing technology to automate cash positioning, treasury teams can unlock significant benefits that go beyond just time savings. Automation, driven by API-first platforms like Trovata, transforms the treasury function from a reactive, administrative role into a proactive, strategic partner for the business.
With real-time visibility into cash balances, automated data tagging, and seamless integration across financial systems, your team can shift its focus from low-value, manual tasks to high-value, strategic initiatives.
Instead of spending hours logging into bank portals and normalizing data, your team will have instant access to real-time cash positions across all accounts in one centralized platform. This level of visibility allows for faster, more accurate decision-making, whether it’s managing liquidity, planning investments, or optimizing working capital.
The result? Treasury becomes a key driver of business strategy. With Trovata, treasurers are empowered to take a more active role in capital allocation, financial planning, and long-term growth initiatives.
By automating low-value tasks and providing rich, actionable insights, Trovata allows treasury teams to become true strategic partners, helping the organization navigate challenges, seize opportunities, and drive success in a more agile and informed way.
“Since we started using Trovata, our treasury technology capabilities have completely transformed for the better. We have more time to focus on driving strategy and unlocking growth opportunities.”
James Krikorian, VP & Treasurer at Krispy Kreme
Empower Your Finance and Treasury Functions with Trovata
Trovatas deliver real-time, automated cash positioning, enabling treasurers to reclaim valuable time and focus on what truly matters: driving growth, optimizing cash flow, and making data-driven decisions.
By automating tedious manual processes and providing enhanced insights through tagging and categorization, Trovata turns the treasury team into a vital strategic partner for the business. Not only that, but the onboarding process can happen in a matter of weeks, rather than potentially over a year for a traditional TMS.
Ready to take your treasury capabilities to the next level? Schedule a demo with Trovata today and see how you can transform your cash management process and unlock new strategic opportunities for your organization.
