Step 2: Run Spend Audits

Regularly review vendor and internal expenses to identify what’s truly delivering ROI — and what’s just legacy, convenience, or ego-driven. Reallocate saved dollars to higher-leverage initiatives.

Why This Matters

Series A companies often inherit bloat as they grow: tools that no one uses, vendors on autopay, or “nice-to-have” spend that no longer fits the stage. Audits help you redirect resources to what actually drives growth — without triggering a company-wide budget freeze.

Key Activities

Export all expenses (by vendor, category, department)
Categorize into:
Keep: High ROI or mission-critical
Cut 50%: Reduce but don’t eliminate
Kill: Wasteful or unused
Prove ROI: Put under scrutiny until justified
Involve department leads so they have skin in the game
Set a “Strategic Spend” budget for risky but high-upside initiatives

Common Mistakes

Letting budget decisions sit only with finance
Treating all spend equally
Skipping the audit because "growth is good"
Cutting across the board instead of selectively
Delaying changes because of sunk-cost bias

Signals You're Doing It Right

You’ve reallocated spend to high-ROI initiatives
Leaders understand and justify their budgets
Company is lean without being reactive
Strategic bets are tracked, not buried
Budget reviews feel focused, not emotional

Red Flags

Vendor list has tools no one remembers buying
Department budgets are growing without review
Spending habits are driven by inertia or “we’ve always had it”
CFO is surprised by renewal charges or invoice volume
No one knows what “strategic” means in the budget

Who Should Own This

CFO or COO, with department heads participating in evaluation