Recently, we hosted a week-long webinar series, Xero for Groups: The App Advantage APAC. We took our successful UK series from last April and gave it a fresh spin for our APAC audience, featuring Xero ecosystem apps Mayday, ApprovalMax, Airwallex, Employment Hero and Joiin. Over six sessions, we dove into the key topics that CFOs need to know when using Xero to scale their multi-entity businesses.
This series was a fantastic chance to hear from a range of in-house finance leaders, accountants, experts, and app partners, all sharing their top tips on how groups can get the most out of Xero. Here’s a roundup of what we learned from chatting with the experts this time around.
1. Dive into Xero’s app ecosystem
Xero is great at handling core accounting tasks, but what really sets it apart is the community of third-party apps. Since they've had an open API from the start, the integrations and partnerships with these apps are really solid. With over 1,000 apps to choose from, there's a good chance you'll find a tailored solution for virtually any business need.
"Xero was built from the ground up deliberately to be a broad, horizontal, small business platform that focuses on accounting, payroll, and now payments. From that background, we were always going to work across a range of businesses with varying needs and we were never going to meet everyone's needs perfectly. From the get-go, we had an API to build in apps like Mayday to help us meet certain business needs and we've really seen that foundational platform grow. We now cater to a wide range of businesses, but we can't do that alone. We do that by partnering with third-party programs like Mayday. That really opens up our addressable market as to who can use Xero and really expands the size of the business that's appropriate for Xero."
– Andrew Hirst, Partner Success and Enterprise at Xero
2. Know the limits of tracking categories
Xero’s tracking categories are excellent for departmental reporting but might not cover all your tracking needs. You can have up to two tracking categories with 200 options each, which is great but might not be enough for more detailed tracking. One workaround is to combine different types of information within a single tracking category. More on hacking Xero tracking categories >
3. Be savvy about what data you need in Xero
As your business grows, managing how you handle transactions becomes crucial. One key piece of advice is to be strategic about what data you push into Xero. Instead of flooding Xero with every single transaction, which can clutter your ledger and complicate reporting, focus on summarising and streamlining your data flow. More on Xero transaction limits >
"The learning for businesses as they grow is to make sure that you're not pushing every single transaction through to Xero, because it's not necessary for them all to live there. It'll overwhelm the ledger and you don't need it for reporting anyway. You have all that daily transactional level information, thousands of transactions running through something like Shopify and a daily balance going through to Xero for your accounting requirements. That extends the life of Xero a lot further in terms of making sure that you're not reaching any of the soft limits."
– Ryan Barnes, Managing Partner at TWIYO
4. Explore Xero fully before jumping to ERP
Before investing in a full-blown ERP system, make sure you’ve explored everything Xero has to offer. Often, you can get what you need from Xero and its apps, saving you a lot of time and money. As Justin Campbell from ApprovalMax pointed out, it’s worth questioning exactly why you feel the need to make the big switch.
"I have had conversations with quite a lot of finance teams, and I ask them 'why are you leaving Xero?' and I have to admit, I don't always get a compelling answer."
– Justin Campbell, Solutions Engineer at ApprovalMax
5. Leverage Xero’s global reach
If your business is expanding internationally, Xero’s global capabilities can be a huge advantage. Xero’s flexibility allows you to operate across different regions right from the start. By integrating with third-party apps, you can handle various international needs, from currency management to local compliance.
"The cost (of FX) is never marginal!"
– Michelle Kvello, Fractional CFO at Lantern Partners
If you're working with overseas customers, hiring remote teams, or managing cash in other currencies, it's critical to have an appropriate spend management and cross-currency cash solution. The benefit you can get from a "natural hedge" by having a way to receive, hold, and spend in other currencies can absolutely be material.
6. Seek expert help for complex needs
For more complex accounting situations, especially with multiple entities, don’t hesitate to bring in experts. There can be huge value in getting your integrations right the first time around! Working with specialists who can use Xero’s APIs and partner solutions to tackle intricate processes will enable you to get tailored solutions that make the most of Xero’s capabilities. Our CFO Techstack certified advisors can help >
In a nutshell, Xero’s flexibility and its ecosystem of apps can really enhance how you manage finances as a larger Xero user. By exploring these tools, understanding Xero’s limits, and seeking expert advice when needed, you can optimise your processes and stay ahead of the game.
Catch up on the Xero for Groups webinar series now >
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