Smarter Week

How to automate it

How to automate “analyze spend and look for savings”

Here are 2 ways to spend less time on this, best first. Each comes with steps you can follow today and, for AI fixes, a prompt to copy.

90 min
typically, once a month
60%
of the time can be automated
Some setup
to set up

Fix 1 of 2

AIBest fix

Have AI categorize spend and find savings opportunities

Upload an AP or card export; AI groups spend by category and supplier, finds duplicates and overlapping tools, and suggests where to consolidate.

Typically saves about 50% of the time10 min to set up
  1. 1Export 12 months of AP and card spend (supplier, amount, description, department).
  2. 2Upload to an approved AI tool or Copilot in Excel.
  3. 3Use the prompt below.
  4. 4Check the top findings against contracts before acting.
Prompt to copy
Analyze this 12-month spend export. 1) Group spend into categories and show total by category and top 10 suppliers. 2) Find suppliers that look like duplicates (name variations). 3) Find categories with many small suppliers (tail spend). 4) Find overlapping software subscriptions. 5) Suggest the five biggest savings opportunities with the estimated spend affected. Show the method so I can reproduce it.

Tools: Copilot in Excel · ChatGPT or Claude with file upload

Fix 2 of 2

AI

Let AI build the formulas, pivots and summary

Copilot in Excel, Gemini in Sheets, or uploading the file to ChatGPT or Claude can build the pivot, the chart and the commentary in minutes.

Typically saves about 50% of the time10 min to set up
  1. 1Export or open the data.
  2. 2Ask Copilot in Excel or Gemini in Sheets, or upload the file to an approved AI assistant.
  3. 3Describe the report you want, including the breakdowns.
  4. 4Check the totals against the source before you share.
Prompt to copy
Here is [DESCRIBE THE DATA]. Build a summary that shows [THE NUMBERS YOUR MANAGER WANTS] by [BREAKDOWN], compared with [LAST PERIOD]. Give me the Excel formulas or pivot setup to reproduce it, and three sentences on what changed and why it matters.

Tools: Copilot in Excel · Gemini in Google Sheets · ChatGPT or Claude with file upload

Who does this task

Roles in our library that list this as one of their common tasks. Each guide covers the rest of that role’s week.

Procurement / purchasing specialist

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Other common tasks for Procurement / purchasing specialists