March 17, 2005

According to a study sponsored by American Express, 68 percent of CFO's (chief financial officers) of small and mid-sized businesses predict that, overall, the B2B economy will do well this year.

That number is up from 48 percent in 2003 and 32 percent in 2002, showing a strong growth in positive attitudes.

The survey went on to reveal that the SMB segment, just like the enterprise segment, is keenly interested in compliance -- regular financial compliance, though, not Sarbanes-Oxley.

Over a third of CFOs said that senior management were withholding their "participation, enforcement and[/or] endorsement" of financial policies.

Additionally, maverick spending is an issue for nearly 70 percent of CFOs while rules for limiting spending per transaction were highly complied with only 40 percent of the time.

As a result, half of the CFOs said that "identifying and controlling unauthorized spending" was a high priority in 2005.

This is a reminder that spend management (including contract management) is a big issue not just for big companies. It's also a reminder that American Express backs an offering in this space.

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