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Total Economic Impact
Cost Savings And Business Benefits Enabled By PEX
A FORRESTER TOTAL ECONOMIC IMPACT STUDY COMMISSIONED BY PEX
October 2025
Total Economic Impact
A FORRESTER TOTAL ECONOMIC IMPACT STUDY COMMISSIONED BY PEX
October 2025
PEX is a flexible corporate card and spend management platform that helps organizations gain visibility and improve control over business spend. By consolidating card issuance, transaction tracking, and reconciliation in one software solution, PEX can enable finance teams to transition from reactive oversight to more proactive financial management. Interviewees from organizations in construction, nonprofit, entertainment, and healthcare reported measurable improvements in time efficiency, cost control, and operational scalability after deploying PEX.
PEX combines Visa(R) cards, software, and automation to manage expense processing, which provides finance teams with real-time expense tracking, automated compliance enforcement, and configurable card controls. Organizations can issue physical or virtual cards — including charge, prepaid, and disbursement cards — with defined spend limits and approval workflows.
PEX automates receipt capture, transaction coding, and reconciliation through built-in tools, which can reduce manual effort and improve accuracy. The platform also integrates with ERP systems to support real-time data synchronization and enhance reporting workflows. By consolidating spend management processes, PEX provides visibility, control, and operational efficiency, especially for teams managing remote, field-based, or fast-scaling operations.
PEX commissioned Forrester Consulting to conduct a Total Economic Impact™ (TEI) study and examine the potential benefits and financial impacts enterprises may realize by deploying PEX.1
To better understand the benefits and risks associated with this investment, Forrester interviewed six decision-makers from five organizations with experience using PEX. For the purposes of this study, Forrester aggregated the experiences of the interviewees and combined the results into a single composite organization, which is an industry-agnostic organization based in the US with annual revenue of $25 million and 130 employees.
Interviewees said that before adopting PEX, their organizations relied on traditional debit/prepaid, credit cards, and petty cash to manage employee spend. But they explained that these approaches required extensive reconciliation processes that involved chasing down receipts and tracking approvals and reimbursements — often over several weeks. With teams operating remotely or scaling in size, the manual processes often led to inefficiencies and delays in closing the books and errors in expense coding that would result in missing receipts, duplicate charges, or delayed disbursements and lead to missed opportunities for spend control, accountability, and timely financial reporting.
Interviewees reported that after implementing PEX, their organizations significantly improved how they manage employee spend and that having real-time visibility, automated controls, and streamlined workflows reduced manual effort for finance teams and mitigated common risks (e.g., fraud, misuse, accidental charges). They also said PEX supports scalable spend management across remote, field-based, and fast-growing teams and that their organizations can create virtual or physical cards instantly, set granular spend limits by role or job function, and monitor use across hundreds of employees and locations from a centralized platform.
Quantified benefits. Three-year, risk-adjusted present value (PV) quantified benefits for the composite organization include:
Reduction to reconciliation and reporting effort across finance and field teams. PEX automation tools eliminate the composite organization’s manual receipt collection, categorization, and approval processes, which streamlines expense reconciliation and reporting. For each accounts payable specialist on the finance team, features such as Auto Tagger, Auto Enforcer, auto approval, and batch processing reduce manual effort by 20 hours per month, totaling 720 hours annually across the team. Employees outside of finance each save 5 hours per month with mobile receipt uploads and real-time tagging, which reduces the need for manual paperwork and in-person submissions. As the organization grows, the number of PEX users outside of finance increases to 133 in Year 3, resulting in 7,980 hours saved. Combining finance and non-finance employees, The composite organization saves 8,700 hours in Year 3. These efficiencies contribute to a three-year productivity value of $788,000 over three years.
Productivity boost that saves 192 hours annually on financial close cycles. PEX replaces the composite’s manual workflows that were error-prone and labor-intensive — particularly across multiple divisions and job sites. Integrating PEX with the organization’s ERP system provides its finance leaders, including controllers and the CFO, with comprehensive transaction data in real time. This visibility enables faster, more accurate close cycles and reduces the time needed to reconcile data across systems. Over three years, these efficiencies yield a productivity benefit of $45,000.
Avoided headcount expansion through process automation. Because PEX automates the composite’s previously manual expense management processes, the organization avoids the need to hire additional personnel for finance teams as the company grows. This operational efficiency results in three-year cost savings of $209,000.
Savings from PEX’s 1% rebate. PEX provides the composite organization with a rebate of up to 1% on qualifying spend. This rebate contributes to the organization’s bottom line, particularly for teams with high monthly transaction volumes. Over a three-year period, this benefit results in cost savings of $28,000.
Unquantified benefits. Benefits that provide value for the composite organization but are not quantified for this study include:
Improved real-time visibility into transactions. PEX empowers the composite’s finance teams with real-time visibility into transactions across projects and locations, enabling faster issue detection and more accurate spend oversight. Customizable controls and mobile access allow users to monitor limits, request funds, and view transactions instantly. These capabilities improve the organization’s documentation, reduce errors, and help prevent unnecessary expenses.
Enhanced accountability. PEX shifts financial accountability to the composite’s individual employees by providing real-time access to transaction data, spending limits, and compliance status. Because employees operate within prefunded limits and itemize their own purchases, this visibility encourages more mindful spending and reduces misuse. As a result, the organization strengthens its financial discipline and improves its control over discretionary spend.
Strong partnership. Interviewees said PEX provides responsive customer support and proactive account management, including regular check-ins and guidance on platform features. For the composite organization, this strong partnership enables it to scale with confidence with an evolving platform that aligns with its long-term financial goals.
Improved employee satisfaction and peace of mind. The PEX interface and mobile-first experience simplifies the composite’s expense management, which improves employee satisfaction and peace of mind across its finance and operational teams.
Benefits PV
| Role | Industry | Revenue | Number of employees |
|---|---|---|---|
| Director of production accounting | Media/entertainment | $100 million | 1,200 |
| Controller | Construction | $50 million | 100 |
| Finance manager | Construction | $44 million | 130 |
| Accounts payable specialist | Construction | $44 million | 130 |
| Financial analyst | Education/nonprofit | $26 million | 150 |
| Accounts payable manager | Healthcare | N/A | 1,300 |
Interviewees said that prior to implementing PEX, their organizations faced a range of operational and financial challenges stemming from lengthy manual processes. These issues were especially acute for organizations with distributed field operations and those undergoing rapid growth.
Interviewees noted how their organizations struggled with common challenges, including:
Limited visibility, control, and scalability. Finance teams lacked real-time insight into employee transactions. Spend data was fragmented across systems or paper trails, and monthly bank statements offered delayed and incomplete views. Traditional credit cards and petty cash systems provided minimal oversight, offered no meaningful rewards or rebates, and made it difficult to enforce spend limits or track approvals. An accounts payable manager at a healthcare company stated: “When you are maintaining ... 250-plus bank cards ... I felt like everybody had a card, and there really wasn’t a whole lot of visibility into who’s spending what, where, or what it’s for.” Interviewees said that as their organizations grew — some doubling headcount annually — existing spend management processes became increasingly complex and unsustainable without adding staff.
Exposure to fraud, misuse, and lost funds. Interviewees explained that prior to using PEX, their organizations struggled with unauthorized purchases, miscoded expenses, and unreturned funds. These issues often went undetected until reconciliation, which created friction between employees and finance teams. A director of production accounting at a media/entertainment company stated: “We used to lose thousands of dollars that way. Someone would leave, say they’d write a check to return the petty cash, and then we’d never hear from them again.”
Manual, time-intensive processes. Finance teams relied heavily on manual receipt collection, journal entries, and reconciliation while month-end close processes were time-consuming. Interviewees said it often took 40 hours per month or more and required chasing down receipts, coding expenses by hand, and manually uploading data into accounting systems. Moreover, finance teams managing hundreds of transactions across multiple departments and locations were stretched thin with limited automation or ERP integration.
Delayed reimbursements and employee frustration. Employees who used personal funds for business expenses often waited weeks for reimbursement, which created dissatisfaction — especially in field-based roles where purchases were frequent and time-sensitive. A financial analyst at an education/nonprofit organization said it previously took 10 to 14 days to do reimbursements by check.
The interviewees searched for a solution that could:
Enhance visibility, control, and employee accountability.
Streamline and modernize expense management.
Increase operational efficiency.
Optimize cash flow, security, and financial flexibility.
Based on the interviews, Forrester constructed a TEI framework, a composite company, and a benefits analysis that illustrates the areas financially affected. The composite organization is representative of the six interviewees’ five organizations, and it is used to present the aggregate financial analysis in the next section. The composite organization has the following characteristics:
Description of composite. The organization is a US-based, industry-agnostic organization that generates $25 million in annual revenue. It has a workforce of 130 employees and a year-over-year growth rate of 25%. The finance function consists of five team members, three of whom are dedicated to accounts payable.
Deployment characteristics. The composite deploys PEX to 85 employees. Of those, 65 use PEX physical and virtual corporate cards for expenses (e.g., travel and entertainment, fuel, purchasing), while 20 utilize prepaid cards to support contractors, freelancers, and occasional field use cases. The organization implements PEX and uses its core and advanced suite of features including funding scheduler, batch funding and AI-driven insights and automation.
$25 million revenue
25% annual growth
130 employees
85 PEX cardholders
3 FTEs manage bill pay
$145,000 monthly PEX spend
| Ref. | Benefit | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Total | Present Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atr | Employee time savings from PEX automation tools | $258,660 | $315,360 | $388,260 | $962,280 | $787,479 |
| Btr | Increased efficiency for the finance team during fiscal closing process | $18,240 | $18,240 | $18,240 | $54,720 | $45,360 |
| Ctr | Avoided costs of hires | $84,240 | $84,240 | $84,240 | $252,720 | $209,492 |
| Dtr | Increased return from rewards program | $11,400 | $11,400 | $11,400 | $34,200 | $28,350 |
| Total benefits (risk-adjusted) | $372,540 | $429,240 | $502,140 | $1,303,920 | $1,070,681 |
Evidence and data. Interviewees reported significant time savings across their finance teams and broader workforces after the adoption of PEX. They cited benefits such as centralized access to spend data, real-time transaction visibility, simplified reporting, and mobile receipt uploads. Interviewees said PEX reduced the need for accounting teams to chase down receipts, manually code expenses, and perform time-intensive reconciliation, and several said their company experienced double-digit growth due in part to improving operational efficiency.
Interviewees explained that PEX made receipt reconciliation and consolidation faster, more accurate, and more reliable. They said mobile uploads and real-time syncing improved visibility into transactions while AI and automation features (e.g., receipt capture, Auto Tagger, Auto Enforcer, auto approvals) enabled accounting teams to shift focus to higher-value analysis. A financial analyst at an education/nonprofit organization described: “[Before using PEX,] people would bring down the receipts, copy them, and put them in a folder. We would compile everything, code [the receipts] on a piece of paper, scan them into our ERP system, and kind of account for them that way.”
A director of production accounting at a media/entertainment company explained: “To reconcile one person’s petty cash entirely, it would easily take two to three weeks. … probably, like, 24 to 27 hours in total. … And for [some bank credit cards], reconciling one person’s account [would take] about 10 hours for accountants and 4 to 5 hours for employees.”
PEX automation features helped ensure compliance without constant manual follow-up. Interviewees reported reducing what had been a full-time task to just a few hours per week. A controller at a construction firm explained that Auto Enforcer automatically reminds employees to upload missing receipts after five days, which eliminates the need for manual tracking and follow-up.
A finance manager at another construction company shared that prior to implementing auto approval and Auto Enforcer, their team had multiple staff members “sporadically” in the system to manually approve expenses on a daily basis. They said, “It probably got to be close to a full-time job for us or one FTE.” PEX improved efficiency by streamlining the process of reviewing reports, which now takes a few hours per week.
Interviewees also described the batch processing feature of PEX as a major time saver that enabled their organizations to simultaneously fund multiple cards in minutes. An accounts payable manager at a healthcare organization explained, “Once we figured out how to batch fund in the app, it was a game changer because we’re able to go in there and, literally [within] 10 to 15 minutes, you’ve got all the cards funded.”
Interviewees said employees in field-based roles (e.g., teachers, construction crews, production teams) also saved time through simplified expense reporting and receipt submission.
Previously, these employees were responsible for manually collecting and submitting receipts, and they often faced delays, lost documentation, and extended reconciliation cycles. These challenges were amplified in remote environments where limited access to office systems made it difficult to resolve discrepancies. A director of production accounting at a media/entertainment company noted, “Both the employee and the accounting team could each spend 24 to 27 hours per person reconciling petty cash.” And A financial analyst at an education/nonprofit organization added, “Resolution often required vendor outreach, email searches, and even physical return trips to the point of purchase.”
Interviewees said PEX allows users to upload receipts directly from their phones, tag expenses in real time, and avoid manual paperwork. A financial analyst at an education/nonprofit organization shared, “One teacher was able to learn the PEX system within minutes and praised its ease of use.” And a controller at a construction company noted, “Construction workers no longer need to come into the office to submit receipts, streamlining operations in the field.” In production environments, reconciliation time for employees dropped from several hours to minutes per transaction, which allowed them to focus more on core responsibilities.
Modeling and assumptions. Based on the interviews, Forrester assumes the following about the composite organization:
The composite operates with a finance team of five employees, including three who manage accounts payable.
With PEX automation tools, each accounts payable FTE realizes 20 hours of time savings per month, which totals 720 hours per year and translates to a 13% productivity gain.
The organization grows at a rate of 25% year-over-year.
Prior to using PEX, the composite’s employees were responsible for locating and organizing receipts, contacting vendors for reprints, and coordinating with accounts payable to resolve missing or mismatched transactions.
In Year 1, 85 employees outside of finance begin leveraging the PEX expense submission process to replace manual workflows.
As employee headcount increases, the number of these PEX users rises to 133 in Year 3.
These employees save an average of 5 hours per month, which totals 7,980 hours in Year 3.
Between the accounts payable managers and non-finance employees who use PEX, the composite saves a total of 8,700 hours in Year 3.
Risks. The realization of these benefits will vary with:
The number of employees dedicated to accounts payable.
The extent of the organization’s PEX feature implementation.
The total number of PEX cards issued.
Employee headcount and growth.
Organizational complexity and geographic distribution.
Salary levels by skill set and geographic location.
Results. To account for these risks, Forrester adjusted this benefit downward by 10%, yielding a three-year, risk-adjusted total PV (discounted at 10%) of $788,000.
Time savings for all PEX users in Year 3
| Ref. | Metric | Source | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A1 | Employees who manage accounts payable (FTEs) | Composite | 3 | 3 | 3 | |
| A2 | Monthly time saved from receipt reconciliation and consolidation (hours) | Interviews | 8 | 8 | 8 | |
| A3 | Monthly time saved with Auto Tagger and auto approvals (hours) | Interviews | 6 | 6 | 6 | |
| A4 | Monthly time saved with Auto Enforcer (hours) | Interviews | 5 | 5 | 5 | |
| A5 | Monthly time saved with batch processing (hours) | Interviews | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| A6 | Total monthly time saved per accounts payable specialist (hours) | A2+A3+A4+A5 | 20 | 20 | 20 | |
| A7 | Total time saved by the accounts payable team per year | A1*A6*12 | 720 | 720 | 720 | |
| A8 | Fully loaded, blended hourly rate per accounts payable specialist | Composite | $45 | $45 | $45 | |
| A9 | Subtotal: Savings from time saved by accounts payable associates | A7*A8 | $32,400 | $32,400 | $32,400 | |
| A10 | Employees not in finance who use PEX (FTEs) | Composite | 85 | 106 | 133 | |
| A11 | Monthly time saved from receipt consolidation per employee who uses PEX (hours) | Interviews | 5 | 5 | 5 | |
| A12 | Total time saved by employees who use PEX per year | A10*A11*12 | 5,100 | 6,360 | 7,980 | |
| A13 | Fully loaded, blended hourly rate per employee who uses PEX | Composite | $50 | $50 | $50 | |
| A14 | Subtotal: Savings from time saved by PEX card holders | A12*A13 | $255,000 | $318,000 | $399,000 | |
| At | Employee time savings from PEX automation tools | A9+A14 | $287,400 | $350,400 | $431,400 | |
| Risk adjustment | ↓10% | |||||
| Atr | Employee time savings from PEX automation tools (risk-adjusted) | $258,660 | $315,360 | $388,260 | ||
| Three-year total: $962,280 | Three-year present value: $787,479 | |||||
Evidence and data. Interviewees across industries said controllers and finance managers reported that PEX transformed their close processes from manual, error-prone, and time-consuming to automated, streamlined, and auditable.
Interviewees explained that prior to adopting PEX, the month-end close process was cumbersome and time-consuming. A finance manager at a construction company shared: “Being able to close the monthly books and even being able to have all the transactions, all the receipts, and everything [needed] to close was old-school; everything was done manually.” But an accounts payable specialist at the company said that after implementing PEX, the process became significantly more efficient: “Now I literally just click the button and send the report and I’m done.”
Interviewees also highlighted challenges in accurately categorizing expenses across multiple divisions and geographically disbursed job sites. Misallocated expenses, often tagged to closed projects, led to distorted financial reports and costly overpayments. A controller at a construction firm said: “We might have expenses not get coded to the correct job. We might not get receipts attached to the transactions and then get a sales tax audit and have to pay taxes on them, tax on tax, and the interest and fee.”
Interviewees said PEX’s tagging functionality and direct ERP integration enabled their organizations to sync job codes and expense categories in real time. They explained that this prevented users from tagging transactions as inactive or projects as closed, which improved accuracy while reducing the time spent correcting errors during close. These capabilities contributed to faster close cycles, enhanced transparency, and ensured compliance.
Modeling and assumptions. Based on the interviews, Forrester assumes the following about the composite organization:
The composite’s controller and CFO oversee both the month-end and year-end close process.
By leveraging PEX’s automation tools, each saves 8 hours per month.
Risks. The optimization of this benefit will vary with:
The number of employees dedicated to month-end and year-end closings.
The extent of the organization’s Auto Tagger implementation and ERP systems integration.
Organizational complexity and geographic distribution.
Salary levels by skill set and geographic location.
Results. To account for these risks, Forrester adjusted this benefit downward by 5%, yielding a three-year, risk-adjusted total PV (discounted at 10%) of $45,000.
Monthly time savings per finance team member during close cycles
| Ref. | Metric | Source | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| B1 | Finance team FTEs | Composite | 2 | 2 | 2 | |
| B2 | Monthly time saved per finance team FTE (hours) | Interviews | 8 | 8 | 8 | |
| B3 | Fully loaded, blended hourly rate per finance team FTE | Composite | $100 | $100 | $100 | |
| Bt | Increased efficiency for the finance team during fiscal closing process | B1*B2*B3*12 | $19,200 | $19,200 | $19,200 | |
| Risk adjustment | ↓5% | |||||
| Btr | Increased efficiency for the finance team during fiscal closing process (risk-adjusted) | $18,240 | $18,240 | $18,240 | ||
| Three-year total: $54,720 | Three-year present value: $45,360 | |||||
Evidence and data. Interviewees reported that PEX enabled their organizations to maintain lean finance teams as their companies scaled. Some said their organization doubled in headcount or expanded across multiple divisions and geographic regions. But they explained that AI-powered automation features (e.g., Auto Tagger, Auto Enforcer) reduced manual effort and improved compliance, which allowed teams to avoid hiring additional staff despite increasing transaction volumes and complexity.
A finance manager at a construction firm estimated the company saved the equivalent of one to two FTEs annually, which enabled it to support growth without expanding headcount. A financial analyst at an education/nonprofit organization noted: “That’s 10 hours of my salary that’s being saved [that can be] utilized somewhere else.” The interviewees said these efficiencies allowed finance teams to shift focus from manual tasks to strategic initiatives while maintaining transparency, accuracy, and compliance.
Modeling and assumptions. Based on the interviews, Forrester assumes the following about the composite organization:
The composite’s headcount grows by 25% annually and transaction volume increases proportionally.
Due to the PEX platform, the composite avoids hiring one accounts payable specialist during each year of the three-year analysis period.
Risks. The optimization of this benefit will vary with:
The organization’s growth rate and number of employees.
The size of the organization’s finance team.
The organization’s dedication to PEX and the speed with which it adopts the platform.
Salary levels by skill set and geographic location.
Results. To account for these risks, Forrester adjusted this benefit downward by 10%, yielding a three-year, risk-adjusted total PV (discounted at 10%) of $209,000.
Avoided cost of hires over three years
| Ref. | Metric | Source | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C1 | Avoided FTE hires for the finance team | Interviews | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| C2 | Fully loaded, blended salary for a finance team FTE | Composite | $93,600 | $93,600 | $93,600 | |
| Ct | Avoided costs due to improved system automation and control | C1*C2 | $93,600 | $93,600 | $93,600 | |
| Risk adjustment | ↓10% | |||||
| Ctr | Avoided costs of hires (risk-adjusted) | $84,240 | $84,240 | $84,240 | ||
| Three-year total: $252,720 | Three-year present value: $209,492 | |||||
Evidence and data. Interviewees’ organizations varied in their use of PEX cards, including whether they used prepaid, charge, virtual cards or a combination, and interviewees said they believe the 1% monthly rebate for qualified purchases is a valuable financial benefit of PEX.
Before adopting PEX, most of the organizations relied on traditional credit cards that didn’t offer meaningful or any rewards or rebates, and several interviewees expressed frustration with card platforms, citing lack of ERP integration, outdated systems, and cumbersome reconciliation processes.
A financial analyst at an education/nonprofit organization noted: “With the previous system, we really wouldn’t get any rewards or rebates back. … So, it’s just kind of like we’re spending money and not getting anything back from the provider. Their system was very outdated, and you couldn’t really have any integration between our ERP and their system at all.”
Interviewees from organizations with high monthly spend of around $400,000 or more (e.g., those in the construction or media/entertainment industries) noted that the monthly rebate meaningfully contributes to the company’s bottom line.
Modeling and assumptions. Based on the interviews, Forrester assumes the composite organization incurs $100,000 in monthly spend through physical and virtual corporate cards that cover expenses (travel and expense, fuel) and purchases made at both headquarters and field offices.
Risks. The optimization of this benefit will depend on the organization’s total monthly qualifying spend with PEX corporate cards.
Results. To account for these risks, Forrester adjusted this benefit downward by 5%, yielding a three-year, risk-adjusted total PV (discounted at 10%) of $28,000.
Increased return from rewards programs over the three-year analysis period
| Ref. | Metric | Source | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| D1 | Average qualifying spend with PEX | Composite | $1,200,000 | $1,200,000 | $1,200,000 | |
| D2 | Reward return rate | Composite | 1% | 1% | 1% | |
| Dt | Increased return from rewards program | D1*D2 | $12,000 | $12,000 | $12,000 | |
| Risk adjustment | ↓5% | |||||
| Dtr | Increased return from rewards program (risk-adjusted) | $11,400 | $11,400 | $11,400 | ||
| Three-year total: $34,200 | Three-year present value: $28,350 | |||||
Interviewees mentioned the following additional benefits that their organizations experienced but were not able to quantify:
Improved real-time visibility into transactions. PEX’s real-time tracking and customizable spend controls enhanced visibility and enabled faster issue detection, which interviewees said helped their organizations reduce unnecessary costs. A financial analyst at an education/non-profit organization stated, “The visibility for people to see their limits very easily, having the app there, being able to request funds when they need it, being able to see the transactions in real time …there was no real way for anyone in the past to actually see anything.”
Finance teams can monitor usage by cardholder, enforce limits, and ensure receipts are submitted promptly, resulting in fewer errors and better documentation. For example, one customer reported saving $1,300 by catching an unnecessary truck registration expense due to a declined transaction.
Enhanced accountability. PEX shifts financial accountability to employees, leading to more mindful spending by providing visibility into transactions, limits, and compliance status. An accounts payable manager at a healthcare company explained, “You make people be held a little bit more accountable because it’s not just a swipe of a card for a company. Now you’re actually having to use that card within a pre-funded limit and really itemize your own things that you’re doing.”
Strong partnership. PEX’s customer support is consistently praised for its responsiveness and reliability. Weekly check-ins with account managers help teams resolve issues quickly and explore new features. The platform’s adaptability, whether syncing with ERP systems or supporting remote crews, is seen as a strong differentiator, particularly with blue-collar teams and non-technical users. This “strong partnership” enables organizations to scale confidently, knowing their financial operations are backed by a secure, dependable and evolving platform.
Improved employee satisfaction and peace of mind. PEX has an intuitive interface and user-friendly mobile app, which makes everyday tasks like uploading receipts, tagging expenses, and checking balances remarkably simple, requiring minimal training. A finance manager at a construction firm noted, “[It took us] 10 minutes. It is very, very simple for our everyday employees. They're bombarded in a full day's worth of training. PEX is one of our easiest ones.”
Finance teams also reported a greater sense of control and reduced stress. As a director of production accounting noted, “PEX has also brought a good amount of peace of mind with dealing with funds available to [employees] and how we can remove the funds should we need to.”
The value of flexibility is unique to each customer. There are multiple scenarios in which a customer might implement PEX and later realize additional uses and business opportunities, including:
Enhanced data access and reporting capabilities. Organizations experience greater flexibility in accessing and analyzing data in a more meaningful way. Interviewees noted that PEX enables the finance team to pull transaction data by cardholder, spend category, and total amount, facilitating more meaningful analysis with less manual effort. An accounts payable specialist at a construction firm emphasized, “One of the biggest values of PEX is just being able to get the information from the field to our accounting system because we have so many employees in remote locations.”
Scalability to support organizational growth. PEX scales seamlessly with expanding teams, maintaining consistent workflows and controls whether managing 50 or 200 users. As an accounts payable specialist at a construction company stated, “PEX has been just a great partner with us and growing with us.” As organizations doubled or tripled in size, PEX adapted without requiring additional headcount, enabling finance teams to maintain oversight and agility amid increasing operational complexity.
Flexibility would also be quantified when evaluated as part of a specific project (described in more detail in Total Economic Impact Approach).
From the information provided in the interviews, Forrester constructed a Total Economic Impact™ framework for those organizations considering an investment in PEX.
The objective of the framework is to identify the benefit, flexibility, and risk factors that affect the investment decision. Forrester took a multistep approach to evaluate the impact that PEX can have on an organization.
Interviewed PEX stakeholders and Forrester analysts to gather data relative to PEX.
Interviewed six decision-makers at organizations using PEX to obtain data about benefits and risks.
Designed a composite organization based on characteristics of the interviewees’ organizations.
Constructed a financial model representative of the interviews using the TEI methodology and risk-adjusted the financial model based on issues and concerns of the interviewees.
Employed fundamental elements of TEI in modeling the investment impact: benefits, flexibility, and risks. Given the increasing sophistication of financial analyses related to IT investments, Forrester’s TEI methodology provides a complete picture of the total economic impact of purchase decisions. Please see Appendix A for additional information on the TEI methodology.
Benefits represent the value the solution delivers to the business.
Flexibility represents the strategic value that can be obtained for some future additional investment building on top of the initial investment already made. The ability to capture that benefit has a PV that can be estimated.
Risks measure the uncertainty of benefit estimates given: 1) the likelihood that estimates will meet original projections and 2) the likelihood that estimates will be tracked over time. TEI risk factors are based on “triangular distribution.”
The present or current value of (discounted) benefit estimates given at an interest rate (the discount rate).
The interest rate used in cash flow analysis to take into account the time value of money. Organizations typically use discount rates between 8% and 16%.
Total Economic Impact is a methodology developed by Forrester Research that enhances a company’s technology decision-making processes and assists solution providers in communicating their value proposition to clients. The TEI methodology helps companies demonstrate, justify, and realize the tangible value of business and technology initiatives to both senior management and other key stakeholders.
Readers should be aware of the following:
This study is commissioned by PEX and delivered by Forrester Consulting. It is not meant to be used as a competitive analysis.
Forrester makes no assumptions as to the potential benefits that other organizations will receive. Forrester strongly advises that readers use their own estimates within the framework provided in the study to determine the appropriateness of an investment in PEX.
PEX reviewed and provided feedback to Forrester, but Forrester maintains editorial control over the study and its findings and does not accept changes to the study that contradict Forrester’s findings or obscure the meaning of the study.
PEX provided the customer names for the interviews but did not participate in the interviews.
Lalé Varoglu
October 2025
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