In a scenario of high operational demand, small entrepreneurs have sought smarter solutions to ensure the long-term sustainability of your business, within the budgets possible within a context of limited budgets.
A survey conducted by Instituto Locomotiva conducted by Itaú Empresas points out that 90% of leaders of SMEs (small and medium-sized companies) say they have some or a lot of difficulty in the macro and competitive scenario, in growth and innovation and financial management.
to reduce bureaucracy and make better use of employee time, to more flexible financing models to enable imports without compromising stocks and budgets, companies such as Dr.consulta, D4Sign, Olist and Vixtra point out practical ways to strengthen management.
Cash flow optimization for importers
In Brazil, small and medium-sized companies face structural barriers when managing their cash flow: these are obstacles that limit their ability to grow and compete.
While impact funds and credit programs seek to strengthen micro and small companies, a segment that is even less discussed in the national debate is that of small companies that import, which account for an important portion of the supply chain and the diversification of retail offerings.
In this context, Vixtra emerges as a specific financial solution for this niche. Unlike traditional credit lines, the platform offers financing for imports using the cargo itself in transit as collateral, reducing the need for fixed assets or traditional guarantees and accelerating access to capital.
For many customers, this model means greater purchasing and planning capacity: according to operational data, companies from different segments that adopted these solutions doubled the volume of imported items in four years.
Experts point out that credit mechanisms that are more adjusted to the reality of importers can have a direct impact on the competitiveness of small entrepreneurs in foreign trade and domestic retail.
According to Leonardo Baltieri, founder of Vixtra and co-CEO, importing into Brazil is challenging.
“Small and medium-sized companies are stuck due to a lack of adequate credit and predictable cash flow to import”, he says.
Accessible contract management and digitalization
When talking about sustainable growth, it is essential to have strategies that help to structure processes consistently. A survey conducted by McKinsey & Company shows that the digitalization of demands can reduce the time needed to perform repetitive tasks by up to 90%.
In practice, reduce manual activities and save time for what matters most: strategy and customer relationships.
In this context, platforms such as D4Sign by Zucchetti, a Brazilian electronic and digital signature platform, show that it is possible to optimize document management without bureaucracy or high costs.
With the support of artificial intelligence resources, in addition to the digitization and automation of the contract signing and management stages, entrepreneurs reduce rework, guarantee the legal legitimacy of information and make teams more productive, creating a more solid basis for consistent decisions and long-term sustainable growth.
According to its founder and CEO, Rafael Figueiredo, with the support of technology and artificial intelligence, the processes of generating insights for decision-making are increasingly guided by strategic data.
“This reduces the time it takes to sign contracts, speeds up negotiations and allows entrepreneurs to focus on business growth, generating more consistent results for partners”, he comments.
Health
For a long time, health benefits were seen as something exclusive to large institutions. Today, companies like Dr.consulta prove that with affordable, efficient and sustainable solutions for your business.
The corporate card service, for example, allows patients to make more appointments, use more services and maintain a more constant care routine at an affordable cost for companies, compared to the traditional private model.
Gabriela Zaninetti, CGMO of the platform, uses the demand from patients with chronic illnesses as an example.
“The data shows that, when the cost barrier is reduced, care increases significantly. We saw consultations grow by 85% and exams, by 135%, reflecting not only more access, but earlier diagnoses and greater adherence to treatments”, he states.
According to the executive, acquiring the card can generate savings of up to 90% for companies, reaching 88% in the model applied by Dr.consulta, which makes it accessible even for small businesses, which represent 93.6% of companies active in Brazil.
The business version can be up to 50% cheaper than the individual card, guaranteeing savings of over 80% for both companies and employees.
“Giving access to healthcare means allowing companies to take care of their teams with predictability and economy, while employees receive quality care without compromising the budget”, concludes Zaninetti.
Integrated management, automation and competitiveness for SMEs
Regardless of the sector, small and medium-sized companies face similar structural challenges to maintain business sustainability: selling across multiple channels, controlling cash flow, organizing orders, issuing invoices, managing logistics and ensuring that the operation works in an integrated manner.
As the business grows, the company’s financial and operational health is affected.
In this context, Olist, an ecosystem of solutions for SMEs, works to connect all these fronts in an integrated operation, allowing entrepreneurs to have a unified view of the business.
By centralizing sales, financial management, logistics, payments and access to credit in a single environment, the company helps small businesses gain efficiency, reduce errors and make more strategic decisions, especially in phases of growth and scale.
According to Felippe Galeb, CPO at Olist, the competitiveness of SMEs necessarily depends on the integration and intelligent use of technology.
“Every SME, regardless of the sector, faces basic challenges to operate: selling, controlling finances, organizing orders, issuing notes, taking care of logistics and keeping the company running. Today, systems that automate these pains and generate insights are fundamental for any level of competitiveness.”, he says,
“The problem is that many companies solve these demands in isolation, with tools that do not connect. When the operation starts to scale, this generates rework, more costs, errors and loss of business visibility.”
For the executive, the next level of maturity lies in the total integration of the operation and the use of automation and artificial intelligence as efficiency levers.
“Automation and artificial intelligence transform this data into more assertive decisions, increasing operational efficiency and creating solid foundations for long-term sustainability”, adds Galeb.
