Workiva Reviews and Ratings

Rating: 8.1 out of 10

Score

8.1 out of 10

Community insights

TrustRadius Insights for Workiva are summaries of user sentiment data from TrustRadius reviews and, when necessary, third party data sources.

Business Problems Solved

Wdesk has become an indispensable tool for various teams within the company. The Financial Reporting team relies on Wdesk to file important documents such as the company's 10-K and 10-Qs, while the Legal department uses it for filing Proxy Statements. Additionally, Internal Reporting finds Wdesk useful for filing quarterly press release 8Ks. The program's permissions feature allows for seamless collaboration and input from different departments on each document. As a result, users have expanded its use to involve other groups like Treasury and Legal for their unique filings. While its primary focus is SEC filings, Wdesk is slowly being incorporated into areas such as Certifications and SOX. Users have been utilizing Wdesk for over two years and greatly appreciate the product as a whole, as well as the company's commitment to excellence and transparency in customer service.

With Wdesk's secure cloud-based platform, capturing, preparing, and aggregating financial data from various sources has become effortless. Users have the ability to create and model reports and analyses tailored to their specific needs, all linked to the relevant data. This versatility makes Wdesk an ideal choice for Annual Reports and SEC filings. However, some users have encountered compatibility issues with Word and Excel 2007, as well as challenges related to syncing and file formats. To complement their workflow, certain users have integrated Microsoft Teams alongside Wdesk. The Global Financial Reporting Team relies on Wdesk to prepare essential documents like Earnings Releases, Form 10-Ks, Form 10-Qs, and IFRS financial statements. As other departments witness its potential in streamlining processes such as document control and consistent financial reporting, there is increasing encouragement for wider adoption of Wdesk throughout the organization. Notably, external auditors and legal counsel also utilize Wdesk to review filings and provide valuable feedback.

The benefits of using Wdesk extend beyond financial reporting alone; it also plays a pivotal role in the company's SOX program and serves as the go-to financial reporting tool. Users particularly appreciate Wdesk for its cloud-based functionality, real-time reporting capabilities, and ease of creating tables. By leveraging Wdesk, the financial reporting team has successfully reduced errors and improved productivity in updating financial statements, eliminating the need for manual processes and mitigating inconsistencies. This time-saving aspect is highly valued by users. Overall, Wdesk has proven to be a reliable solution that enhances collaboration, simplifies data management, and empowers teams to deliver accurate and timely financial reports.

Reviews

11 Reviews

No more manual tie outs, saves a ton of time!

Rating: 6 out of 10

Incentivized

October 26, 2022

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

Used Wdesk to create and update financial statements and other similar documents. It made it easier to update a single set of financials and have the numbers linked throughout the document, so an update in one area would lead to a refresh in all other areas the same tagged number was referenced. Previously, this would have been a very manual process, and things could have easily been missed leading to inconsistencies within the same document for the same number.

Pros

Linking Numbers.
Updating Numbers.
User Interface.

Cons

Tagging takes a while to get the hang of.
Customer support feels light.
Lag when switching between pages.

Likelihood to Recommend

Wdesk is great for companies that are publishing lengthy financial statements or similar documents where the same numbers will be referenced in multiple places. With Wdesk, you can load your financials directly to the tool and mark what numbers tie to which part and know that they will always be updated.

Verified User

Employee in Finance and Accounting (501-1000 employees)

Vetted Review

1 year of experience

Review of Wdesk SOX Platform

Rating: 7 out of 10

Incentivized

July 18, 2022

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We use Wdesk for our SOX program. The platform is also used as the financial reporting tool in my company.

Pros

Wdesk is pretty user friendly and easy to learn.
Service hotline is responsive.
The software is not pricy.

Cons

The automation could be better. A lot of mass updates are done manually.
Sometimes the system has connection issues and certain functions are down.
The customer service could be more proactive to provide regular training and sharing updates on the software.
Customer service could be better to help process the mass updates in a timely fashion.

Likelihood to Recommend

Whenever I have an issue using the software, the service hotline is very helpful to have a real person help with the issue.

Verified User

Employee in Finance and Accounting (1001-5000 employees)

Vetted Review

2 years of experience

Avoid WORKIVA is not what they advertise

Rating: 2 out of 10

May 26, 2022

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We used it for Annual Reports and SEC filing. we are a mining company Problems: word and excel version 2007 very limited, force to redo all waterfalls, graphs, tables, etc. SYNC is a problem, very limited, unresponsive software creates massive files, once exported the format gets destroyed in WORD, creating duplicated files, once imported an EXCEL file loses all graphs, 99% of formulas, and all graphs. as you sync and made edits, you end up with 2 versions of the file. WORST experience ever. Microsoft TEAMs is being by far WORKIVA

Pros

have a structure to follow
Involves the user on determined tasks
Basic editing of documents WORD 2007

Cons

Upgrade WORD and EXCEL 2007 to have same functionality of normall OFFICE 365
Do not destroy the EXCEL files imported, deleting all PIVOTs and GRAPHS
not available switch between UPPERCASE and lowercase
not available Search and replace ALL
not available redo format
not available to do graphs in EXCEL
not available elaborated FORMULAS, only very basic like sums
not available DESKTOP version
SYNC only works one way
Exported WORD files are massive and version 2007
not available PDF viewer

Likelihood to Recommend

Only appropriate for basic tables and scenarios. very difficult to do graphs, forced to work double and re-do things, all editing tools very basic. SYNC tool destroys edited and formatted text. force to redo. once typing or editing loses connection and you are forced to re-do it again, over and over again. for SEC filing is a total nightmare huge files and once you save the file in your normal WORD all gets destroyed and you are forced to redo it, ending with 2 versions

Antonio Umpire

Group Manager Resource Estimation & Reporting in Corporate at Sibanye-Stillwater (10,001+ employees)

Vetted Review

1 year of experience

View profile

Best in-class for SEC reporting

Rating: 9 out of 10

Incentivized

March 29, 2021

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We use Wdesk for our SEC reporting and for our internal controls (SOX) processes. As such, Wdesk is localized within use of the Finance/Accounting and Internal Audit teams, though there may be interest to increase its use to other departments based on needs/wants. We also have Wdesk used by our external auditors and our legal counsel to review filings and to leave comments/ make redline changes before we finalize documents.

Pros

Integrated Financial Reporting (especially SEC reporting) for less manual work.
Section 16 filings.
SEC filings (preparing and filing SEC documents internally, instead of using a printer).
Security and safeguarding sensitive non-public information.
Continual product improvement and product investment.

Cons

Better out-of-the-box templates for best-in-class reporting and other needs.
Better organization of files within Wdesk.
Better integration of SOX and SEC activities.

Likelihood to Recommend

Wdesk is best suited for companies with demanding SEC filings and documents, with multiple revisions due to auditor/counsel review, and where financial reporting is extremely manual. Wdesk really helps take out the potential errors out of extremely manual processes, and helps automate regular financial reporting by allowing companies to link financial information and build customized flows of their information into financial statements and other documents (such as presentations or other internal reporting).

Verified User

Director in Finance and Accounting (501-1000 employees)

Vetted Review

3 years of experience

Data management isn't a big deal now.

Rating: 8 out of 10

Incentivized

September 25, 2020

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

It controls all the obstacles that come up during documentation, making spreadsheets, or preparing presentations because of its ability to handle cloud-based functionality. The real-time reporting feature makes it easy to track all our project activities. All kinds of risks can be tackled easily and control over each part of a project can easily be gained. Documents remain confidential and only authorized persons can view them. Tables can be created easily and the help section is very approachable.

Pros

Project management
Documentation
Real-time tracking
Effective & progressive reporting capablities
Data stays relevant and easy to understand

Cons

Limitations to spreadsheet formulas
Basic design (User Interface)
Works slow sometimes
Lacks few creative options
Excel formulas are limited to an extent

Likelihood to Recommend

Wdesk is best suited in project management as it provides real-time tracking. Also, it's best suited for documentation processes because there is no fear of losing the data due to its cloud-based capabilities. Task management also works flawlessly and a list of tasks can be created from the required data.

Verified User

Analyst in Quality Assurance (501-1000 employees)

Vetted Review

1 year of experience

Wdesk is a great financial reporting and compliance solution.

Rating: 10 out of 10

Incentivized

September 18, 2020

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We have been using the Wdesk software for just over two years, and we love the product as a whole and the company's level of excellence and transparency in customer service. The tool is used by some departments of the company, including ours. Wdesk is a cloud platform and with it, financial data is easily captured, prepared, and aggregated from different sources on a secure cloud-based platform, without complex configuration. I as a user create and model easily and without complications reports and analyzes linked to data for what we need, when, and where it is needed.

Pros

Incredible support from Workiva and always bringing news and improving the product through community feedback.
I think the product is easy to use, has a friendly interface and we feel safe to use it.
Quick business vision and improved decision making with the help of software with real-time reports.
Exceptional support service, very fast and they help you with everything you need and are super helpful.

Cons

The price is a little expensive.
I don't see anything negative or against this software anymore.

Likelihood to Recommend

The experience with using Wdesk has been incredible. It is easy to use, especially for making XBRL marking. We have a business vision quickly, and we can make more conscious and improved decisions with the help of software with financial reports in real-time. When there are changes, everything is updated automatically and without headaches and human interference. Best of all, it's all in the cloud, and reports can be accessed and modified from anywhere, at work, at home, and we access them from the PC and smartphone as well.

Maria Luis Ribeiro

Engenheiro de software in Information Technology at Bradesco (10,001+ employees)

Vetted Review

2 years of experience

View profile

Great tool if you have bandwidth for the implementation

Rating: 8 out of 10

Incentivized

September 18, 2020

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

Used to quickly update financial statements for our financial reporting team, reducing errors and improving productivity. It helps departments across the company reduce errors by allowing certain fields to be auto-updated throughout once the financial statements are updated. Previously, we used Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint and would end up spending hours manually fixing formatting when small updates were made to a write-up or table, but that all comes together much more quickly with Wdesk.

Pros

Formatting
Universal updates

Cons

Difficult to implement

Likelihood to Recommend

It’s an excellent tool, reducing your need to spend hours reformatting financial statements or carrying through changes quarter over quarter. If you’re going to purchase, it does require a full-time implementation team but is well worth it in the long run. It can also be used across teams for those that depend on financial statement information to populate presentations or other documents (for example, offering memorandums).

Verified User

Project Manager in Information Technology (51-200 employees)

Vetted Review

1 year of experience

Wdesk works well for collaboration on all of our company's filings

Rating: 8 out of 10

Incentivized

March 2, 2018

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We've implemented Wdesk in several departments in our organization. Our Financial Reporting team uses Wdesk to file the company's 10-K and 10-Qs. Legal uses it to file the Proxy Statement, and Internal Reporting uses it to file our quarterly press release 8Ks. We manage interdepartmental input on each document through permissions in the program.

Pros

The biggest strength of the program for our team is that multiple users can work in the document at the same time. Multiple users can be in the program updating financial statements, footnotes, MD&A - all without stepping on each other's toes.
Rolling forward the documents from one period to the next is pretty simple. Links to source documents are maintained and new ones can be added without much hassle.
Edits and changes can be made right up until the last minute before filing. There is no waiting period or pencils-down period unless we enforce one ourselves - the Financial Reporting team is in control of the timing of our filings.

Cons

The links to source data and XBRL tags cannot be maintained if you cut a section of one footnote and paste it into another footnote. This function does exist if you want to COPY and paste - but if you want to cut a section out of a footnote and paste it into a different one, you'll have to re-link the text to source data and re-add the XBRL tags.
Once your links have been created in a footnote, you can't remove multiple links at the same time. So if you want to remove an entire paragraph that has already been linked and tagged from a footnote, you'll have to go into that paragraph and manually delete each link before you can delete the paragraph.

Likelihood to Recommend

Wdesk is great for companies in which several employees or departments touch filing data simultaneously. If you want to have one set of data for your 10-Qs, 10-Ks, press releases, and proxy statements, and you want your Reporting, Legal, HR, and Internal Relations teams to be able to access all of it at the same time, Wdesk is a GREAT product. To maximize the program's capabilities, you'll want to take advantage of the linking functionality with your source data (that's what we're ensuring is happening in the periods between our filings). If you're in a company that only has one or two people on your reporting team, and those employees don't have the time to properly set up links using the source data, this program could be overwhelming.

Erin Crossland

Financial Reporting Lead in Finance and Accounting at The Mosaic Company (5001-10,000 employees)

Vetted Review

3 years of experience

View profile

Wdesk is a must have software for all Financial Reporting Teams

Rating: 10 out of 10

Incentivized

October 23, 2017

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

Our Global Financial Reporting Team currently uses Wdesk to help prepare our Earnings Release, Form 10-K, Form 10-Q, and IFRS financial statements. We are currently in the process of encouraging other departments to start using Wdesk as we see the incredible potential in the software and how it can help various processes. It helps address issues such as document control, consistent financial reporting, permission control, etc.

Pros

Customer Service
User-Friendly
Reliability

Cons

Pricing

Likelihood to Recommend

Well suited for financial reporting or any other process throughout an organization that involves multiple layers of review and version control of documents formatted in Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, or Excel products.

Kalynne Cuza, CPA

Senior Accountant in Manufacturing at Carnival Corporation (10,001+ employees)

Vetted Review

3 years of experience

View profile

Wdesk - Harness the Power

Rating: 10 out of 10

Incentivized

October 17, 2017

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

I have been using Wdesk for SEC filings and just recently, involving other groups such as Treasury and Legal to use for their own unique filings such as registration related documents, conflict minerals, proxy etc, . The primary focus is SEC filings but with the recent implementation of Certifications, we are expanding the use of Wdesk in other areas, slowly but surely. Our goal is to expand the use of the Wdesk platform for other important functions such as SOX.

Pros

Data integrity, Using work books to source the same data into various sections of a document is the best feature of Wdesk. The excel like feel of a workbook only makes it even more simple in its use.
Formatting the document to make it printer friendly is a cinch. The final printed product is very sleek and printer friendly.
I use Data collection feature which lets other groups populate different sections of the document for which they have responsibility. For instance, the Treasury group fills out all debt related information. The Stock compensation related information is filled by the controller's group, etc.
Customer Service is one of the best features of Wdesk. Support is right here in the USA and I always can count on my Customer Success Manager or in his absence, any other person, from their team, to provide solution when I am in a bind.

Cons

While I have been using Data Collection for a few quarters now, I still find it a bit of a hit or miss in that templates don't seem to roll seamlessly. I always have some issues which seem to require an override of sorts.
I have also been using the Support Binder feature and while it serves the purpose, I think it can be polished.

Likelihood to Recommend

SEC Filings are a cinch with Wdesk. We are introducing the platform for Certifications, which also seems to be going well. We have a lot of internal reports that we use for slicing and dicing and it is an area that I would like to harness the central workbook to link to but not sure how successful it will be, depending on forecast and budget information that is currently not in Wdesk.

Sandhya Chakrapani

Director, External Reporting in Finance and Accounting at Enersys (10,001+ employees)

Vetted Review

5 years of experience

View profile

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Reviews and Ratings

Wdesk works well for collaboration on all of our company's filings

Rating: 8 out of 10

Incentivized

March 2, 2018

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

Pros

The biggest strength of the program for our team is that multiple users can work in the document at the same time. Multiple users can be in the program updating financial statements, footnotes, MD&A - all without stepping on each other's toes.
Rolling forward the documents from one period to the next is pretty simple. Links to source documents are maintained and new ones can be added without much hassle.
Edits and changes can be made right up until the last minute before filing. There is no waiting period or pencils-down period unless we enforce one ourselves - the Financial Reporting team is in control of the timing of our filings.

Cons

The links to source data and XBRL tags cannot be maintained if you cut a section of one footnote and paste it into another footnote. This function does exist if you want to COPY and paste - but if you want to cut a section out of a footnote and paste it into a different one, you'll have to re-link the text to source data and re-add the XBRL tags.
Once your links have been created in a footnote, you can't remove multiple links at the same time. So if you want to remove an entire paragraph that has already been linked and tagged from a footnote, you'll have to go into that paragraph and manually delete each link before you can delete the paragraph.

Likelihood to Recommend

Erin Crossland

Financial Reporting Lead in Finance and Accounting at The Mosaic Company (5001-10,000 employees)

Vetted Review

3 years of experience

View profile