
3CONCENTRIC SOLUTIONS |
BEST PRACTICE REPRESENTATIVE
Making sense of the data
Multinational companies tend to run
several enterprise resource planning
systems and data warehousing
solutions aimed at capturing
transaction-level information. Such
systems typically have thousands, if
not millions, of records, fed by data
from across functions that are crucial
to the running of their operations.
As data volumes explode, the cost of
administering data is also growing.
Consequently, companies have invested
in business intelligence solutions that
enable presentation of analytics on ad
hoc reports and executive dashboards.
For point-solution requirements, this
is often an easy and cost-effective
approach. However, it still does not
resolve the proliferation of different
solutions serving the full management
cycle. Modern CPM solutions bring
those requirements together, with
application-based functionality for
complex accounting requirements
and reporting capabilities that provide
operational relevance to different
functions or business units across the
organisation.
The step change in more recent
CPM solutions is the single-platform
approach that enables use of the same
data for multiple purposes, thereby
ensuring “one version of the truth”.
Efficiencies gained from streamlining
workflow processes through better
integration can be huge.
As an example, one of our larger
customers runs an international chain
of entertainments attractions. What
started out as a financial reporting
solution has grown into a platform
comprising much broader business
analytics. Venue sales flow through
to internal and external reports,
supplemented by footfall analytics
that helps drive forecast revenues by
attraction, and influences the timing
and allocation of marketing spend to
encourage better business performance.
Adapting to change
Regulation and legislation are often
significant drivers for change. The
challenge for many companies is how to
address such change without bolting on
even more disconnected technologies.
This challenge presents us with new
business opportunities. Our focus has
traditionally been within the finance
domain but with clients needing more
detailed analytics in reaction to their
business environment, there is scope
for us to expand the reach of our work.
We see a trend towards pre-built data
models for domain-specific requirements,
for example, IFRS 15 revenue accounting
or IFRS 16 lease accounting regulations,
serviced from a common platform.
Similarly, the trend towards narrative
reporting requires tools that can deal
with contextual information in order
that our customers can report on
the non-financial value-drivers (for
example, intangible assets such as
goodwill and intellectual property)
that internal and external stakeholders
expect to see on published reports.
We are driven to make a difference
through our software solutions and
are investing in applications that bring
together data from both finance and
operations that reduce the cost of
reporting. Our attempt to bridge the
historical divide between business
intelligence and CPM is therefore part
of a process of pooling our expertise
and insights to allow clients to adapt
more quickly to change.
We have
particular
expertise in
helping
organisations
that are going
through major
mergers and
acquisitions
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Members of our expert
team in London