Optimizing the financial consolidation and reporting processes is the first phase in a broader program. “We approach this program in three phases. The first phase aims to increase the reliability of the reporting. This concerns reports to internal and external stakeholders, such as bank reports, reports to shareholders, and internally to management. The second phase is ‘management information’, where we want to spend less time on reporting and more on analysis. The third phase is ‘driver-based forecasting,’” says Polman. “Ultimately, we believe that every piece of information from finance should have a purpose.” Phase 1 (Reporting) is key in connection with the possible listing. But even without the listing, this is a logical sequence, Cammeraat says, “You must first ensure that you, as a team, know how to use the tool and that everyone — including the local users — starts working with it. In practice, we use such a project approach at many organizations; first, the mandatory consolidation, then gradually expanding to a strategic plan and driver-based forecasting.” Choosing OneStream’s Broad Platform The broad program is an important reason for choosing the OneStream platform. “We wanted an off-the-shelf and scalable system that helps us achieve our goal of automating our processes even further. Moreover, we wanted to integrate the entire process from validation to analysis into one system,” says Polman. Ampleon did not decide on a new corporate performance management (CPM) system overnight, as an earlier implementation of another consolidation system was unsuccessful. It is one of the reasons for working with Finext this time. “We asked Finext to help us in two areas: the tool selection process and the implementation,” says Polman. An important aspect was the fact that Finext is independent of software vendors. “Other parties often have a strong preference for one tool, while Finext has a broad tool knowledge and can provide independent advice,” Whelan says. Part of the tool selection process was a reference visit to Flow Traders, where Finext previously implemented OneStream. Polman and Whelan are enthusiastic about the progress of the project. “To the fullest satisfaction, both the standardization in the system and the implementation of the project. The organization’s training and support also went well,” they said.
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