Sage Case Studies Applause for Sage 500 ERP at San Francisco Opera

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	Applause for Sage 500 ERP at San Francisco Opera Sage

Applause for Sage 500 ERP at San Francisco Opera

Sage

Technology Category	Functional Applications - Enterprise Resource Planning Systems (ERP)
Services	System Integration
Challenge	San Francisco Opera, a renowned arts organization, was facing a significant challenge in managing its complex financial operations. The finance department had to track and report revenues and costs of main stage productions, document costs of educational and other programs, and account for ticket sales, contributions, and other sources of revenue. Forecasting was a crucial task, as individual line items for each of 18 departments, 82 subdepartments, and 11 productions had to be budgeted at least three years in advance. The opera’s accounting structure was diverse and complex, with different requirements for each department and hundreds of separate accounts for specialized needs. The existing accounting package was outdated and lacked the sophistication to manage this tremendous volume of complex information. Read More
About Customer	San Francisco Opera is one of the world’s most acclaimed and best-loved opera companies, located in San Francisco, California. The organization prides itself on a rich and varied repertoire, with 10 to 11 different productions and over 80 performances on its main stage every season. Each performance requires meticulous organization and coordination of various elements such as star singers, orchestra, chorus, dancers, lighting, scenery, costumes, publicity, and ticket sales. The company employs 125 full-time, year-round staff and 1,000 seasonal workers. The finance department within the San Francisco Opera faces a monumental task every season, tracking and reporting revenues and costs of main stage productions, documenting costs of educational and other programs, and accounting for ticket sales, contributions, and other sources of revenue. Read More
Solution	To address the challenge, the San Francisco Opera decided to replace its outdated accounting package with a sophisticated business solution. After investigating several business management systems, they selected Sage 500 ERP for its overall flexibility and comprehensive reporting features. The design of Sage 500 ERP accounting structure was one of the key features that distinguished it from many other software packages in its price range. The system allowed the opera to define various segments for their departments, subdepartments, accounts, and productions, and combine values from each segment to create individual accounts. This table-driven structure greatly reduced the likelihood of creating erroneous accounts. The system was able to accurately maintain more than 20,000 active accounts. Using this large and highly organized account structure, the opera was able to develop a wide variety of financial reporting models. Read More Log in to view content
Contents

Technology Category

Functional Applications - Enterprise Resource Planning Systems (ERP)

Services

System Integration

Challenge

San Francisco Opera, a renowned arts organization, was facing a significant challenge in managing its complex financial operations. The finance department had to track and report revenues and costs of main stage productions, document costs of educational and other programs, and account for ticket sales, contributions, and other sources of revenue. Forecasting was a crucial task, as individual line items for each of 18 departments, 82 subdepartments, and 11 productions had to be budgeted at least three years in advance. The opera’s accounting structure was diverse and complex, with different requirements for each department and hundreds of separate accounts for specialized needs. The existing accounting package was outdated and lacked the sophistication to manage this tremendous volume of complex information.

About Customer

San Francisco Opera is one of the world’s most acclaimed and best-loved opera companies, located in San Francisco, California. The organization prides itself on a rich and varied repertoire, with 10 to 11 different productions and over 80 performances on its main stage every season. Each performance requires meticulous organization and coordination of various elements such as star singers, orchestra, chorus, dancers, lighting, scenery, costumes, publicity, and ticket sales. The company employs 125 full-time, year-round staff and 1,000 seasonal workers. The finance department within the San Francisco Opera faces a monumental task every season, tracking and reporting revenues and costs of main stage productions, documenting costs of educational and other programs, and accounting for ticket sales, contributions, and other sources of revenue.

Solution

To address the challenge, the San Francisco Opera decided to replace its outdated accounting package with a sophisticated business solution. After investigating several business management systems, they selected Sage 500 ERP for its overall flexibility and comprehensive reporting features. The design of Sage 500 ERP accounting structure was one of the key features that distinguished it from many other software packages in its price range. The system allowed the opera to define various segments for their departments, subdepartments, accounts, and productions, and combine values from each segment to create individual accounts. This table-driven structure greatly reduced the likelihood of creating erroneous accounts. The system was able to accurately maintain more than 20,000 active accounts. Using this large and highly organized account structure, the opera was able to develop a wide variety of financial reporting models.

Impact #1	Comprehensive reporting, auditing, and analysis capabilities.
Impact #2	Easy customization of the system to meet the unique needs of the opera.
Impact #3	Complete management of over 20,000 active accounts.

Impact #1

Comprehensive reporting, auditing, and analysis capabilities.

Impact #2

Easy customization of the system to meet the unique needs of the opera.

Impact #3

Complete management of over 20,000 active accounts.

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Overview

Applause for Sage 500 ERP at San Francisco Opera

Operational Impact