IBM Case Studies SONIC Drive-In: Accelerating audit-readiness with global lease accounting standards

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	SONIC Drive-In: Accelerating audit-readiness with global lease accounting standards IBM

SONIC Drive-In: Accelerating audit-readiness with global lease accounting standards

IBM

Technology Category	Platform as a Service (PaaS) - Data Management Platforms
Applicable Industries	Retail
Applicable Functions	Business Operation Procurement
Services	Cloud Planning, Design & Implementation Services
Challenge	SONIC Drive-In, a leading quick-service restaurant chain in the United States, was facing a significant challenge due to the increasing complexity of new global lease accounting standards. The company manages approximately 1,500 leases across the business, and even small changes to its real estate spend can have a significant impact on its bottom line. The new FASB regulations would apply to almost their entire lease portfolio, and the company was keen to reduce the cost and complexity of complying with the new regulations. Their existing reporting systems were vital for delivering the information needed to satisfy regulators and make informed decisions about opening new stores and negotiating new leases. However, the use of spreadsheets and legacy systems was creating challenges. Read More
About Customer	SONIC Drive-In is a drive-in quick-service restaurant chain founded in 1953 and headquartered in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. With more than 3,500 drive-in restaurants and 10,000 employees, the company generates annual revenues of approximately USD552 million. The company manages approximately 1,500 leases across the business, and even small changes to its real estate spend can have a significant impact on its bottom line. The company's reporting systems are a vital method to deliver the information that they need to satisfy their regulators. Lease reporting is also a valuable service for the business, enabling their teams to make informed decisions about opening new stores and negotiating new leases. Read More
Solution	To overcome the challenges created through the use of spreadsheets and legacy systems, SONIC Drive-In chose to update its lease accounting processes with IBM Premier Business Partner eCIFM’s Software as a Service solution for IBM® TRIRIGA®. To help build a comprehensive lease accounting and real estate management process and configure the IBM TRIRIGA solution to support new ways of working, SONIC Drive-In worked with eCIFM Solutions. The implementation of IBM® TRIRIGA® enables the company to be a retail industry leader. By having a system in place, Sonic avoided the increased demand for resources as the deadline for impending changes looms. Read More Log in to view content
Contents

Technology Category

Platform as a Service (PaaS) - Data Management Platforms

Applicable Industries

Retail

Applicable Functions

Business Operation

Procurement

Services

Cloud Planning, Design & Implementation Services

Challenge

SONIC Drive-In, a leading quick-service restaurant chain in the United States, was facing a significant challenge due to the increasing complexity of new global lease accounting standards. The company manages approximately 1,500 leases across the business, and even small changes to its real estate spend can have a significant impact on its bottom line. The new FASB regulations would apply to almost their entire lease portfolio, and the company was keen to reduce the cost and complexity of complying with the new regulations. Their existing reporting systems were vital for delivering the information needed to satisfy regulators and make informed decisions about opening new stores and negotiating new leases. However, the use of spreadsheets and legacy systems was creating challenges.

About Customer

SONIC Drive-In is a drive-in quick-service restaurant chain founded in 1953 and headquartered in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. With more than 3,500 drive-in restaurants and 10,000 employees, the company generates annual revenues of approximately USD552 million. The company manages approximately 1,500 leases across the business, and even small changes to its real estate spend can have a significant impact on its bottom line. The company's reporting systems are a vital method to deliver the information that they need to satisfy their regulators. Lease reporting is also a valuable service for the business, enabling their teams to make informed decisions about opening new stores and negotiating new leases.

Solution

To overcome the challenges created through the use of spreadsheets and legacy systems, SONIC Drive-In chose to update its lease accounting processes with IBM Premier Business Partner eCIFM’s Software as a Service solution for IBM® TRIRIGA®. To help build a comprehensive lease accounting and real estate management process and configure the IBM TRIRIGA solution to support new ways of working, SONIC Drive-In worked with eCIFM Solutions. The implementation of IBM® TRIRIGA® enables the company to be a retail industry leader. By having a system in place, Sonic avoided the increased demand for resources as the deadline for impending changes looms.

Impact #1	SONIC Drive-In can now serve business users with the deeper insights they need to make more informed decisions when negotiating new leases.
Impact #2	SONIC Drive-In has connected its IBM TRIRIGA system to its finance system, enabling a high level of automation for essential, repetitive tasks, such as payments processing and accounting journal entries.
Impact #3	The IBM solution is helping SONIC Drive-In to spend less of their time on transactional work and more time on analytics. The result is that they can now dig deeper into their real estate data and start answering more complex questions from the business.

Impact #1

SONIC Drive-In can now serve business users with the deeper insights they need to make more informed decisions when negotiating new leases.

Impact #2

SONIC Drive-In has connected its IBM TRIRIGA system to its finance system, enabling a high level of automation for essential, repetitive tasks, such as payments processing and accounting journal entries.

Impact #3

The IBM solution is helping SONIC Drive-In to spend less of their time on transactional work and more time on analytics. The result is that they can now dig deeper into their real estate data and start answering more complex questions from the business.

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Overview

SONIC Drive-In: Accelerating audit-readiness with global lease accounting standards

Operational Impact