Volkhovets Group completed automation of preparation of the budget

VOLKHOVETS group, the Russian producer of interroom doors, began the project on creation of a new corporate information system of management based on solutions Microsoft Dynamics AX and IBM Cognos Express. The international consulting company Columbus acts as the partner of implementation.

Due to growth of production volume and deliveries of products before the management of VOLKHOVETS Group there were tasks of upgrade of the existing IT infrastructure. Until recently the group used as the ERP solution based on Microsoft Dynamics NAV. However a former system ceased to conform to requirements of fast-growing production company regarding management of distributor activity, and further development of the outdated version of NAV was represented inexpedient. Based on the tender the management of VOLKHOVETS Group made a choice for benefit of the full-function integrated solution based on the products Microsoft Dynamics AX and IBM Cognos Express offered by consulting company Columbus.

"The need for the complete solution arose in connection with formalization of group and creation of management company. To top management and shareholders it became obvious that it was impossible to provide necessary controllability at the available local solutions. With respect thereto the tender among the companies integrators was announced", - Maria Stepanova, the CEO of the VOLKHOVETS management company comments.

Within this cooperation several problems of increase in efficiency of holding are solved. First of all, the project provides optimization of management of trade and distributor activity of VOLKHOVETS Group. The solution on the Microsoft Dynamics AX platform will provide more operational commodity planning, control of passing of orders for products and storage of data on its implementation, having simplified work of production company with the trade missions and dealer network of VOLKHOVETS Group. Besides, during the project specialists of Columbus automate financial and management accounting, including planning of financial transactions with monitoring of cash flow. In VOLKHOVETS Group the uniform centralized storage of the nomenclature reference information available to use to all companies of group will be created.

In parallel with start of a new ERP system transition to a new budgeting system, the analysis and maintaining different forms of the reporting under financial and economic activity of group will be performed. The solution on the IBM Cognos Express platform will cover all cycle of formation of financial budgets (the income and expenditure budget, the budget of cash flow, final balance, etc.) – from a planning stage to the plan-fact analysis of execution and the reporting under each enterprise and VOLKHOVETS group in general.

Director of financial department of the VOLKHOVETS management company Semyon Egerev: "Last year our company considered the possibilities of implementation of an automated system of budgeting (earlier for these purposes Excel was used). However complex study of a question and also the occurring organizational changes demanded broader view on things. Along with implementation much attention should be paid to business processes (to bring into accord account policy on group, to define the principles of consolidation, the big block of works is made regarding logistic processes). In some cases it is increases project duration a little, but allows to put those optimal solutions which will bring benefit to VOLKHOVETS group in the next several years in a system".

The implementation project of Microsoft Dynamics AX is started by a project team of VOLKHOVETS Group and Columbus in March, 2012, IBM Cognos Express – in May, 2012. It is expected that all complex of the works on process automation of management of distributor activity will be completed by the end of 2012. Transition to IBM Cognos Express will be performed by the beginning of planning of new fiscal year.

In conclusion It should be noted that VOLKHOVETS Group implements the project on the advanced methodology of management of SureStep+. "The fundamentals of methodology were developed by Microsoft and adapted by specialists of Columbus company taking into account long-term industry experience of implementations. It provides complete documentation and evident representation of all stages and events of the project, supports the coordinated work of participants of a project team and by that prevents possible risks of implementation", - Mikhail Cherepashchuk, the manager of projects of consulting company Columbus emphasizes.

2013. The project final - summing up

On May 14, 2013 the press service of integrator announced project completion of construction of the information management system on the IBM Cognos Express platform.

Details

The project team consisted mainly of specialists of financial department of Volkhovets group.

Within implementation the new budget model of holding is built. The methodology and regulations of planning of budgets satisfied the management of Volkhovets Group and almost did not change.

The company managed to eliminate with project implementation risk of emergence of the errors which are permanently accompanying manual entry and information processing. In the course of system deployment the consultant of Columbus acquainted the staff of financial department of Volkhovets Group with bases of information security, the principles of setup of access rights and the user roles in a system.

Implementation of IBM Cognos Express is complete in agreed time frames. Project deliverables partners of an otsenla as "predictably positive". The budget of 2013 of Volkhovets Group is created in a new system.

Advantages

Planning of the annual budget for the Volkhovets group in 2012 took about 3 months, in 2013 the financial department solved a problem in 3.5 weeks. A new system also allowed holding to simplify approval and adjustment of short-term operating budgets.

"Using a system Volkhovets Group closed key processes of budgeting in a uniform cycle, received tools for calculation of articles in different analytical cuts, having completely excluded labor-consuming manual data processing and having increased reliability of financial information, – Alyona Marchuk, the project manager of Volkhovets Group noted. – The financial department monthly prepares in IBM Cognos Express the management reporting on income and expenses of group by business units, can predict possible deviations of indicators of the budget at change of conditions of activity of the enterprises. Now we configure mechanisms of operational collecting of actual data".