Member Article

Global executive search firm achieves efficiencies with Advanced

Definitive Consulting (Definitive), a leading global executive search firm, has gained major efficiencies by implementing a financial management solution from Advanced Exchequer (Advanced). The annual cost savings, which amount to approximately 2% of the company’s turnover, have been achieved by going ‘paperless’ and eliminating manual administration.

The Exchequer software was selected to improve cash flow and productivity by enabling all finance documents to be distributed and processed electronically. Definitive has also increased financial transparency and streamlined reporting by gaining instant access to live data in multi-currency formats to better understand its current position.

Definitive’s investment in rapidly expanding its international presence has seen turnover almost double during the last 12 months. The firm is headquartered in London and now operates from offices in Australia, Dubai, Hong Kong and Singapore with further strategic affiliations located in Germany and the United States.

Ruth Martin, Group Finance Director at Definitive Consulting, says “Our previous finance system struggled to cope as we expanded our presence overseas. I had used Exchequer before in another role and knew the software was sufficiently scalable and flexible to cope with our demands for more immediate and accurate reporting information.”

“We identified that Advanced’s software could provide us with notable cost and time savings by significantly reducing our need to circulate, handle and store paper.”

The Exchequer solution has enabled Definitive to automate its accounts payable and accounts receivable processes, whilst providing a full audit trail throughout the cash management cycle.

Invoices are now sent directly to customers via email, alleviating the frustrations and delays associated with paper-based payment procedures.

The system’s custom reporting capabilities can also quickly generate real-time figures on outstanding customer debts and accounts on hold. Automatic alerts notify the finance team when credit limits and invoice due dates have been exceeded, helping to tighten financial control.

Martin comments, “Cutting paper administration is delivering annual cost savings in excess of 2% of our turnover which are being reinvested to strengthen our competitive edge. Advanced’s solution has also provided greater traceability throughout the cash collection process and ensures we can quickly resolve supplier queries to remove barriers to payment.”

“With instant access to consolidated financial information we can view all related transactions and identify discrepancies. This allows us to constantly scrutinise our business performance to maintain our strong growth and profitability levels.”

Definitive is considering implementing Advanced’s integrated mobile app, eXchequer365, to maximise efficiency. The solution provides remote access to key information via the Exchequer finance system from any device. Documents such as employee expenses and invoices can be easily submitted and tracked with automatic push notifications alerting users when approved.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Advanced .