Challenge
Implement a business transformation platform that would create a single data entry point for client information, improve sales and client services, raise the integrity of business processing audit reports and enhance compliance documentation. Above all, Mazars needed to enhance user adoption of the CRM.
Solution
Mazars compared Salesforce, Microsoft Dynamics and Sugar. Total cost of ownership, extensibility and an intuitive user interface made Sugar Enterprise the most sensible and cost-effective fit. The business transformation platform is hosted on-site, with integrations to key business and risk-assessment applications.
Results
- Recovering 2,000 hours annually by eliminating repetitive data entry.
- Improving visibility of client information through Sugar’s transparency.
- Enhancing audit trails.
- Automating compliance documentation processes.
Intro
Mazars is a professional services firm that specializes in audit, advisory, accounting and tax services. The company employs more than 17,000 professionals globally, maintains operations in 77 countries, and has more than 1,600 partners in 20 offices around the world.
With Sugar, It All Adds Up to Value
Mazars was constrained by its old CRM. Because it was not widely used, it had minimal data upon which to draw. That made pipeline reporting unreliable and offered little actionable information for management. In addition, the old Mazars process required a manually-generated internal billing code for each new client in its finance system, which could potentially affect revenue as a result of the time taken to produce them.
“People used the CRM as little as possible, entering minimal amounts of client information, so the value of the system was not evident,” says Sarah Wheeler, the Mazars director of business transformation who guided the transition to Sugar.
The first step in introducing Sugar to UK users focused on quick wins that created buy-in and delivered visible benefits.
“We had to show our professionals that there was value in this new CRM, that it could enhance sales opportunities,” Sarah says. “We kept the on-boarding journey as simple as we could: qualifying, proposing, closed, won/lost.”
Improving those initial data points enhanced pipeline visibility, leading to more accurate financial projections and reports. Sugar’s transparency enabled more people to see real-time customer information.
Getting a Bigger, Better Picture
With the new CRM gaining traction, the Mazars implementation team customized the workflow process to integrate risk assessment and other processes. Suddenly, the company was saving more than 200 hours per month on process automation in finance and seeing a clearer picture of its SLAs.
“Each step is taking us closer to our goal of creating an optimum straight through process,” says Sarah.
For example, Sugar enhanced the revenue cycle by enabling billing codes to be generated within minutes of a request. It also allowed Mazars to create unified processes and centrally store and manage documentation, which facilitates internal audits and regulatory compliance. Overall, data quality has improved.
A Bright CRM Future
Mazars has come miles from its old days, but Sarah sees more opportunities ahead.
“We’re still helping our professionals understand Sugar’s value in regards to the Customer Journey,” Sarah says. “But we are getting there, and I know we have the right platform.”
Integrations
Microsoft SharePoint
Document management and storage
Advance Finance System
ClickTools
Marketing campaign management and customer feed
