Benefits of using a Corporate Performance Management Solution
Many organizations today are faced with various business challenges. From increasing sales to enhancing productivity, these challenges inadvertently affect an organization’s overall performance and bottom line.
Without the presence of clearly defined goals and metrics, it would be quite a difficult task to dissect the vast amount of data available in order to determine if a company’s performance targets were achieved. Many organizations take the spreadsheet route, which might seem like a sound solution, but can lead to data integrity issues and information overload (see blog on: Key Issues with using Excel for Budgeting, Forecasting and Financial Reporting). However, more and more organizations are taking a consolidated approach to managing their performance with the implementation of a Corporate Performance Management (CPM) solution.
Corporate Performance Management (CPM) is a holistic approach that involves integrating a company’s goals, key indicators, and metrics in order to improve an organization’s performance. A CPM solution allows organizations to improve their business processes such as Budgeting, Forecasting, Consolidations, and Reporting. There are several benefits to implementing a CPM solution:
Consolidation of Data: The ability to combine data from various sources provides organizations with a broad overview of business performance across multiple departments. Decision makers no longer require the need to manage multiple spreadsheets and eliminate versioning issues as they can access accurate information in real time, at the enterprise-wide level. In a CPM solution, data is typically stored in a central data repostitory which allows you to access actual, budget, and forecast data.
Data Accessibility: Companies are sometimes required to make critical business decisions and need immediate access to data. With a CPM tool, decision makers have access to real-time data that improves their ability to respond quickly in their ever changing environment. Data is accessible only through security permissions; users can only access data which they are provided access to.
Increase standardization and automation of processes: A CPM solution will streamline the collection, aggregation and reporting of data from multiple sources, with consistency and increased accuracy – providing faster results with shortened period end close, and budgeting/forecasting cycles.
Reduce operational risk: A CPM solution enables trust and confidence in financial data, with traceability of actions and seamless workflow capabilities. Audit trail allows you to sees who changed data and when it was change. Version control allows you to revert back to previous versions of data.
“What-If” Modeling: Fact-based decision making is at the core of every business. However, organizations must be able to react to environmental volatility that exists in the real world. CPM provides “what-if” modeling that is built based on uncertainties that every organization must face. These data models can be used to mitigate risks and ultimately make stronger, more informed business decisions.
How can Delbridge help?
Delbridge provides superior expertise in helping clients select, design, and implement Corporate Performance Management (CPM) and Business Intelligence solutions to fit their needs. As a platform agnostic company, we’ve partnered with the leading CPM vendors (IBM, Vena, Oracle, Prophix, Adaptive Insights, CCH Tagetik, and SAP ) and provide our clients with an unbiased recommendation for a solution. Our hands-on experience with each vendor product is what helps us identify the right solution for our clients’ requirements. Our seasoned consultants have several years of experience specifically in the area of CPM, with hundreds of successful implementations and proven ROI for Fortune 1000 and mid-market companies. At Delbridge, we believe that every solution should be tailored to a company’s unique requirements. Please contact us to find out how Delbridge can help you!
Some key problems with using Excel include:
- Data Integrity: Many corporations have multiple versions of their spreadsheets, which can sometimes lead to data inconsistencies and redundancies that compromise the integrity of the information provided within the report
- Information Overload: As businesses continue to grow, so does the amount of information going into a spreadsheet. These Excel reports become increasingly complex, and end users are overloaded with details that might not be pertinent to their specific role
- Investment in Time: Businesses need to be responsive to their ever changing environment. But large Excel spreadsheets that contain vital financial data to make sound business decisions may require significant time to update and publish. This process is neither beneficial, nor reliable
As budgeting, forecasting and financial reporting are three major pillars in corporate performance management (CPM), it is important for any business to have up to date, accurate financial information. By investing in a CPM software solution, you can eliminate the issues linked to using Excel spreadsheets.
How can Delbridge Solutions help?
Delbridge Solutions is a global company founded by industry leaders with a focus on implementation services in the area of CPM. We specialize in Budgeting, Forecasting and Financial reporting solutions that meet the needs of our clients.
At Delbridge, we understand that every company is unique, and that there is no “one shoe fits all” solution. This is why Delbridge has partnered with the leading CPM vendors in the industry. We work with our clients to understand their business process, their business needs, discuss what our software partners provide, and find the right software vendor for them. Our unbiased recommendation based on client needs is why we are truly ‘platform agnostic’. We also guide our clients throughout the entire implementation process from initial requirements gathering, to end user support. We employ a thorough training strategy for our clients so that they are self- sufficient in working with their new solution.
