Provide a brief description of the Solution, Service Provided, or Initiative.
System: Acomba software Other Software: None Development: The company wanted to wanted to make optimum use of the Acomba software to suit its very specific needs (general computerization of billing, purchasing, inventory management, the CRM system, accounting, and payroll). The company also acquired the Acomba Report Generator and Acomba Business Intelligence module during the integration process. Replacement of a legacy system? No. Project competition: None, except for firmly entrenched manual management practices. Implementation Date: Throughout all of 2009 Project duration: One year A family-run SMB established on Montreal’s South Shore, Décor Parent offers key interior design services for the entire home. While it originally specialized in the sale of fabric, today the company sells window coverings, wallpaper, fabrics, flooring, and décor accessories (such as lamps, curios, rugs, curtain rods, furniture, and cushions), as well as providing design consultation services. Because of the variety of Décor Parent’s services and products (many of which are custom-made), inventory management is very complex. The company employs decorators, seamstresses, receptionists, buyers, and accounting, administrative, and production personnel (the latter are responsible for assembling or producing orders, such as blinds, for example). Management and staff, who were unaccustomed to working with information technology, were, at first, particularly hesitant to have their procedures automated. By setting up an extremely effective and user-friendly solution and ensuring extensive training, the Fortsum Business Solutions Inc. team convinced them of the significant advantages conferred by the new system. The solution introduced consists mainly of the Acomba accounting and management system and comprises functions related to inventory management, customer relationship management (CRM), point-of-sale (POS), payroll management, purchasing management, order management, and accounting. Prior to the introduction of this solution, Décor Parent employed manual processes which required triple, and even quadruple, data entry. Errors were frequent. Follow-up by the various departments relied on the exchange of handwritten notes among the parties involved, which resulted in a great deal of comings and goings from one floor to another. Clients’ orders were sometimes “forgotten”, and employee productivity was noticeably reduced. The company did not have a systematic inventory management process, and this led to inventory losses and shortages. Moreover, a client’s order form was considered an invoice, complicating the calculation of sales taxes and bonuses. Fortsum’s solution eliminated the need for quadruple data entry. When a decorator takes an order, a copy of the information is made available to administration, production, and accounting personnel. The original order is automatically made into a purchase order, a requisition (if necessary), an invoice, and a general ledger entry. This drastic change from manual procedures markedly increased efficiency and productivity. Sébastien Parent, president of Décor Parent, had this to say: “Our former manual management system, with its four carbon copies, had reached its limit. Just one year later, we can’t even imagine a single day without the efficiency and professionalism of the new system. Our employees’ enthusiasm continues to grow, and we are just beginning to realize the potential for even further improvement which we have yet to fully explore.”
Describe what makes this Solution, Service Provided, or Initiative original or innovative. How is this over and above the accepted norm?
The complexity of the company’s inventory and the characteristics of its business practices had convinced Décor Parent’s management that computerizing its procedures would be an impossible task. Nevertheless, Fortsum’s efforts were successful. Overcoming the client’s serious misgivings, Fortsum implemented a solution which radically transformed Décor Parent’s established work methods and improved its various processes to the benefit of all its employees, from the seamstresses to the president. What is more, the new solution ensures far more personalized and attentive service, which has considerably strengthened customer relationships.
Describe the improvement this Solution, Service Provided, or Initiative made to the customer’s sales or revenues. What changed? Provide evidence of measurable improvements in sales, revenues, cost reduction, etc.
Before the solution was implemented, it was rather difficult to ensure follow-up on client orders. When a client was unable to reach a decorator, a handwritten note would be left on the decorator’s desk, asking that the client be telephoned. The same method was used to notify decorators of an order’s status, such as when it was ready for delivery to the client. Because these handwritten notes were occasionally misplaced or forgotten, sometimes clients were not contacted, orders were not delivered, and resources were wasted. With the new CRM system, all the parties involved can attach any information to a client’s file. The system indicates the current stage of an order (product order and delivery or production, for example), making it possible to give an on-the-spot answer to anyone who calls to ask about an order’s status. For decorators, the system also produces a list of calls to return and of contact names, a feature which greatly facilitates follow-up. Cross-selling has been stimulated by the new system’s thorough and regular incorporation of inventory. When the system detects related or complementary products associated with a client’s order, it alerts the decorator to ensure that these products are offered to the client. In addition to increasing sales, this reminder function enhances customer satisfaction by eliminating the need for return visits to the store to buy complementary, and often essential, items. System dashboards make it possible to monitor the performance of both the salesforce and the store’s various departments. Not only does this improve stock management and facilitate arranging the decorators’ schedules and calculating their commissions, but it also helps to measure customer traffic in the store and make the necessary adjustments to improve individual and team performance and stimulate sales. Finally, as a result of overall process efficiency, there has been a significant decrease in errors, which, in turn, has made for far fewer lost orders and lost sales. Décor Parent is growing rapidly, and the firm’s computerization has made it possible to implement an effective and dynamic marketing strategy. According to Sébastien Parent, this has led to an increase in customer traffic. “With this solution, we are able to manage our rapid growth. It’s too soon to be able to give a specific number in terms of how computerization has increased our revenues, but I can say without hesitation that this change is worth its weight in gold and this is only the beginning”.
Describe the improvement this Solution, Service Provided, or Initiative made to the customer’s efficiency. What changed? Provide evidence of how customer efficiency was increased.
Before the introduction of the solution, a decorator would take down a client’s order on a piece of paper, often including a hand-drawn sketch of what the client wanted. As soon as the client made a down payment, the relevant information – including the sketch – was forwarded to production and administration for the order to proceed. Because of their great variety, it is very difficult to keep all the products sold in stock, and as a result, most of the time, the items needed for production have to be ordered. With the old system, all of this information had to be taken down repeatedly; first, on a requisition form, and then, on a goods receipt form. When the client r