Executive Summary
A large utilities company in north America, identified opportunities to enhance its financial management processes. Challenges such as fragmented financial reporting, limited cost visibility, and reactive budgeting created inefficiencies and hindered strategic decision-making. To address these areas, Strategy Go was engaged to introduce automation, improve data management, and foster collaboration between finance and IT teams.
The engagement delivered:
· Cost Savings: Aligned actual spend with the 2025 budget, enabling proactive contract negotiations and preventing overruns.
· Operational Efficiency: Automated financial reporting, freeing up senior management time for strategic initiatives.
· Improved Accountability: Introduced a Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) view and trained non-financial staff on financial reporting best practices.
· ROI: 20x. Achieved $3 Million in savings relative to the $150,000 engagement cost while laying the foundation for long-term cost control.
Ready to transform your organization’s financial management and achieve measurable results? Contact Strategy Go today at 647-891-6627 or visit our website at www.strategy-go.com to schedule a consultation and learn how our expertise can drive efficiency, accountability, and cost savings for your business.
In late 2024 a leading North American utilities company faced challenges in managing its IT maintenance spend and financial processes. Recognizing an opportunity for improvement, the company partnered with a seasoned financial and management consultant from Strategy Go, to drive meaningful change.
Strategy Go’s initial focus was to identify strategies to optimize the company’s IT maintenance spend, which totalled $30 million annually. Through discovery and analysis, he uncovered opportunities to enhance vendor management, streamline contract renewals, and improve forecasting accuracy. Working closely with Gartner, the company’s consulting partner, Strategy Go implemented a Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) approach to align spending with strategic priorities.
To address inefficiencies in financial reporting, Strategy Go leveraged the company’s existing SAP BI system to create an IT Financial Dashboard using Tableau. This dashboard automated reporting, providing real-time insights into OPEX and CAPEX expenses by department, project, and expense type. Additionally, Strategy Go built a custom database to track 186 maintenance contracts and introduced a forecasting model with a 5% buffer for renewals (2% for inflation, 3% for year-on-year increases).
Throughout the engagement, Strategy Go introduced standardized processes for data entry, trained employees on the importance of accurate financial reporting, and created tools like intake forms for contract renewals. These efforts empowered teams to adopt new workflows that enhanced efficiency and accountability.
By the end of the six-month engagement, the company had transformed its financial management processes. Automation reduced manual effort, training programs equipped employees with valuable skills, and clear processes ensured alignment across departments. Strategy Go also identified opportunities for app rationalization, paving the way for additional cost savings in the future.
Despite initial resistance from unionized staff, Strategy Go navigated sensitively, emphasizing how process improvements could save time and reduce costs. His persistence and clear communication won over the team, demonstrating the value of small changes in driving significant results.
The impact of Strategy Go’s work was profound. Executives gained access to real-time insights through the new financial dashboard, enabling faster and more informed decisions. The 2025 budget was revised to reflect actual spend accurately, ensuring alignment with strategic goals and avoiding potential financial challenges.
As Strategy Go prepared to conclude the engagement, he presented a roadmap for continued success. Recommendations included forming an app rationalization task force and implementing an inventory management system to map applications to projects and vendors, providing a comprehensive view of IT spend.
Strategy Go’s engagement at the utilities company showcased the power of strategic thinking and cross-functional expertise. By bridging the gap between finance and IT, he not only delivered measurable savings but also set the company on a path toward sustainable growth.
Key Challenges
Initial Opportunities for Improvement
· Limited Cost Visibility: An opportunity to gain a clearer understanding of IT maintenance costs and prevent budget overruns.
· Manual Processes: Financial reporting relied on Excel sheets, creating inefficiencies and delays.
· Reactive Contract Management: Absence of vendor and contract management systems led to unexpected costs during renewals.
· Top-Down Budgeting: Departments lacked accountability, resulting in overspending and misallocations.
Structural and Organizational Opportunities
· Change Adoption: Unionized staff expressed concerns about adopting new processes, highlighting an opportunity to engage and educate teams effectively.
· Data Organization: Manual invoice processing and fragmented data storage created challenges in tracking expenses.
· Collaboration Between Teams: Finance and IT operated in silos, presenting an opportunity to foster better communication and alignment.
Solutions Implemented
Financial Dashboard and Automation
· IT Financial Dashboard: Developed using SAP BI and Tableau to automate financial reporting and provide real-time insights by department, project, and expense type.
· Forecasting Solution: Created for 186 maintenance contracts, incorporating a 5% increase for renewals (2% for inflation, 3% for year-on-year increases).
Improved Data Entry and Reporting
· Uniform Data Entry: Established standardized formats for maintenance contracts, including vendor details, start/end dates, and project descriptions.
· Training Programs: Educated non-financial managers and union employees on financial reporting and the rationale behind renewals.
· Organized Invoice Processing: Streamlined data storage by organizing invoices by month, date, and application.
Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) and App Rationalization
· TCO View: Introduced to manage costs at the departmental level and ensure consistent budget alignment.
· App Rationalization Task Force: Proposed to identify unused applications and reduce costs through early renewals and negotiations.
Bridging Finance and IT
· Mediation Role: Acted as a conduit between finance and IT, resolving disputes and ensuring compliance with financial regulations.
· Process Improvements: Addressed issues like incorrect amortization dates and budget misallocations.
Outcomes and ROI
Cost Savings
· Prevented a repeat of the previous year’s $3 million budget overrun.
· Improved forecasting and proactive contract negotiations reduced unexpected costs.
Operational Efficiency
· Automated reporting freed up senior management time for strategic initiatives.
· Better financial visibility enabled early identification and resolution of overspending.
Budget Management
· Addressed last year’s budget variance and implemented measures to ensure alignment moving forward.
· Highlighted the importance of accurate budgeting, especially in the first year of a five-year rate filing cycle.
ROI
· The engagement cost $150,000 but delivered significant savings by aligning actual spend with the 2025 budget.
Cost of Transformation: $150,000
Savings Achieved (FY2025): $3 million
ROI: 20x
Broader Industry Insights
· Enhanced Communication: The engagement highlighted the value of fostering collaboration between finance and IT teams.
· Third-Party Expertise: Consultants with dual expertise in finance and IT play a crucial role in driving organizational change.
· Future Readiness: The utilities company is now better positioned to manage its maintenance budget, reduce unused applications, and implement cost-saving measures.
While the suspension of the automation project due to budget constraints represents an area for further investment, it underscores the importance of sustained commitment to process improvements.
Conclusion
The engagement successfully addressed the utilities company’s financial and operational challenges by introducing automation, improving data management, and fostering collaboration between finance and IT. While initial resistance and structural complexities required thoughtful navigation, the new processes and tools have laid a strong foundation for long-term cost control and accountability.
This case study underscores the broader industry need for integrated financial and IT strategies, emphasizing the value of third-party expertise in driving organizational transformation.
Ready to transform your organization’s financial management and achieve measurable results? Contact Strategy Go today at 647-891-6627 or visit our website at www.strategy-go.com to schedule a consultation and learn how our expertise can drive efficiency, accountability, and cost savings for your business.