An effective management of accounting processes of a financial group

About the customer

The customer is a global network of shared service centers that belonged to an international financial group. It has been operating in the sector of financial and banking services for 20 years, providing technological and operational support to its branch offices all over the world. The company specializes in such areas as IT, software development, data analysis, cybersecurity, automation and operational support. The customer is responsible for a wide array of tasks, including digital transformation, data management, finances, and technological infrastructure for banks. The order submitted to MDDP Outsourcing involved assumption of selected accounting processes i.e., the processing of purchase invoices (AP process – Accounts Payable) and posting of bank statements.

The customer’s objective

The customer decided to outsource the accounting services since in the face of reorganization of the in-house accounting department it was necessary to provide proper support at the crucial moment. The external partner was supposed to maintain the continuity of work and high standard of accounting, which was of key importance during structural changes in the company. Thanks to outsourcing, the customer was able to focus on the internal reorganization and simultaneously make sure that the accounting transactions were carried out efficiently and without disruptions.

Actions and challenges

1. Handling of the accounting system (Symfonia)
   The customer kept their accounting books in the Symfonia system. The MDDP Outsourcing team did not need additional training in the use of the system because our specialists are proficient at the most popular accounting tools. Any emerging operational and technological problems were solved internally by employees of MDDP Outsourcing, which resulted in timely continuous operations.
2. Assumption of the obligation of posting purchase invoices (AP) and bank statements
   The process concerning the assumption of accounting was divided into and carried out in several key stages:
   • Analysis of the initial state: the MDDP Outsourcing team thoroughly analyzed the existing processes used for posting of purchase invoices and bank statements, identifying the potential areas for optimization and automation of processes.
   • Transfer of responsibility: the customer officially entrusted MDDP Outsourcing with the obligations involving posting of invoices and bank statements and provided us with proper tools and personalized access to the customer’s system.
   • A transitional period of support: at the beginning of the cooperation, the customer monitored the actions and proactively cooperated with our team. After a transitional period of two weeks, MDDP Outsourcing fully assumed the entrusted tasks.
   • Optimization: after the complete implementation, MDDP Outsourcing introduced regular meetings with the customer and carried out internal audits in order to ensure compliance with the agreed standard and to monitor the effectiveness of the team’s work.

Revision of the contractor database

During its ongoing work connected with posting of bank statements and invoices, the MDDP Outsourcing team encountered many irregularities in the database of the customer’s contractors. The situation turned out to be so urgent that after our intervention the customer ordered MDDP Outsourcing to carry out a full revision of the database. The team of MDDP Outsourcing specialists received access to the data and successively verified and corrected them. Those activities included verifying the compliance of data in the database with the actual transaction details. One of the main tasks involved removing duplicated accounts, such as repeated accounts of suppliers or recipients that could lead to incorrect posting.

Additional challenge was posed by the high employee turnover at the customer’s company, which required regular revisions of the files to add the details of new workers. In order to address the need, the customer’s HR department would routinely provide the MDDP Outsourcing team with lists of new employees whose data were then entered into the system in order to maintain the completeness of the files. The customer entrusted us with the said tasks with complete confidence, knowing that MDDP Outsourcing complies with the highest work standards within the scope of protection of confidential data. With our efforts, we were able to guarantee accuracy and validity of the data in the customer’s system, eliminating errors resulting from irregularities and the employee turnover.

Import of sales invoices

MDDP Outsourcing also took over the process of importing sales invoices into the customer’s accounting system. Due to the short and demanding operational deadline, MDDP Outsourcing implemented an improvement involving data mapping, which allowed for fast and error-free entry of hundreds of invoices into the system within less than 24 hours, in line with the customer’s internal requirements.

Caring for the customer’s data safety

When taking over the customer’s accounting processes, MDDP Outsourcing prioritizes safety of the customer’s data. We secure the data transfer through safe VPN tunnels, which ensures confidentiality and integrity of information. The work is carried out according to the highest safety standards, with strictly observed rigorous data protection procedures. What is more, the dedicated equipment supplied by the customer allowed for even greater mitigation of the risk of data leaks and helped us increase the control over access to the systems, ensuring complete safety of data at every stage of the process.

Solutions implemented by MDDP Outsourcing

During the cooperation with the customer, we encountered communication problems. The customer was accustomed to direct contact with an in-house accounting team so once they entrusted the duties to MDDP Outsourcing, the customer had to change their communication method. In order to streamline the processes, MDDP Outsourcing added a dedicated contact inbox and work phones. What is more, we planned weekly meetings and the possibility of ad-hoc communication through Microsoft Teams, which greatly improved the cooperation and allowed for immediate reaction to the ongoing needs of the customer.

MDDP Outsourcing implemented an effective task management system in which the team leader determined priorities and monitored the work progress. Thanks to everyday meetings, it was possible to solve ongoing problems while the standardized and clearly established distribution of roles ensured transparency and accountability of every member of the team.

Advantages for the customer

• Reliability and integrity of the books: coherence and accuracy of the accounting books thanks to automation of the accounting processes regarding invoices and bank statements.
• Updated data in the databases: revision of the databases improved the quality of data, eliminating the risk of accounting errors and incorrect payments resulting from database irregularities.
• Outsourcing of accounting processes: thanks to the long-term cooperation with MDDP Outsourcing, the customer was able to stabilize their accounting processes without the need of developing an in-house accounting department and, as a result, reduced their operational costs.
• Greater control: with weekly meetings and monitoring of the effectiveness of the team’s work, the customer was able to track the progress and effectiveness of the actions implemented by the MDDP Outsourcing team on an ongoing basis.
• High standards of labor: with the access to the team of specialists from MDDP Outsourcing, the customer received the highest-quality services and maintained the continuity of the entrusted accounting processes.
• Higher work effectiveness: the improvements of the accounting process devoted to sales services introduced by our team greatly increased the effectiveness of the process itself. Thanks to our efforts, it was possible to reduce the working time from 3 working days to 24 hours.
• Customer’s satisfaction: thanks to their cooperation with MDDP Outsourcing, the customer stabilized their accounting processes as well as greatly increased their effectiveness which allowed for further growth and optimization of global operations.

Long-term cooperation

The initial contract assumed a six-month cooperation period for the reorganization of the customer’s in-house accounting department. The plan expected that after the said period, the customer will take over the tasks and fully complement their in-house team. However, thanks to the high working standard and effectiveness of the MDDP Outsourcing team, the customer decided to extend the cooperation. As a result, the customer canceled their recruitment plans and permanently entrusted us with the management of accounting processes. Currently, MDDP Outsourcing has been handling these processes for two years, providing the customer with stable and high-quality accounting solutions.