The nature of our business dictates that our workforce is scattered across the country, managing events at different venues, all hours and all days of the week, says Justin Van Wyk, Chief Financial Officer for Big Concerts International.
“We needed an ERP solution that is robust and able to effectively manage our project-based costs with the right amount of transparency that will provide an overview of any given project in real-time,” says Van Wyk.
Big Concerts was formed in 1989, and after three years of staging major local concerts, Big Concerts promoted Paul Simon as the first major international act to tour South Africa, after a long period of cultural isolation. In the 18 years that Big Concerts has promoted music in South Africa, the company has grown from a five-man business, to an organisation that today manages almost every significant international tour to SA.
AccTech Western Cape, Alliance partner to Softline Accpac's number one Sage ERP Accpac solution provider, AccTech Systems, was contracted to implement the ERP solution.
“We began the process with a thorough needs analysis, which served as a basis to construct a fully integrated Sage ERP Accpac 200 package that is tailored to suit Big Concerts' specific needs,” says Henri Hattingh, Chief Executive Officer of AccTech Western Cape.
“Sage ERP Accpac 200 is a feature-rich financial management application that supports as many as 20 concurrent users. As Big Concerts grow and start requiring more users, they can effortlessly upgrade to Sage ERP Accpac 500, making it the ideal solution for organisations in the so-called mid-market ERP Tier. The analysis and reporting tools contained within the solution provides the transparency and accuracy that Big Concerts needs,” adds Hattingh.
AccTech eWorkflow was also included in the package, providing the tools to monitor and control Big Concerts' business procedures and processes. “AccTech eWorkflow is seamlessly integrated with Sage ERP Accpac, adding functionality in the form of commitment accounting, record level security and budget control. It effectively provides full tracking of every procedure from source to end, bridging the gap between the back-office and the operations side of the business. AccTech eWorkflow enforces transparency and compliance throughout Big Concerts' operations,” says Hattingh.
An ERP system helps to define best practices, optimise activities and gain control over processes, says Keith Fenner, Vice-President of Sales at Softline Accpac, part of the Sage Group. “The most significant benefit of ERP software may be its ability to streamline operations. By automating business processes, which in turn improves accuracy of information and accelerates data flow, an ERP solution helps companies streamline day-to-day tasks and free up staff to focus on other more complex issues that require more personalised attention. As a result, productivity is increased and operating and overhead costs can be dramatically reduced.”
“Sage ERP Accpac will provide the means for Big Concerts to improve business efficiency and cost control over many different projects that are running simultaneously, in an environment where all our key players are not always under one roof,” concludes Van Wyk.
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