Client case: Primus Wafer Paper
How Primus Reduced Its Month-End Close by 5 Days and Gained Better Insights and Confidence in Its Financial Data
Client profile
Primus Wafer Paper, based in Oostzaan, is a leading Dutch company in the food industry. The company produces edible paper used globally in a variety of applications, such as coconut macaroons, organic bread, and energy bars. With a team of 60 employees, Primus exports to over 40 countries.
Challenge
As CFO of Primus, Marcel Steenbrink faced the challenge of obtaining more efficient insights into the company’s financial administration. Although Primus utilized a reliable ERP system, its reporting capabilities were limited. This resulted in a reliance on Excel and manual processes, which were time-consuming and prone to errors.
Marcel sought a solution to generate standardized reports easily and automatically. Key requirements included user-friendliness, a short implementation period, minimal costs, and no need for a dedicated specialist.
Solution with Smartbooks
Primus chose Smartbooks.ai’s reporting tool for its simplicity and quick implementation. Marcel described the process as “a no-brainer” after seeing the demo, which immediately covered 80-90% of his needs. Within two weeks, the system was fully operational, with Primus investing only 10 hours of their own time in the process.
The flexibility of Smartbooks allowed the team to quickly integrate their custom general ledger structure into the tool. Standard reports were easily tailored to the company’s unique requirements, providing a user-friendly and efficient solution.
Improved Insights
The tool offers extensive capabilities, enabling users to zoom from a high-level overview down to transaction-level details. This has led to improved data analysis and greater control over the financial situation.
Efficiency Gains
The month-end close process has been reduced by an impressive five days, enabling the team to report faster and more accurately.
Increased Confidence
Reports are now standardized and easily accessible to the management team, contributing to higher confidence in the financial data and the finance team.
Feedback from Primus
According to Marcel, the implementation process was “smooth and straightforward.” The team was pleasantly surprised by the intuitive user interface and the speed at which they were able to independently work with the tool.
“The transparency and reliability Smartbooks offers have boosted our confidence in financial reporting. It has empowered our team and allows us to focus on what really matters,” Marcel stated.
Recommendation
Marcel Steenbrink strongly recommends Smartbooks for SMBs:
“Over my 30+ years of experience with various tools, Smartbooks is by far the simplest and fastest to implement. It meets the needs of 80-90% of SMBs. For us, it has become an indispensable part of our closing process.”
Conclusion
Primus Wafer Paper demonstrates how a smart and user-friendly solution like Smartbooks can help businesses streamline their financial processes. With improved insights, efficiency, and standardization, Primus has achieved significant improvements at a low cost, with an implementation that required only 10 hours of their time.
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