Celtel is a telecommunications company that operates across Africa. As it expanded its networks, pouring £750 million into the region, the business neededmore control – and fast.
That’s where Four Business Solutions came in.
Celtel wanted to set up electronic purchasing in just three months. Within the context of a rapidly growing organisation, the need for tighter budgetary control over spending was essential. There was also a real need for ‘cost pipeline visibility’ both within individual countries and across the group. For us, it meant working in new countries with unique challenges and we were thrilled to help.
The criteria for the right solution covered many important issues. Integration with SunSystems was critical for accurate budget checking in real-time. Celtel wanted to avoid the batch interface option and saw real-time integration as essential for the project’s success.
Four chose iPOS procurement from Professional Advantage for Celtel, as we knew it would work with its SunSystems accounting software. We focused on change management, and developed e-learning tools to make training remote users in different languages far easier.
The results were immediate. Celtel saved $23m in its first year. Users are now directed to select from approved supplier lists, which cuts down considerably on ad hoc purchasing. Every team has access to the advanced-enquiry data interrogation tool. This gives a real-time display of purchasing information, and allows up to date document tracking. Every department can view its real spend, against budget, in just a few clicks of a mouse.
Four helped everyone concerned meet the challenges of this ambitious global rollout. We’re pleased to say that, at last, the company can see exactly who is buying, what they’re buying, and from whom. It now has only one hard-working solution for global budget control.
