quadrent
A clear path from MYOB Greentree to Oracle NetSuite
Industry
Financial Services
Challenge
CFO Kara Boase says Quadrent's growth in revenue and complexity, spanning multiple entities across New Zealand and Australia, meant MYOB Greentree could no longer keep up. The business needed an ERP built for multi-currency, multi-entity operations, with automation to match. Visibility had become a real issue across 10+ business units, and while spreadsheets have their place, Boase wanted information centralised and accessible within the ERP itself.
Results
Boase highlights NetSuite's automation as the standout win, from subscription management to auto-matching bank reconciliations. Reporting is now click-of-a-button, cutting data across businesses, periods, and budgets instantly rather than manually. API connectivity has cut duplication, and new starters get up to speed fast. Quadrent is also exploring NetSuite's emerging AI capabilities with Project Salsa.
Looking to take advantage of cloud technology and leave legacy on premises ERP in the past, equipment finance and asset lifecycle management provider, Quadrent has migrated to NetSuite’s business management solution. With its prior system implemented and maintained by Verde’s MYOB Greentree practice, the project went from drawing board to signed off within an astonishingly short time, delivering maximum benefit for Quadrent with surprisingly little interruption to business as usual. And leaving executives with broad smiles on their faces.
SITUATION
Quadrent CFO Kara Boase says that while MYOB Greentree ERP had served the business well, it was clear that the time to move on had arrived. “The business has grown substantially not only in terms of revenue, but also complexity, with multiple entities and across New Zealand and Australia. That meant we needed an ERP capable of handling multiple currencies and entities. We also wanted to be able to take advantage of more sophisticated automations that are possible with a modern system,” she explained.
Much of this need was emerging from standard business activities, with the ageing system presenting various barriers in terms of information access and sharing across the company’s 10+ business units. “Visibility was becoming a problem,” Boase confirms, “And yes, we accountants love spreadsheets, and you’re never getting away from that…but you don’t want to get too reliant on spreadsheets. You want to work within the ERP as much as possible, as that keeps information available and accessible.”
“Our consultant helped explore what was available to us. I can’t rate them any higher”
SOLUTION
While having an existing relationship with Project Salsa via Verde Group, Boase says Quadrent nevertheless performed a thorough test of the market in its quest for a solution capable of meeting immediate needs and future growth ambitions. “We looked at quite a number of solutions, including all the big-name brands, and ran demos on the frontrunners. Doing so is quite a challenge, because it’s easy to get distracted by the ‘all singing, all dancing’ systems; those can be more than you need. We wanted something suitable for the SME, but the ability to grow in future.”
It so happened that not only was Verde Group (which has two divisions, Avanza Solutions focused on MYOB Acumatica, and Project Salsa focused on NetSuite) supportive in examining the market, but it also offered the solution deemed optimal for Quadrent. “Our consultant helped explore what was available to us,” Boase confirms. Without prejudice? “I can’t rate them any higher,” she shoots back with a smile.
NetSuite’s appeal is multifaceted, Boase continues, explaining the factors important to Quadrent. “It’s cloud-based and very configurable. It handles the different aspects of our business appropriately; one of our companies, LOIS, is a SaaS business with subscriptions, while other companies need a system suitable for leasing and asset management. With quite a few different businesses under the same umbrella, NetSuite allows us to accommodate all of them.”
The value of a provider already familiar with the business became clear in the rollout. Unusually for someone relatively recently off an ERP implementation, Boase is cheerful – for good reason. “From sign on to scoping to go live was really quick, around three or four months. It was a very short implementation.”
Casually dropping “We’re quite proud of it,” Boase adds another surprising detail. “It was a really big effort but we managed to get it done with little disruption. And that’s thanks in large part to Project Salsa, they did a lot of heavy lifting for us, but also the team internally. Together they did the testing, the scoping, the training, the handover. It was a big team effort, and I'm pretty proud of the team for the job they did.”
“From sign on to scoping to go live was really quick, around three or four months. It was a very short implementation.”
RESULTS
The advantages of moving to NetSuite have been clear for Quadrent and can be summed up as ‘what it said on the can’. “Number one is the high level of automation,” enthuses Boase. “But, and this is quite interesting, the finance team is probably doing more than before because NetSuite has given us have the ability to do it.”
By that she means advanced functionality particularly around financial analysis and reporting. “For example, the automation around our subscriptions is huge - it used to be done in Excel. The bank reconciliations are driven by auto-matching logic, which is fantastic.”
As the executive responsible for finance, Boase says there’s both better high-level oversight and more detail. “Key for me is being able to get information out easily and then drilling in and cutting it different ways across different businesses, periods or budgets. It's a click of a button now, where before, it was a case of extracting and then working on it.”
API connectivity has eliminated manual work and duplication of effort, and Boase even says user-friendliness is improved, with users embracing the NetSuite solution. “We've had new team members come and get up and running pretty quickly, with little handover needed.”
Developments in AI coming from Oracle and NetSuite bode well, she adds, with Quadrent actively evaluating the possibilities and potential in conjunction with Project Salsa.
Her advice for organisations looking to upgrade or even move to an ERP solution with no more fuss than necessary is to focus sharply on planning with maximum commitment from the top office down. “Be very clear what you want from the demo onwards. Make sure all your ducks are in a row because then the training and the implementation goes that much more smoothly. And get a good handle on the basics before unlocking automation, reporting and advanced functionality - you don't know what you don't know.”
And, of course, choose a partner that understands your business and its priorities.
“Key for me is being able to get information out easily and then drilling in and cutting it different ways across different businesses, periods or budgets. It's a click of a button now, where before, it was a case of extracting and then working on it.”
Founded in 2002, Quadrent is a New Zealand-owned business with operations across New Zealand and Australia. The Quadrent Group provides equipment finance and asset lifecycle management solutions that help organisations access, manage and optimise the technology and equipment they rely on. Its wider group includes Fridgehire, Sustainable Finance and LOIS, an independent lease accounting and IFRS 16 reporting software business. Together, these businesses support customers with practical, flexible solutions across the full asset lifecycle, while Quadrent’s digital inclusion initiatives help extend access to technology and create positive social impact in the communities it serves.
For more information visit Quadrent.
