-- He put together a complex set of applications that enabled the company to get better visibility of its projects, allowing it to lower operating costs.
-- By creating more visibility from one end of a project to another, he knew he would be able to reduce revenue leakages.
"Considering the effects of the slowdown and pressure on operating margins, managing projects better financially and managing the finances of the company more efficiently became two major needs," says Nataraj. "When the top line does not look very good, it is paramount to ensure that all billable resources are billed in full and in time."
Nataraj's solution was an integrated suite of applications that, combined, would optimize the lifecycle of an IT project - from opportunity to contract, project management insight, cost optimization, billing, invoicing and collections. By creating more visibility from one end of a project to another, he knew he would be able to reduce revenue leakages.
After a massive data cleanup job and preparations to reduce the risks of launching a wide spectrum of applications, the Rs 3-crore project went live in June 2009. "Since the right automation gaps were addressed and systems were effectively integrated, the cycle time for the implementation was cut significantly," says Nataraj.
Better controls decreased reconciliation efforts by the finance department, leading to a reduction in manpower costs. The apps for customer collaboration ensured that requirement-sharing, risks and dependencies were tracked and did not take projects by surprise and increase operating costs. This also gave executives a real-time snapshot of the company, improving decision-making, revenue forecasts, and guidance to the market.
The increased visibility, combined with the advantages of a new collection portal, resulted in invoices that were sent to clients earlier and improved collection. This brought down daily sales outstanding by 8 percent (q-o-q).
Part of the overall solution was also a travel management system that cut non-billable travel by 50 percent and reduced overall travel expenses by 30 percent. Finally, the project optimized resource allocation, saving the company Rs 50 lakh, and increased operating margins in Q2 2009 by 49.8 percent (Q-o-Q).