Sector: Education · Platform: Sage 200 with hosted server support
The challenge
Learnlight — then known as Communicaid — had been running Sage 50 for some time. It had been managed by a number of financial controllers over the years, so the chart of accounts had grown huge and unwieldy, and reporting was limited.
Management reporting took a considerable amount of time, and as a result the accounts were rarely up to date. Staff had to wait for processes to complete — from year end to simply running a large report — before they could process current transactions.
That held up creditors whose invoices could not be processed. Debtors were, for the most part, handled outside Sage, and with data split across multiple systems, cash flow was very hard to manage.
Learnlight needed a solution that:
- Reduced the time spent on management reporting
- Helped manage cash flow more effectively
- Automated manual processes
- Minimised errors
They also needed a product that would keep growing with them, with greater flexibility, reporting and security.
The solution
After comprehensive initial consultations, Impress Solutions recommended and implemented Sage 200, identified as the right fit because Learnlight’s accounting processes needed the capacity to grow and develop alongside the business. Hosted server support was provided alongside it.
The results
Period end and posting current transactions were no longer time-consuming. Invoicing could be done within Sage itself, creditors could be kept up to date, and staff were no longer left waiting for the system to be ready before they could work.
Reports for aged debtors and creditors could be prepared and accessed to help manage cash flow. Bringing high-volume invoicing into Sage also made a major difference to the accuracy and efficiency of the operation.
“Sage 200 has allowed staff to work more efficiently and try to solve business problems, not system workarounds. Less time is now spent by staff rectifying issues; they can now spend time completing value-adding work.”
— Ben Williams, Group Finance Director, Learnlight
The experience
“I have experienced what it’s like when a system doesn’t work or do what you want it to and that causes huge issues. Sage isn’t like that for us, so that is huge for our team’s productivity. Our experience with Impress Solutions has been very good, they always reply quickly and clearly they know the system very well as they always have the answer!”
— Ben Williams, Group Finance Director, Learnlight