Prestige Loos hits it flush with MYOB Advanced Business
In need of advanced operational control, Prestige Loos looked to MYOB Advanced Business to expand their business.
Key business solutions for an essential service
Established in 2004, Prestige Loos responded to the need for a premium portable toilet provider in the film production industry. The quality of the product and service was so well received, expansion into the event and construction market quickly followed. The specialist sanitation company has grown through organic growth and acquisition and is now New Zealand’s leading provider of portable sanitation.
When their accounting software could no longer cut it, the rapidly expanding business looked to MYOB Advanced Business for improved operational control. Today, it enjoys a system delivering a significant boost in productivity, visibility and performance.
Now, more than a year after go-live, Prestige Loos is maturing the platform, gaining further benefits while considering extending the solution by deploying additional modules, enhancing customer service and asset performance.
A growing business in need of scalable support
Prestige Loos finance manager David Trotman is a veteran of several large ERP implementation projects and knows the process can be jarring when not done properly.
“ERP projects can destroy your business if you’re not careful,” he confides. “But it also becomes necessary when you reach a certain scale.”
Sending out more than 4,000 invoices a month meant the popular accounting package being used by Prestige wasn’t up to the task.
“It just couldn’t manage that level of invoicing; it couldn’t import the volumes we needed,” he said.
“This meant invoices weren’t going out on time, there were issues with accuracy, and in some cases, customers weren’t receiving their invoices.”
These misfires led to something of a vicious cycle of reduced collections and reinvoicing; owing to the way invoices are issued by the accounting package, they would be intercepted by spam filters, further complicating matters.
“The other thing which occurred to me is that our previous accounting package seemed like it was written by software people rather than accountants, something which became clear in processing and reconciling transactions,” David explains.
In simple terms, he says, Prestige Loos had outgrown its software.
Implementing a better way of doing business
The selection of MYOB Advanced Business and their implementation partner, Verde, came down to the suitability of the platform.
With experience with multinational vendors, David says the costs involved can be prohibitive – and it isn’t only licensing which must be considered. “Quite often, you’ll want support in the form of minor customisation or assistance with specific reporting, or even direct intervention if a problem crops up.”
MYOB was the solution that offered them just that. David says the implementation went as well as an ERP deployment can, with the company benefiting from the improved functionality and business operations from the get-go.
MYOB Advanced Business modules deployed for Prestige Loos include General Ledger, Cashbook, Purchase Orders, Accounts Payable and Accounts Receivable, and Fixed Assets. The company is looking to introduce Inventory and the MYOB Advanced CRM solution next.
"The native integration of receivables and business accounts that MYOB Advanced Business delivers gives it a considerable advantage over any third-party system,” David says.
Further advice comes in the recommendation of a partner fully focused and available when the rubber hits the road; David credits Verde with being a local team on-site providing support at the point of going live.
“Support from our implementation partner has been nothing short of fantastic,”
“When requesting a change or addition, we’ve had cases where 15 minutes later they come back and say ‘it’s done’. And those requests don’t cost the earth, either.”
"We turned a corner within a year after go-live and have found ourselves in a much better place."
David Trotman Finance Manager | Prestige Loos
Gaining fast results and improved business experience
The benefits of an integrated ERP solution with far deeper functionality than an accounting package have quickly been felt.
“Where customers previously didn’t trust the invoicing and accounts receivable, there is now a universal appreciation that every statement, every invoice accurately represents their situation,” says David.
On the topic of invoicing, he says it isn’t just accuracy but also efficiency, with all documents generated and sent to recipients who actually receive the messages.
“Not so long ago we had our guys working long hours to stay on top of constant mistakes and queries; all that is resolved now.”
And come year-end, David says financial results are delivered accurately within days. For month-ends, MYOB has enabled a close on the 8th working day, occasionally earlier, from the prior 20.
Financial periods close with little drama, neatly replacing a previously fraught several weeks of panic.
“We just don’t have that now,” says David, relieved.
“Things are getting boring for the accounts department, and that’s when you know the job’s done right,” he laughs.
“The more we use the MYOB Advanced platform, the more we find opportunities for improving the business.”
A smoothly functioning ERP solution, he adds, means a better-run business.
"MYOB Advanced is leaps and bounds ahead of the previous system, and our implementation partner has made it work very well for us. I’d recommend it to anyone"
David Trotman Finance Manager | Prestige Loos
Learn more about MYOB Advanced Business
MYOB Advanced Business
Customisable, cloud-based business management platform.