Conbipel: Enterprise Performance Management

Following an acquisition, Accenture helped Conbipel align its reporting with its parent organization, which used Hyperion.

The new integrated planning and performance management process draws on a single source of data, delivering results that are more consistent and easier to share across the company. With Accenture’s help, Conbipel has taken decisive steps toward financial and planning excellence on its journey to high performance.

Founded in 1958, Conbipel is a leading Italian apparel retailer, offering classic and contemporary lines for men, women and children, as well as leather goods and accessories.

When Conbipel was acquired by Oaktree Capital Management in 2007, the new management wanted its reporting to align with the parent organization, which uses Hyperion. The existing reporting system was manual and used Excel, with data feeds from a number of different data sources. As a result, the data used were not consistent. The existing system also did not support scenario planning and simulations. Conbipel executives decided to move to an integrated enterprise performance management solution based on Hyperion.

Accenture High Performance Business research supports the client’s emphasis on optimizing financial processes.

The company chose to work with Accenture based on its understanding of enterprise performance management, a good working relationship and the Accenture Delivery Center in Milan, Italy, which has a strong Hyperion team. Accenture also offered a tried and tested solution, Accenture Planning Solution for Oracle Enterprise Performance Management, for the fashion industry.

An Accenture team of eight (three at the client site and five in the Milan Delivery Center) worked closely with Conbipel to implement the Accenture Planning Solution in two phases—reporting and planning.

Developed jointly with Oracle, the solution is preconfigured for the consumer goods and services industry and takes into account many of the fashion industry’s specific needs. The team deployed all modules of the solution (including profit and loss, balance sheet and cash flow, capital expenditure and HR) to help ensure that all aspects of the company’s operations were integrated into the planning and reporting process.

Conbipel now has an integrated planning and performance management process that draws on a single source of data. Because it is no longer manual, results are more consistent and easier to share across the company.

The Hyperion-based solution also permits Conbipel to simulate different scenarios, an invaluable tool in planning and decision making. Automation also saves time and frees up staff to perform more valuable work and to focus on the core business. In particular, a cash flow algorithm allows the company to analyze cash flow in real time.

With Accenture’s help, Conbipel has taken decisive steps toward financial and planning excellence on its journey toward high performance.

Accenture’s deep knowledge of fashion planning processes was a key success factor, as was its existing resources. One was the Accenture Planning Solution, many of whose preconfigured settings are geared to the fashion industry. The Hyperion team at the Milan Delivery Center was perhaps the overwhelming advantage on this project, with its use of Accenture Delivery Methods to provide a coordinated approach.