Financial Services

We are independent ERP consultants providing expertise in system selection, best practice and business process improvement for the financial services industry.

Distribution ERP Software Selection - Interviews

Financial Services Requirements

Unique financial services industry requirements include:

  • Multiple segments – Account structure has flexibility in the number of segments and rules for skipping certain segment and defaults
  • Reporting structure – Can roll up any segments to multiple hierarchies as well as date effectivity on rollups so can generate historical data
  • Analysis or transaction codes offering additional dimensions for analyzing operations without building it into the general ledger account structure
  • Statistical accounts – to track non-financial data
  • Intercompany transactions – with automatic balancing
  • Allocations – to spread revenues or expenses across different departments or companies (with automatic balancing)
  • Flexible financial reporting tool – Includes ability to create financial reports for external use
  • Consolidation – with ownership calculations, intercompany eliminations and foreign currency translations

Systems

  • Tier 1
  • Tier 2
  • Tier 3
  Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance & Operations Multiview NetSuite Oracle Cloud ERP Sage Intacct Sage X3 SAP Business One SAP S/4 HANA Workday
Product Information                  
System Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance & Operations Multiview NetSuite Oracle Cloud ERP Sage Intacct Sage X3 SAP Business One SAP S/4 HANA Workday
Vendor Microsoft Dynamics 365 Multiview NetSuite Oracle Cloud ERP Sage Intacct Sage X3 SAP Business One SAP S/4HANA Workday
Description Dynamics 365 launched in 2016 when Microsoft brought together Dynamics AX, its ERP application and the Dynamics CRM application. Microsoft was one of the first to make a move an offer an integrated solution. Given the dynamic nature of business and the likelihood of unique situations, it is becoming more and more important for software/solution providers to introduce applications that cater to the changing trends. Dynamics 365 is a comprehensive suite of services enabling all in one solutions so that you don’t have to pick and choose from the plethora of options available. Microsoft Dynamics 365 can be used for:
  • Bringing your business together as a cohesive unit by connecting people, processes, and data across many applications, including Microsoft Dynamics 365, Office 365, LinkedIn, and Azure.
  • Making smarter decisions with built-in AI, analytics, and guided action suggestions.
  • Adapting the application to your needs rather than changing your business methodology. You can integrate most applications with existing systems or even customize with Microsoft Power Platform.
  • Modernize your approach by incorporating AI, mixed reality, social, and mobile capabilities for progressive business innovation.
For nearly 30 years, Multiview has been proudly advancing the corporate finance and back office operations alongside our clients so they can spend more of their time focusing on their business. Corporate Finance and accounting has been leveraged as a way to discuss past performance. There is value in that. We believe, however, there is even more value if you can leverage that information not only monthly, quarterly, or annually, but daily to drive results and decisions with the information. Not talk about the results after it being too late to do something about it. CFO’s, Controllers, Accountants, are and should be at the heart of the data trust of their organization. Many organizations, whether by choice or circumstance, are operating with a vast array of data silos. The power of data control being at the hands of the CFO or centralized in an organization is you can share it throughout the company. Trusting the information you’re making decisions on is incredibly important. Ultimately, the finance team’s job is to tell stories. Tell the stories about what is actually going on within an organization, and support the story with accurate, timely data. Stop Chasing Numbers. Start Using them. NetSuite ERP is an all-in-one, AI-powered, cloud business management solution that helps organizations operate more effectively by automating core processes and providing real-time visibility into operational and financial performance. With a single, integrated suite of applications for managing accounting, order processing, inventory management, production, supply chain and warehouse operations, NetSuite ERP gives companies clear visibility into their data and tighter control over their businesses.
  • Full-featured financials, CRM, inventory, project management and ecommerce software--all in a single system
  • Real-time visibility across your entire business operation
  • On-demand software infrastructure dramatically lowers maintenance and license fees
  • Real-time dashboards for all your key employees
  • NetSuite can be accessed anywhere, anytime to the information you need.
Netsuite ERP review on benefits:
  • Automate Financial Processes. Improve financial operations, efficiency and productivity.
  • Gain Inventory Visibility. Monitor inventory levels, minimize carrying costs and deliver orders on time.
  • Supply Chain Optimization. Control the flow of goods across the value chain, from suppliers to customer.
  • Flawless Order Management. Error-proof your order management and procurement.
  • Increase Warehouse Efficiency. Optimize the putaway process and reduce picking errors.
Oracle Cloud ERP is a powerful, cloud-based enterprise resource planning ERP system designed to help businesses streamline and automate their core financial and operational processes. It provides a comprehensive suite of applications that covers areas such as risk management, expense management, financial management, procurement, project management, supply chain operations. By integrating these essential business functions into a single, unified platform, Oracle Cloud ERP enables organizations to improve efficiency, reduce operational costs, and gain real-time visibility into their operations. One of the key strengths of Oracle ERP is its user friendly, flexibility and scalability, making it suitable for businesses of all sizes, from growing enterprises to large, complex global corporations. The Oracle Cloud infrastructure leverages cutting-edge technologies like artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), and data analytics to provide predictive insights, automate routine tasks, and drive continuous process improvement. For example, its AI-driven financial management capabilities can help businesses predict cash flow, detect anomalies in transactions, and automate expense reporting. The ERP software suite also offers advanced reporting and analytics tools, enabling users to make data-driven decisions with real-time insights into their business performance. Its cloud-based architecture ensures that organizations can benefit from regular updates and innovations without the need for costly and time-consuming on-premises maintenance. Furthermore, the platform is designed with built-in security and compliance features, ensuring that sensitive business data is protected while meeting industry-specific regulatory requirements. Learn more about cloud services and its enterprise functions of Oracle at https://www.oracle.com/ca-en/erp/. Sage ERP X3 is Sage Group's global ERP solution for large and mid-sized companies and subsidiaries of large entities. For over 10 years Sage ERP X3 has been a proven and comprehensive ERP solution addressing mid-market companies' specific requirements and challenges in industries from manufacturing and services, to distribution and many more. 5,100 companies in 100+ countries worldwide have chosen Sage ERP X3 because helps companies grow forward with faster, simpler and flexible ERP. Focus on compliance, business intelligence and traceability. SAP Business One is designed for small and mid sized companies to grow with you; it is flexible and modular, yet powerful and with its user-friendly interface, it is simple to use. The SAP Business One application offers an affordable way to manage your entire business – from accounting and financials, purchasing, inventory, sales and customer relationships, and project management, to operations and human resources. SAP Business One helps you to streamline processes, gain a greater insight into your business, so that you can act fast and make decisions based on real time information, to help you drive profitable growth. A single view of your business to help you stay in control We understand that businesses like yours have big dreams and big goals, and as your business grows it can be difficult to get a single view of what is happening at any given time, when information resides in different applications or even locations. SAP Business One is designed for small and midsized companies to grow with you, it is flexible, modular, yet powerful and with its user-friendly interface, it is simple to use. SAP S/4 HANA. As the market leader in enterprise application software, SAP helps companies of all sizes and in all industries run better by redefining ERP and creating networks of intelligent enterprises that provide transparency, resiliency, and sustainability across supply chains. SAP's end-to-end suite of applications and services enables customers to operate profitably, adapt continuously, and make a difference worldwide. Workday is a leading provider of enterprise cloud applications for finance and human resources, helping customers adapt and thrive in a changing world. Workday applications for financial management, human resources, planning, spend management, and analytics have been adopted by thousands of organizations around the world and across industries—from medium-sized businesses to more than 50% of the Fortune 500.
Website https://dynamics.microsoft.com https://multiviewcorp.com/ https://www.netsuite.com/ https://www.oracle.com/erp/ https://www.sage.com/en-ca/sage-business-cloud/sage-x3/ https://www.sap.com/products/erp/business-one.html https://www.sap.com/ https://www.workday.com/
Primary Tier 1 2 2 1 2 2 2 1 1
Industries                  
Apparel No No Yes No No No No Yes No
Construction Yes No No Yes No No No Yes No
Field Services No No Yes No No No No No No
Financial Services Yes Certified Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Food & Beverage Yes No Yes Yes No No No Yes Yes
Hospitality Yes No Yes Yes No No No Yes No
Manufacturing Yes No Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes No
Nonprofit No No No No No No No No No
Professional Services Yes No Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes
Retail & ECommerce Yes No Certified Yes No No Yes Yes Yes
Transportation & Logistics Yes No Yes Yes No No No Yes No
Wholesale Distribution Yes No Certified Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No
Applications                  
Accounting (General Ledger, Financial Reporting, Accounts Receivable, Accounts Payable, Budgeting and Cash Management) Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Asset Management No No Yes No No Yes Yes Yes Yes
CPQ (Configure Price Quote) No No No No No No No Yes Yes
CRM Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No
Distribution (Order Processing, Purchasing and Inventory) Yes No Yes Yes No No Yes Yes No
E-commerce Yes No No Yes No Yes No Yes No
Field Services - Dispatching & Scheduling Yes No No Yes No Yes No Yes No
Field Services - Mobile Field Management Yes No Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes No
Human Resource Management No No Yes Yes No No No Yes No
Manufacturing - Quality Control No No No Yes No No No Yes No
Manufacturing - Scheduling Yes No Yes Yes Yes No No Yes No
Manufacturing - Shop Floor Control Yes No Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes
MRP No No No Yes No No No Yes No
Payroll Yes No No Yes No No No Yes No
Point of Sale No No No Yes No No No Yes No
Product Lifecycle Management Yes No No Yes No Yes No Yes No
Professional Services - Scheduling No No No Yes No No No Yes No
Professional Services - Timesheets No No No No No No No No No
Professional Services – WIP Management No No No No No No No No No
Project Management No No No No No No No No No
Transportation Management No No No No No No No No No
Warehouse Management No No No No No No No No No
Developer Information                  
Number of customers - all products
Number of customers - this product
Technology                  
% of application that is web based (just need a browser on workstation)
On premise, cloud or hybrid On Premise On Premise On Premise On Premise On Premise On Premise On Premise On Premise On Premise
Private or Public Cloud Private Private Private Private Private Private Private Private Private
Tenant Architecture Multi-Tenant Multi-Tenant Multi-Tenant Multi-Tenant Multi-Tenant Multi-Tenant Multi-Tenant Multi-Tenant Multi-Tenant
Generic Requirements                  
Customization/Configuration                  
Without changing source code In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release
User-defined fields
  • Can define values/dropdowns for fields
  • Used in report selection and ordering
  • Used in workflow
In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release
User defined screens
  • Change fields to required, optional or invisible for standard and user-defined field
In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release
Multiple Companies                  
Share inventory across companies In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release
Share customers and suppliers across companies In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release
Automate balancing of transactions across legal entities In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release
PO of 1 company automatically generates the sales order in another company In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release
Multiple Currencies                  
Maintain source and home currency amount for each transaction In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release
Date effective currency exchange rates In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release
Work Flow                  
Can apply an approval process to any transaction such as a journal entry or any master file such as a supplier or inventory item In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release
Can generate alerts/escalation if something expected is late or reminders In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release
Configurable approvals or alerts without needing programming In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release
Mobility                  
Optimized for Android and iPhone In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release
Offline mode and synch when internet connected In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release
Sales tax compliance                  
Canadian sales tax compliance In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release
US sales tax compliance In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release
Reporting/Business Intelligence                  
Reporting                  
Industry standard reporting tool and can change existing reports or add new ones In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release
Ad-hoc reporting (don’t need a programmer) with filtering, sorting and summarizing options In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release
Dashboards                  
Based on real time updates from all transactions In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release
Role specific In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release
Configurable dashboards - don't need to be a programmer to create or change dashboard In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release
Analytics                  
Drag and drop dimensions In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release
Visualization/graphic representation of data In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release In Current Release
Business Process Report

Requirements

Business Services:

  • Service call date and time stamping
  • Escalations if work not done on time
  • Track service history by serial no.
  • Generate quote for customer
  • Generate work order
  • Generate invoice for work done and inventory used
  • Scheduling by manually assign resources
  • Scheduling by automatically assigning resources based on skills and availability
  • Self-service by client including checking status, logging problems and access to information to resolve problems

Business Services Systems

Some of the systems that provide solutions for the business services industry are:

  • Acumatica
  • Blue Link
  • CTRL
  • Deltek
  • Epicor
  • IFS
  • Infor
  • Intuitive
  • Jonas
  • Microsoft Dynamics
  • NetSuite
  • Oracle
  • Pronto
  • Q360
  • RMI
  • Sage 300 ERP (formerly Sage ERP Accpac)
  • Sage ERP X3
  • SYSPRO
ERP Software Selection - Vendor Analysis

Financial Service Testimonials

The whole process moving to a new ERP System with Alex from 180 Systems was smooth and he delivered beyond what was expected.  He was great, and to this day, if we have a question, we email Alex and he remembers. He guided us through the whole process, took his time to make sure we understood how everything works, answered all our questions. I can’t say anything but good things about him.
Nadia Paulino, ControllerEQ
I found 180 Systems to be knowledgeable of the IT environment and practical in terms of understanding our requirements and determining appropriate systems to evaluate. 180 Systems provided good value in terms of system selection.
Raman Randhawa, CA, Director of Finance, Canada & USGoldcorp Inc.
180 Systems was instrumental in Capstone Infrastructure's selection of a general ledger system. Their efficient methodology, comprehensive approach and deep expertise significantly aided our decision-making process, enabling us to identify the right system for our needs.
Jens Ehlers, Senior Vice President, FinanceCapstone Infrastructure Corporation
Selecting a new system is a very complicated task, not something you do every day, so it is great to have an expert working with you who is acting in your interest. 180 Systems has a good process and know certain questions to ask the vendor. 180 Systems is not working for them, and that is what you want. They is not going to make your selection for you, but they set you up with the right tools to make the decision. 180 Systems handled it well, had a good format, focused on the bigger things as well as the details.
Ernest Dunphy, ControllerGuardian Capital Group Limited
Michael was very articulate, right to the point, knew his stuff, and provided a very good layout of what are the key steps an organization must go through. He explained terms related to technology, and the price was also right. Michael has a very good tool that pulls information together so that has been quite helpful.
Mireille Khayat , Director, FinanceInterac

Business Service Testimonials