Prior to implementing OneStream, Vima Foods was using a spreadsheet-based reporting with limited data traceability. Data was generated in Libra ERP, but integration was not automated: at each close, every subsidiary would produce a local report by loading the data into Excel and calculating P&L and Balance Sheet for the respective company.

The added challenge of dealing with multiple data sources, different currencies, and intercompany eliminations forced Vima Foods to re-evaluate their financial practices and seek a tool that could provide a single version of the truth, with the agility to support their growth. 

After a careful selection process, the company chose OneStream due to its ability to integrate different data sources using web services, powerful BI Blend, Relational Blend and drill-down functionalities, as well as add-on Marketplace solutions that allow them to extend the platform in the future.

Enhanced Reporting with Analytical Blend

The primary objective of this project was to automate key financial processes and gain insight into real-time data. We opted for a co-development model, with Vima Foods and CIS Consulting working as a team and covering 2 time zones, Europe and Latin America. Our goal was to build the Minimum Viable Solution that would serve as the basis for modelling next use cases with the help of OneStream’s Extensible Dimensionality feature. We put a special emphasis on the direct integration objective and collaborated with ERP developers and our strategic partner Inlumi on complex integrations. Another primary requirement was maximizing data visibility with granular access controls, so that decision-making across the company could be backed by accurate and timely information. Vima Foods needed to know at all times who, what, when, where, and why of each key concept, be it sales, purchases, expenses, margin, management ratios, inventory, or KPIs. The Analytical Blend functionality allows the company to gain insight into Operating Expenses and Income by integrating different dimensions and detail into their data model, which in turn enables Vima Foods to measure profitability of each action and have confidence in the numbers.

In a question of months, we were able to automate the processes, obtain a single version of the truth and gain visibility into near real-time data. We provided direct integration with Libra ERP, eradicated bottlenecks, and enriched visualisation with drill-in capabilities from accounting to management. Vima Foods can now access all of their financial data in a few clicks, with the ability to navigate from a global view to the transactional level. Key financial processes are less time-consuming, more reliable, and efficient overall. Rich, agile dashboards for Product and Customer data analytics are a big improvement over QlikView’s fixed reports that the company used previously, which translates into faster and better-informed decisions. Using Marketplace solutions, Vima Foods is planning to extend their new CPM platform to include FP&A or Consolidation models in the future.