Signal Ventures

THE SOLUTION

Previously relying on Microsoft Dynamics NAV for managing the company’s 12 LLCs, Signal Ventures decided to look for a new solution as support for Microsoft Windows 7 was about to reach end-of-life status. “We had considered upgrading Dynamics NAV for a few years but knew it was time since the operating system on our desktops and laptops would no longer be supported,” says Cody Smith, Vice President of Finance at Signal Ventures.

Another reason why Smith had held off on upgrading Dynamics NAV was advice from the company’s trusted IT partner—Western Computer. Western Computer had deployed the previous ERP system, and Smith and his accounting team had relied heavily on their advice in the past on how to manage financial processes for multiple entities in one ERP platform.

“Because Western Computer collaborates closely with Microsoft, they knew a new version of Dynamics 365 Business Central was coming soon at that point in time,” Smith explains. “They convinced us of the benefits of waiting to move ERP to the cloud rather than upgrading the onpremise version of Dynamics NAV.”

Soon after that new version of Business Central became available, Western Computer migrated all the ERP data from Dynamics NAV and set up the Signal Ventures team to manage the various businesses in the cloud. Another key component Western Computer integrated with Business Central was Binary Stream—which offers multi-entity management capabilities that provide full visibility into transactions across all Signal Ventures business units

"Bringing in Binary Stream is a great example of why Western Computer is such a valuable partner,” Smith emphasizes. “When we have a specific requirement for our ERP platform, they conduct the necessary research to find exactly what we need. Western Computer also understands how to set up Business Central so each of our entities can track costs according to its business model.”

For the transition to Business Central, Western Computer trained Smith and his accounting team on which functions were the same as Dynamics NAV and which functions were new. Western Computer also worked closely with Binary Stream to ensure the integration properly handled dimension codes. When it was time for the final cutover to Business Central, Western Computer provided stand-by resources to make sure the migration went smoothly

THE BENEFITS

By moving the on premise ERP to the cloud, Signal Ventures no longer has to worry about managing servers and the IT infrastructure supporting the system. The internal IT team can focus all of its resources on engineering the data analytics services provided to customers. “We also don’t have to worry about our ERP system hardware and software aging,” adds Smith. “Microsoft automatically upgrades and patches them as needed.”

While the company relied on the on-premise Dynamics NAV system, all data inputs and access to customer and vendor activity went through the accounting team. But with Signal Ventures using Business Central in the cloud, the primary benefit Smith points to is access to information.

“Our entire company has access, and we can tailor their roles according to their job responsibilities,” Smith says. “Whether they are in the office or on the road, they can submit purchase orders and invoices, or see account information. If a customer or vendor asks for information, everyone on our entire team can respond right away—rather than waiting on accounting to get back to them.”

The improved access also speeds up the process of transacting purchase orders and invoices, and it enhances the transaction documentation provided to customers and vendors. In addition, management can tap into real-time data for how each of the businesses is performing. This helps drive faster decision-making that allows each entity to operate more efficiently.

Another key benefit of Business Central is how smoothly it pulls data into the Signal Ventures data analytics platform (Domo). “Western Computer helped us build several auditing dashboards for different accounting functions and data points, making sure we receive alerts if something is incorrect or incomplete,” Smith says.

The new ERP platform also syncs with the Signal Ventures' mission to be data-driven in the services it provides to customers and the entrepreneurial spirit of ownership. “We’re involved in many real estate and property enterprises—it’s a great benefit to be able to manage them all through one financial system,” says Smith. “We also have the flexibility to easily add any new businesses we might launch in the future."