Enhancing Budgeting and Forecasting Capabilities with Solver

A long-time user of Microsoft Dynamics GP client of ours found the platform met all of its core accounting needs for their Senior Living organization. However, as the organization grew, its budgeting and forecasting processes became more complex. Specifically, they faced challenges with payroll calculations due to pay rate differentials for shift workers and the inconsistent scheduling of seasonal employees. They also desired a more efficient way to roll over prior-year budget data to streamline forecasting.

Challenges Faced:

  1. Complex Payroll Calculations: The organization dealt with a variety of pay rate differentials for shifts and seasonal employees, making it difficult to accurately calculate wages and FTEs. Manual adjustments were required, increasing the risk of errors.
  2. Budget Data Rollovers: They lacked an easy way to roll over budget data from the previous year, which was a priority for forecasting and making year-over-year comparisons.
  3. Manual Forecasting Processes: Budget forecasting was cumbersome, requiring significant manual effort and making it difficult to plan for the long term.

Solution: To address these challenges, the client implemented Solver to work seamlessly with Microsoft Dynamics GP. Solver’s budgeting and reporting capabilities provided a robust solution for their complex financial processes, allowing for a more streamlined and accurate approach to budgeting, payroll, and forecasting.

Key Improvements with Solver:

  • Payroll Automation: With Solver’s advanced budgeting tools, they were able to automate payroll calculations, significantly reducing manual adjustments. They now calculate wages and FTEs more accurately, even for employees with variable shifts and pay rates.
  • Budget Rollovers and Adjustments: Solver allowed them to automatically roll over prior-year budget data and apply predetermined adjustments (e.g., CPI increases). This saved time and improved accuracy in budgeting for non-salary expense line items.
  • Long-Term Forecasting: Solver provided the ability to create templates for multi-year forecasting, enabling the client to project not just for the upcoming fiscal year but for the next 5 to 10 years. This gave their finance team valuable insight for long-term financial planning.

Results: The client saw significant improvements in their budgeting and forecasting processes almost immediately. They successfully implemented Solver just in time for their annual budget rollout, enabling them to optimize their processes and reduce manual labor. Solver’s integration with Dynamics GP enabled them to scale their financial operations, gain deeper insights into their financials, and prepare for future growth.

Conclusion: For CFOs, controllers, and senior accountants seeking to enhance their financial operations, Solver offers powerful business intelligence capabilities that integrate seamlessly with Microsoft Dynamics GP. By automating complex payroll calculations, improving budget data rollovers, and enabling long-term forecasting, Solver helps organizations streamline their financial processes and make more informed decisions.

 

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