People's - Nytænkt ERP-arkitektur understøtter forlags strategi

People's is a young publishing company that has published several popular bestsellers within the realms of fiction and nonfiction literature.

People's was founded under the name People's Press in 2002, but has subsequently changed its name. The publishing house was acquired by Swedish Storytel in 2017. In addition to being a traditional book publisher, the main focus today is also on targeting new forms of media, such as audiobooks, podcasts, and audio productions.

Yield

Breakdown of data provides flexible statistical options
Simplification and automation free up time for more critical tasks
Data cleansing and new structure enable detailed reporting to the parent company
The implementation of Business Central Cloud provides new integration opportunities.

The publishing and media industry has been disrupted by digital media in recent years. People's was strategically and commercially ready, but their ERP system was out of date.

Corpital has collaborated with PeopleGroup A/S since 2004, the parent company of People's. Corpital developed People's original royalty system, which, in addition to handling the daily ERP tasks in NAV, also handled the remuneration of authors and collaborators, etc.

While it is no secret that the entire publishing and media industry has been disrupted by digital opportunities, People's has proven its adaptability by rethinking and strategically adapting to the market. This resilience is a testament to People’s ability to navigate and thrive in a changing landscape.

However, despite this, People’s ERP solution was impacted as it was no longer supported by Microsoft and Service Packs were no longer made available. This disrupted the connection to various third-party products; as a result, it was no longer possible to use new technology, and People's faced an increase in managing damage control to maintain the operation of the older NAV solution.

Therefore, there was a clear need to transition People's over to a modern ERP platform that reflected and supported the new reality [of digital media].

Products

"We have long wanted to work more progressively and simplify several processes. Corpital’s ERP team has an in-depth knowledge of our business and has always had simplification in mind and a focus on the smallest details."

Josefin Larsson, Head of Finance at People's

People's wiped the slate clean

After introducing People's to Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central (BC), we started afresh, without looking at the old NAV solution or how it had been previously used. We kicked the process off by proactively creating a new architecture based on the dream scenario whilst also utilising as much of the standard functionality in Business Central.

We broke down all data streams into individual logical parts with clean cross-sections, which we could then put together as needed to serve a number of data and process needs. We separated the data streams into logical sections and cross-sections, creating a data model that can be adapted significantly more easily in relation to both data and processes in the future.

At the start of the project, we ran three tracks to establish the right foundation, without referencing the existing model or data.

Reimagined and simplified setup with Corpital's Core Kit

The solution in Business Central comprises over 180 files with various interrelationships forming the foundation. The number of files to be used varies based on the eventual implementation.

When starting a new Business Central, the demo account provided is CRONUS Danmark A/S but this account simply showcases different areas of the application and is not intended for operational use.

The CRONUS setup may seem effective initially but it is not the recommended starting point for a full implementation as it's really just a "quick and dirty" method to highlight some of the application’s main features.

Corpital has created a Core Kit based on a generic chart of accounts, which has been approved by three audit firms. In addition to the chart of accounts, numerous underlying setups have been developed based on years of experience and best practices.

The intention is for users to quickly start and have a solid foundation to discuss setup preferences.

"Using Corpital's Core Kit, we have revisited our chart of accounts. While it has been time-consuming for us (internally), it has been hugely beneficial for us to review and reduce the individual financial accounts significantly.”

Josefin Larsson, Head of Finance at People's

Flexible and precise statistics are made possible through dimensions

Previously, People's created several separate financial accounts for each project, resulting in a long and complex data chart. Only a few dimensions were used and these didn’t reflect the metrics that the company needed to report.

After People's implemented Corpital's Core Kit, the chart of accounts now shows individual cost accounts. Reporting and statistics are based on the fact that dimensions are now configured correctly in Business Central.

"During this process, we have worked very closely with Corpital, who repeatedly kept challenging us on dimensions and dimension values. This has resulted in us having many well-defined dimensions; they are razor-sharp without overlapping the dimension values.”

Josefin Larsson, Head of Finance at People´s

The dimensions are linked to debtors and items with a check requirement on selected ledger accounts to ensure that all postings are correctly populated so the statistical data is correct.

Josefin continues: "In connection with the new architecture around the dimensions, we have also increased our data quality and simplified how we now work. As a simple example, we no longer manually write the author's name on the product card as this information automatically links from data within the system completed in the author dimension.”

People's is now able to combine dimensions for any data extraction, providing them with a much more holistic picture of the business.

Comprehensive cleansing of data

We then dealt with the existing data, identifying how it should be converted into the new architecture. This ensured that we avoided compromising the design of the new solution.

The new solution is structured significantly differently in relation to how products and sales are set up. Data has gone from being "horizontal" to being "vertical". This means that a record no longer contains all the information directly (horizontally) but is instead "cleaner" and has references to other index books and records which together provide the full data set.

The exercise consisted of splitting and manipulating existing data to fit into the new "vertical" data model with several index cards. The data has been cleaned and refined to be fit-for-purpose. For example, CVR numbers are now registered on all debtors and creditors. In addition, the old debtor and creditor numbers have changed to CVR numbers, ensuring no duplication.

Summarizing: Using the new model of splitting and linking the data, Corpital has been able to refine and standardize the existing information and create a fit-for-purpose solution that delivers big wins for People’s.

Automations with Continia

The final part we did before going live was implementing a selection of Continia's products to increase efficiency further.
Continia's solutions, seamlessly integrated within Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central, provide a unified experience and eliminate the need to switch between systems. This not only makes the user interface familiar to Business Central users, but also significantly reduces the learning curve, enhancing efficiency.
Invoices are sent to People's customers with Continia Document Output. Supplier invoices are processed via OCR recognition by Continia Document Capture, reducing the need for manual input. Continia Payment Management handles the direct integration with the bank for both deposits and approved withdrawals.

Last but not least, book-keepers no longer need to perform the traditional tasks, freeing them up to work on more exciting assignments.

The collaboration with Corpital

"It is always with a certain amount of scepticism and nervousness that you replace an older ERP system. Many things must be taken into account, and it is impossible to know everything up-front.

We have a solid partnership with Corpital, having worked with them for almost 20 years and we expect this to continue for many more. A collaboration of this duration is only possible because we feel secure in the relationship, something that this project has once again confirmed.

Corpital's extensive experience is evident in their deep understanding of our business and their seamless integration into our culture. Their consulting team's professionalism and competence, demonstrated in their advice, technical architecture, and development, further endorse their expertise.”

Josefin Larsson, Head of Finance at People's