1-page Solution Brief - Posted 10/1/2007
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Media Agency Streamlines Operations with Business Management Solution
Business Needs
As one of South Africa’s leading advertisement agencies, Morris Jones & Co has enjoyed continued recognition for business excellence since it changed its name in 2003 from M&C Saatchi. In 2006, the firm realized it needed a new business management system to consolidate the progress it had made under new ownership. The previous business management system had become stagnant: there were only a handful of people with the programming skills to service it, and no time was spent on developing functions to meet new business challenges.
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The benefits are also long term. As we learn the finer points and tweak the system to our needs, we save even more time and can access a larger and more manageable database than was previously possible. |
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Kurt Reed, Finance Director, Morris Jones & Co |
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Kurt Reed, Finance Director, Morris Jones & Co, says: “Bringing a development team up to speed with no industry knowledge would have taken months. If there’s one thing an advertising agency doesn’t have, it’s time.” Reed also realized that developing an in-house software programme from scratch would be too expensive compared to an off-the-shelf solution.
Having talked to his advertisement industry peers, Reed was persuaded that one particular business management system could meet the agency’s three principal business drivers:
- A single fully-integrated solution that connects staff to customers, suppliers, and partners through the Internet—anytime, anywhere.
- A system that provides an agency with an efficient way to streamline operations and increase staff productivity.
- Rapid time to market with minimum customization for managers integrating the new system with existing IT assets.
Solution
After evaluating the market, Morris Jones & Co took advice from ITS, a Microsoft Certified Partner in South Africa whose director Manuela Saraiva has more than 20 years of experience in the advertisement industry. ITS specializes in deploying Microsoft Dynamics NAV, and is an expert in delivering and supporting solutions and systems in the advertisement and media industry.
“The people at ITS have in-depth knowledge,” says Reed. “An important selling point was that the new system would be fully integrated with all the agency’s departments, whereas previously only the finance and production departments were benefiting from the old business management system.”
The agency decided to implement Microsoft Dynamics NAV together with several other Microsoft technologies including Windows® SharePoint® Services, Windows Server® 2003 operating system with Windows Small Business Server, and Microsoft Office 2003 for the desktop.
The two companies first collaborated in May 2006, and Morris Jones & Co ordered the new software by the end of June with implementation taking just a fortnight. Reed says: “I think the implementation went so smoothly and quickly because the ITS team understood the needs of our business so well. They knew exactly what to do, and when to do it.”
The solution resulted in a low total cost of ownership for the agency because it integrated seamlessly with other applications in the Microsoft Office system with minimum disruption to users.
Benefits
By implementing Microsoft Dynamics NAV, Morris Jones & Co has equipped its business with a user-friendly business management system customized to meet the needs of the advertising and media industry in South Africa. Reed says: “The benefits are also long term. As we learn the finer points and tweak the system to our needs, we save even more time and can access a larger and more manageable database than was previously possible.” Other benefits include:
- Increased customer satisfaction and higher retention rates because their needs are met more quickly and accurately with less risk of making errors.
- Enhanced reputation and competitive advantage for the agency with a new system customized for its own particular requirements within the advertisement industry.
- Faster throughput of transactions, which saves time and improves productivity for users compared to the previous system.
- Reporting is now simpler and more effective. By converting documents into PDFs, the agency can e-mail reports, invoices, and statements to customers and managers at the click of a mouse.
- The agency is greener through saving on paper consumption and physical storage. Its people have been freed to tackle more pressing problems than management of paper files.
- Operations have improved because managers can monitor sales performance more easily with a view to improving business processes and maximizing sales opportunities.
- Agency employees can access the new business management tool through a Web browser or Microsoft Office 2003 without any additional costs.
Software and Services
Microsoft Dynamics NAV 4.0
Microsoft Office 2003
Microsoft Server Product Portfolio
Microsoft Small Business Server 2000
Microsoft Windows Server 2003
Technologies
Microsoft Visual Studio .NET 2003
Active Directory
Services
Microsoft SharePoint Services
For more information about other Microsoft customer successes, please visit: www.microsoft.com/resources/casestudies
All rights reserved. This case study is for informational purposes only. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN THIS SUMMARY.
Document published September 2007
