Case Study: Non-profit
70% Faster Month-End Closings with a Unified Global ERP
A strategic ERP shift from QuickBooks to Dynamics 365 drove global efficiency.
About the Client
With a mission to end hunger and boost sustainability, our client leads global agricultural research across 40+ countries. As a key CGIAR partner, they pioneer science-based solutions that empower farmers, improve crop resilience, and strengthen food security for communities around the world.
The Challenges
- The organization’s headquarters had adopted Microsoft Dynamics 365 F&O, while the country offices relied on QuickBooks or manual tools, resulting in a fragmented financial ecosystem.
- Country office expenses were manually extracted and re-entered at HQ, causing delays, errors, and duplicated effort in project costing.
- Manual data transfers delayed month-end closing by a week, impacting reporting timelines and overall organizational responsiveness.
- Lack of real-time expense tracking from country offices limited HQ’s project visibility, hindering budget control, reporting, and forecasting.
- QuickBooks users lacked real-time, standardized reports, limiting local budget monitoring, vendor management, and performance tracking.
- Duplicate data entry increased errors, compliance risks, and audit overhead.
The Solutions
- D365 Rolled out Across Country Offices: Replaced QuickBooks with D365 F&O, enabling centralized operations, real-time data, and standardized global financial processes.
- Automated Intercompany Accounting: Implemented intercompany framework in D365 for seamless monthly P&L transfers, ensuring auditability and zero local impact.
- Faster Month-End Close: Automated workflows cut month-end closing from 5–7 days to just 1–2 business days.
- Unified Reporting: Enabled real-time, standardized reporting for HQ and country offices using D365 tools and Power BI integration.
- Centralized Data & Security: Standardized master data and enforced role-based security for consistent governance and compliance across all legal entities.
Key Benefits Achieved
- ERP integration across all locations
CIMMYT now operates a unified ERP on Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance & Operations, streamlining financial transactions, controls, and processes across all locations. - Elimination of Manual Data Entry and Reconciliation
Eliminating manual reposting freed finance teams, reduced errors, and improved data accuracy across country and HQ operations. - 70%+ Reduction in Month-End Close Time
Month-end closures now take 1–2 days, enabling faster reporting, timely budget insights, and quicker donor and management responses. - Real-Time Visibility into Global Project Costs
HQ gains real-time visibility into project costs, improving budget adherence, faster variance analysis, and donor confidence. - Strengthened Audit and Compliance Posture
Automation and traceable transactions have strengthened audit readiness and ensured compliance with internal controls and donor requirements. - Empowered Country Offices with Local Reporting and Control
Country offices access live reports aligned with HQ, enabling effective operations while ensuring compliance with global policies.
What the Client Said
“Migrating to Dynamics 365 was a game-changer. We’ve cut month-end closes from a week to two days and finally have real-time visibility into our global finances.”
Director of Finance and Operations