Studio 100 improves employee engagement with ERP upgrade
Avanade moves the media giant into the cloud with a new Microsoft Dynamics 365 platform.Merelbeke, Belgium, 17th of October 2018
Studio 100 chose Avanade to move to the cloud with the new Microsoft Dynamics 365 tailor-made for the media giant. This digital transformation of the ERP systems supports the company’s growth and increases its flexibility with a user-friendly alternative. Avanade and Studio 100 have been working together for over 10 years and the mutual trust has resulted in a smooth delivery.
Studio 100 is built on creativity and grows through the power of imagination. With operations around the world, the company produces popular television series and theater productions for children, as well as TV and stage shows aimed at teenagers and adults.
Work on the Dynamics 365 implementation began with a comprehensive envisioning phase — using Avanade’s business advisory expertise — during which our team worked with Studio 100 to get a detailed understanding of what its people do and how they do it. This ensured that all requirements could be incorporated into the solution with an intuitive user interface design.
“Our relationship over the past 10 years has brought a lot of open communication,” explains Lieven De Geeter, Studio 100’s Director of Procurement, ICT and Facilities. “With this project we experienced a couple of issues, but we could always talk to Avanade and quickly find a solution together.”
“We are very happy to continue our long-term partnership with Studio 100 since we have a very similar vision to grow our business through innovation and customer focus” says Christophe Vandenabeele, Business Application Lead at Avanade Belgium. “This project is also a confirmation of our leading capabilities in helping customers move to the cloud based on Dynamics 365”.
Solution: A new platform takes center stage
Avanade previously collaborated with Studio 100 in 2008 for the implementation of the Microsoft Dynamics AX 4.0 platform. These tools became outdated and needed to be replaced. Additionally, the on-premises infrastructure was only available to office staff and could not be accessed by creative teams on location.
Studio 100 needed a tool that could perform these functions in real-time, which is why moving its ERP into a more flexible cloud environment was the way to go. It needed insight, intelligence and innovation to modernize its operations and continue its global expansion.
The company’s new cloud platform will primarily be used by the finance, procurement and sales teams, but will also make life easier for creative users in the field by allowing them to submit invoices and expenses on the fly. The solution incorporates several new tools from independent software vendors (ISVs) to replace the previous administrative applications.
The cloud platform is easily scalable for future growth. As Studio 100 acquires more companies, these companies can be quickly integrated into the same central system for increased visibility and efficient operations. During the implementation Avanade used an agile delivery method which Studio 100 quickly came to appreciate.
“In the end, agility brings a lot of benefits,” explains De Geeter. “It allows you to go faster by concentrating on those things that are important at each step of the process. We’re always looking to expand. We are quite ambitious to bring our content all over the world.”
Results: A round of applause for a successful partnership
Studio 100 fully trusts Avanade’s delivery team since they have been working together for the past 10 years. Avanade also has extensive experience leading digital transformation projects for clients across multiple industries.
Upon launch, Studio 100’s Dynamics 365 platform will be used by nearly two-thirds of its 200-plus employees. This platform will provide the capabilities and user-friendliness the company has been looking for. Studio 100 believes this project will be a stepping stone to doing more business in the cloud. This will help it boost operational agility, increase insight and become a more intelligent enterprise.
The project also demonstrates the importance of having a trusted adviser for large-scale digital transformation projects. Peter Kip, Functional Analyst at Studio 100, sums it up: “We look for parties that think like us, and are proactively coming up with solutions tailor-made for us. They have to understand our mindset, make suggestions and deliver products that answer our needs,” he says. “Avanade has succeeded in performing this way over the past year, and we are very pleased with that.”
About Avanade
Avanade is the leading provider of innovative digital and cloud services, business solutions and design-led experiences delivered through the power of people and the Microsoft ecosystem. Our professionals bring bold, fresh thinking combined with technology, business and industry expertise to help fuel transformation and growth for our clients and their customers. Avanade has 30,000 digitally connected people across 24 countries, bringing clients the best thinking through a collaborative culture that honors diversity and reflects the communities in which we operate. Majority owned by Accenture, Avanade was founded in 2000 by Accenture LLP and Microsoft Corporation. Learn more at www.avanade.be.
PRESS RELEASE
Studio 100 improves employee engagement with ERP upgrade
Avanade moves the media giant into the cloud with a new Microsoft Dynamics 365 platform.
