Background
A mid-sized property insurance company engaged me as Corporate Controller to bridge the gap period between a departing Controller through the onboarding of a new permanent Controller. The company had outgrown its existing systems and processes, which were primarily managed through QuickBooks Enterprise and a mix of manual spreadsheets. Although the company had already purchased Microsoft Dynamics Great Plains (Great Plains) several years earlier, the implementation had stalled before any meaningful progress was made.
When I arrived, the leadership team wanted to finally move the organization onto Great Plains to improve visibility, control and scalability while maintaining day-to-day accounting continuity during the transition.
Challenges
The engagement presented several unique challenges:
Underutilized investment: The company owned Great Plains for years but never implemented it, resulting in sunk costs and a perception that the project would be difficult or risky.
Resource constraints: The internal accounting team consisted of only four employees, three clerks and one experienced staff accountant, so balancing the implementation with routine accounting duties required careful planning.
Dual accounting structure: Corporate accounting was handled internally while the specialized insurance accounting was outsourced to a third-party firm. This created data flow, chart-of-accounts alignment and procedural coordination challenges that had to be resolved for the new ERP to function seamlessly.
Compressed timeline: I started at the company in early August and the executive management team wanted to go live with Great Plains no later than January 1, a hard deadline tied to the fiscal year.
Approach
To ensure a smooth and successful implementation, I took a structured and pragmatic approach focused on planning, coordination and disciplined execution.
1. Planning and Design
Working closely with the company’s implementation partner, I led the development of a detailed implementation plan that balanced ongoing operations with project milestones. Key planning tasks included:
- Designing a new chart of accounts that consolidated redundant accounts and aligned the structure between the corporate and insurance entities
- Defining clear data-mapping rules to enable the import of historical data from QuickBooks
- Establishing a phased implementation schedule that allowed the small accounting team to maintain regular closings while contributing to the ERP transition
- Coordinating with the outsourced insurance accounting firm to ensure that transaction coding, account reconciliation and reporting conventions would remain consistent after implementation
The planning phase lasted about two months and overlapped with my normal responsibilities including monthly closings, reconciliations and oversight of daily accounting activity.
2. Data Migration and System Configuration
Once the design was finalized, we began the data-migration process.
- The team successfully migrated three full years of historical data from QuickBooks into Great Plains, giving the company continuity and full reporting visibility without maintaining the old system.
- I worked closely with the implementation partner to configure key modules, including General Ledger, Accounts Payable and Bank Reconciliation, while ensuring that workflow controls matched the company’s internal segregation-of-duties requirements.
3. Policy and Procedure Overhaul
As part of the ERP implementation, it became clear that many existing accounting processes were undocumented, inconsistent or inefficient. I took the opportunity to completely rewrite the accounting policies and procedures, developing a comprehensive manual that:
- Standardized transaction processing, account reconciliations and month-end close steps
- Clarified roles and responsibilities within the small accounting team
- Defined new approval and documentation standards consistent with best practices
This documentation supported a successful system rollout and positioned the new permanent Controller for a smooth transition.
4. Parallel Run and Go-Live
The implementation phase lasted approximately three weeks, after which we launched a parallel run in both QuickBooks and Great Plains for one full month. This provided a safety net to validate data accuracy and ensure that the new processes functioned properly.
After the parallel period, QuickBooks was fully decommissioned as of November 30, allowing the company to complete the transition one month ahead of schedule and well under budget.
5. Transition and Knowledge Transfer
The new permanent Controller joined the company in early December, and I remained for a three-week overlap period to ensure a seamless handoff. During this time, I trained the incoming Controller and the accounting team on system functionality, month-end close procedures and reporting workflows in Great Plains.
Results
The project achieved every key objective:
On-time and under-budget implementation: The system went live one month earlier than planned with total costs well below the approved budget.
Improved financial visibility: Consolidated reporting and structured data enabled management to see performance across the corporate and insurance entities in real time.
Operational efficiency: Manual processes were eliminated or automated, reducing close time and freeing staff to focus on analysis rather than transaction entry.
Sustained team performance: Despite limited resources, the accounting team maintained regular operations throughout the project with no late closings or interruptions.
Documented procedures: The new policy and procedure manual became a permanent resource for the company and its auditors, enhancing compliance and control.
Key Takeaways
Implementing an ERP system is as much about people and process as it is about technology. In this engagement, success came from combining strong project management discipline with a pragmatic understanding of day-to-day accounting realities. By aligning internal staff, an external accounting vendor and a third-party implementation partner under a clear and actionable plan, the company transformed its accounting infrastructure and set the stage for sustainable growth and control.
Why Businesses Trust CFOBPO
At CFOBPO we approach ERP and system transformations with this same balance of strategy, structure and practicality. Whether implementing from scratch, upgrading legacy platforms or optimizing workflows, we focus on real-world results by delivering systems that work, teams that perform and processes that scale.
CFOBPO helps companies modernize their finance and accounting systems to improve visibility, control and scalability. Whether implementing a new ERP, upgrading legacy systems or optimizing existing processes, our focus is on practical results that strengthen performance and reduce risk.