Headquartered in the UK, Mace is an international consultancy and construction company that offers highly integrated services across the full property and infrastructure lifecycle. It employs 3,700 people in more than 60 countries worldwide, and is involved in some of the world’s highest-profile projects, such as the construction of London’s “Shard”, the tallest building in Western Europe. Many of Mace’s international projects are contracted on a fixed-price basis, and their success depends on the company’s ability to control costs and maintain profitability. Until recently, the only way for senior managers to gain a full understanding of international operations was a monthly report, based on a complex spreadsheet which drew data from numerous different accounting systems in subsidiaries around the world. Brendan Kitley, Finance Systems Manager at Mace, comments: “The spreadsheet on which we based our international reports had about 40 tabs and hundreds of cross-links, which meant it was very easy to introduce errors, and the lack of a standardized approach was affecting accuracy and consistency. We wanted to find a more robust process for financial reporting.”

1. What was the reporting challenge Mace was facing? Do you think this is an unusual challenge specific to Mace?
2. What was the approach for a potential solution?
3. What were the results obtained in the short term, and what were the future plans?