GetWireless is a leading distributor of cellular solutions and IoT products such as modems, gateways, signal boosters and more. You might be using products supplied by GetWireless and not even know it!
Their business model is built around partnering with wireless providers, value-added resellers, solution providers and other vendors. This partnering model can be challenging to manage and requires a robust Enterprise Resource Management (ERP) solution to support it. Since they are manually tracking multiple vendors, partners, and users — all on different price structures — it gets complicated quickly.
The team at GetWireless, led by Bryan Rasmussen, COO and Co-founder, collaborated with Boyer & Associates to enhance their operations with an ERP digital transformation. Catherine Dean, President of the Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance and Supply Chain Management (FSCM) division at Boyer, suggested the enterprise ERP to help GetWireless enhance their operations.
The result? GetWireless streamlined processes, automated workflows, and got the support they need to keep up with their ambitious growth plans.
Challenges of a legacy ERP
GetWireless had outgrown their legacy systems comprised of both QuickBooks and integrated home-grown applications. In essence, they had a custom-built supply chain management solution wrapped around QuickBooks that involved entirely too many manual processes. They realized they needed a robust ERP system that could pull everything into a central location and provide them with the functionality to run their business and support growth.
GetWireless faced numerous challenges with their legacy systems that made it hard to grow:
- Non-scalable solutions: The custom-built system could not keep pace with the company’s growing and evolving needs.
- Too many manual processes: Critical functions, such as pricing, returns, inventory management, and invoicing were very labor-intensive, prone to errors, and simply inefficient.
- Limited reporting capabilities: The only numbers GetWireless could rely on were based on reconciled month-end data, which lacked detail and were weeks old. Imagine trying to understand profitability when the only data you have is static and suspect!
- Inadequate controls: With QuickBooks the security options were limited, i.e., AR could see AP information and vice versa. GetWireless needed a system that could provide internal accounting controls, like role-based logins, to ensure segregation of duties to adhere to compliance regulations.
The search for an ERP digital transformation
GetWireless looked at roughly 10 different ERP solutions and narrowed it down to two: NetSuite and Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance and Supply Chain Management (FSCM), formerly called Finance and Operations (F&O).
Rasmussen said that NetSuite’s boilerplate demo was underwhelming, and the system required many extra add-on modules to fit their needs. All-in-all, it was a disappointing experience.
He said that Dean’s team took the time to get to know their business requirements up-front, which enabled them to give an in-depth demonstration tailored to GetWireless’s needs. FSCM came with pre-built modules that suited the company’s core operations, meaning significantly fewer add-ons. These factors made Boyer and FSCM the obvious choice.
Benefits of supply chain management with FSCM
The FSCM implementation for GetWireless was truly a complete ERP digital transformation, Rasmussen said. Boyer was able to help GetWireless harness a suite of advanced features designed to automate and streamline business processes, enhance data accuracy and security, and support rapid scalability.
Using FSCM to meet their business requirements, GetWireless was able to achieve the operational excellence they wanted to support their growth plans. Here’s how:
Automation and efficiency
Automation of manual processes helped to streamline workflows and create efficiencies. This alone saved the warehouse and accounting teams hours every day. Long gone are the days of manual posting of invoices and re-keying details from every sales order.
- Pricing and rebates: Boyer’s configuration of the new system allowed for automation of complex pricing scenarios and rebate calculations. This significantly reduced human error, increased customer satisfaction, and freed up valuable employee time.
- Inventory and warehouse management: The new ERP system included Advanced Warehousing capabilities. This led to increased inventory accuracy and streamlined their warehouse processes, ensuring optimal stock levels and efficient order fulfillment.
- Invoicing and RMA tracking: Automated invoicing processes replaced manual tracking. No longer did they have to dig and search for shipping information, which gave them faster and more accurate billing cycles.
- Stronger accounting controls: Improved internal controls and segregation of duties ensure compliance and security. QuickBooks lacked controls around access and who could see what. With FSCM, now the AP clerk only sees AP information and the AR staff only sees AR information.
Enhanced reporting and controls
The new reporting tools are a game-changer for GetWireless. They rave about having real-time data at their fingertips. This gives them enhanced reporting capabilities so they can make informed decisions and change action if needed. Not only does GetWireless have more and better report options, but every single one of those reports also has the details needed to check transactions and address issues daily instead of waiting until month-end.
“The reporting has expontentially gotten better. We have a lot more details than we ever had before.”
– Anne Murawski, GetWireless VP of Finance and Administration
Real-time data has been the star of the show. With FSCM, GetWireless can now access real-time, meaningful data, which they never had before. This results in improved decision-making across departments and gives executives a clear picture of the company’s operational performance.
Comprehensive training and support
Boyer ensured a smooth, go-live transition by providing extensive training and on-site support.
“(Boyer) was onsite for about a week. Without that, we would not have had anywhere near the success that we did,” said Rasmussen. This sort of hands-on approach and commitment from the Boyer team guaranteed every department was well-equipped to leverage the new system fully.
Life now at GetWireless
The Boyer team helped GetWireless not only leave behind the limitations of their legacy systems but also unlock their full potential for growth and efficiency. The results speak volumes about the effectiveness of this ERP digital transformation, highlighting significant improvements in operational accuracy, productivity, and overall business performance.
By automating just the one task of processing invoices, GetWireless freed up over 467 hours (about 12 business weeks) per year.
Process optimization with the Microsoft stack
Beyond implementing FSCM, Boyer helped GetWireless take advantage of powerful integrations with other Microsoft products, giving them even greater efficiency and insights.
- Microsoft Dynamics 365 Sales (CRM) – GetWireless was successfully using Dynamics 365 Sales prior to implementing FSCM. During the implementation, the Boyer team helped revise the sales process flow to work efficiently across the two platforms and integrated them seamlessly using Dataverse and Dual Write.
- Microsoft Power Apps was used to extract Excel documents from advanced shipment notice (ASN) emails from vendors. These Excel documents contain the serial number and associated information needed to register the Purchase Order receipt, so this information does not need to be manually entered – It’s fully automated and error free.
- Microsoft Power BI-embedded is used for custom reporting that shows:
- Budget vs. Actual sales by Financial Dimension
- Customer and Item Profitability
- Sales Backlog
- Open Quotations
- Detailed Gross Margin by Invoice
These reports (and more) allow management to make confident decisions based on clear, accurate, current data.
Dean and her team’s capabilities and dedication were instrumental in transforming operations for GetWireless, Rasmussen said. Choosing FSCM and Boyer provided GetWireless with a scalable, efficient, and robust ERP solution tailored to meet all the needs of their growing business.
