Terberg Group

When a subsidiary of Terberg Group merged with the Spanish RosRoca Group, the turnover doubled. This demands major changes in the reporting flows, especially as two different reporting GAAPS are used. The family-owned business also wants to improve the planning process. All these changes can be implemented quickly using OneStream.‍

OneStream at Terberg Group

A merger between Terberg Environmental and the Spanish RosRoca Group has now made the Terberg Group one of the bigger players in Europe. “The takeover meant we doubled in size,” says Bart de Haas of the Terberg Group. Turnover increased by a factor of roughly two and the international organization has grown to 2500 employees. The number of entities has also doubled, from 25 to 50. The family company is a worldwide supplier of products such as specialized vehicles and lease cars.

Multiple Gaaps on a single platform

Multiple GAAPs on a single platform This acquisition is impacting the finance department in several ways. “We saw a broader requirement for information and wanted to professionalize our reporting streams further,” adds Bart. “On top of that, we’re now reporting according to both Dutch and UK GAAP.”

The new Terberg RosRoca Group has its registered office in the United Kingdom. This means that reporting has to follow UK GAAP, while the Terberg Group reports according to Dutch GAAP.

“Users don´t need to enter data in spreadsheets. Instead, it goes directly into OneStream”

A unique solution is being created around the reporting for the two different GAAPs. “Both GAAPs are generated within the same platform,” says Andreas Nederhoed from AIQOS. He was involved in the implementation of OneStream. “The entities load the data in one go, after which we report on it in two ways.” AIQOS and Finext are partner organizations and often work closely together.

Leading the way

The Terberg Group likes taking the lead in its consolidation and reporting processes. For instance, the company was only the second organization in the Benelux area to implement OneStream. “The flexibility of OneStream helps the integration,” says Ivo Jansen from the Terberg Group. “That flexibility was originally one of the reasons for choosing this solution.” Other reasons for the choice at the time included the speed and reliability.

The family-owned business would like to do a lot more with the platform. “We’re only using 20% of the capabilities of OneStream,” says Bart. Reason enough to start a follow-up implementation. “OneStream can do much more than what we initially purchased it for, for example in terms of cross-sections and reporting requirements,” says Ivo. “Now that we know the potential of OneStream, we can set it up even better.”

Rolling forecast

One of the next steps is setting up the planning process. “We want to make the planning process more efficient,” says Bart. “Last year it took us three months to collect the budgets, get them into OneStream and have them come out neatly.”

“OneStream can support that process well,” adds Maaike Brouwer from Finext. “We have set it up, so users don’t need to enter data in spreadsheets. Instead, it goes directly into OneStream.”

Bart is very much in favor of a rolling forecast. “Everyone is really busy during the budgeting cycle in September, but I want the organization to keep its eye on the future at all times. When you make an eighteen-month forecast in June, you’ve already got the first version of your budget. The management can take a look at that already. The feedback from the management, such as asking for lower costs or more turnover, can then be incorporated in the following forecast. The forecast is looked at every month, which results in it being more and more accurate.”

This demands a mental shift within the organization. “This way of thinking isn’t aligned yet with what the controllers are used to,” says Ivo. “OneStream can do everything, but the people have to be on board too,” agrees Bart. “You want to avoid people thinking it’s a black box.”

A larger-scale change process

Terberg Group is also developing fast in terms of its internal organization. “We are busy improving how professional the organization is. It’s all about the larger-scale change process,” says Bart. “How do we want to manage the organization, now that we’ve grown? George Terberg has run the business for 37 years. He had such a feel for the business that he didn’t need the figures to know whether things were going well. But the organization has grown and he’s taking more of a back seat. The Executive Board needs more information.”

“It is important not to lose sight of the purpose of the changes. You have to keep asking yourself what it´s being used for”

At the same time, information requirements on the business side are also playing a role. “Each business unit has a lot of freedom – entrepreneurship is highly valued,” says Bart. “OneStream is very flexible, so we hope to be able to respond quickly to information requests. This really highlights the value of a software package like this.”

Weighing up the wish lists

When implementing all the wishes, Bart and Ivo think it is important not to lose sight of the purpose of the changes. “You have to keep asking yourself what it’s being used for,” says Bart. For instance, reporting to the group pulls things in a different direction compared to the local accountability requirements. “The countries have to report to the group twelve times a year. That should have priority over the local accountability requirements, where the local organization only has to report once a year.”

“If you look at all the options in the package,” says Ivo, “your first instinct is to make it all too complex. It’s better to keep things simple, this makes it more understandable, more efficient, and easier to exchange.”