CorPlan wins contract to supply SkyCity with IBM software

CorPlan NZ has secured a contract to supply SkyCity Entertainment Group with the IBM Planning Analytics software for improving their budgeting and forecasting processes. The contract was awarded to CorPlan following a competitive commercial process that involved multiple vendors, highlighting the demonstrated benefits of IBM's well-regarded analytics platform.

Matthew Hill, Director at CorPlan NZ, noted that SkyCity's complex requirements make the IBM Planning Analytics cloud software a fitting choice. "Through multiple deployments into some of New Zealand's most recognised businesses, including manufacturers, primary producers, state-owned enterprises and more, CorPlan has helped improve planning, budgeting and forecasting with IBM Planning Analytics. We're excited at the opportunity to deliver similar success for SkyCity," he said.

Adam Williams, SkyCity Entertainment Group's Finance Manager - Systems, underscored the importance of budgeting and forecasting in managing the company's multifaceted operations. "A tool like IBM Planning Analytics supports distributed management. We pay close attention to the results, down to the daily level on budgets against forecasts. That feeds into decisions around capital spend on projects, what we can set aside for dividends, and so on," Williams explained.

Williams added that CorPlan was chosen for its demonstrated ability to deliver solutions and the suitability of IBM Planning Analytics for SkyCity's needs. "Our assessment showed that IBM Planning Analytics was the best solution for our requirements. This isn't an upgrade but a brand-new implementation eliminating shortcomings and providing extended functionality," said Williams. He also praised CorPlan's presentation, particularly their ability to create a credible mock-up of SkyCity's environment quickly using IBM Planning Analytics. "We were also impressed with the visual quality of the interface and reports generated within IBM Planning Analytics," he remarked.

Hill further elaborated on the partnership, stating that SkyCity's needs align with CorPlan's capabilities. He highlighted their extensive experience with numerous New Zealand businesses, stating, "It's often said that 'data is the new oil', but to this day, a surprising number of organisations, from not-for-profits through to substantial enterprises, remain overly reliant on spreadsheets."

Hill mentioned that CorPlan's solutions address a widespread problem across companies, both large and small. "What we realised is that 'spreadsheet-hell' isn't a problem only in large companies, but almost every organisation is reliant on silos of manual, disconnected, error-prone spreadsheets to run their business. And that the data challenge faced by the world's biggest companies aren't all that different from those of regional businesses, not-for-profits, and even town and district councils," he said.

He pointed out that the flexibility and scalability of the IBM Planning Analytics software make it suitable for a wide range of organisations. "While initially designed and targeted at the enterprise, IBM software – notably Planning Analytics – scales very well for anything from teams of 10 users for a small district council, to the hundreds required by an enterprise," Hill commented.

In the current economic landscape, Hill indicated that accurate, up-to-date insights derived from raw data, scenario planning, and analysis are more essential than ever. "In these times, business leaders need to model, plan and analyse their data in more detail and run various what-if scenarios. These processes simply cannot be completed in an agile manner using spreadsheets," he concluded.