Steadfast Group Limited

Steadfast Group Limited

Introduction

Steadfast is Australia’s largest Insurance Broker Network and is owned by its broker-shareholders. Steadfast is a network of more than 270 government regulated insurance brokerages operating from over 400 offices Australia wide. Annually, the Broker Network generates in excess of $4 billion of premium turnover.

Learn More

Exective Summary

Challenge

Managing financial consolidation for 100+ regulated brokerages across multiple ERP systems was a manual, 4-month process.

Solution

Implemented a finance-led, automated consolidation platform with deep Excel integration and multi-currency capabilities.

Result

Slashed consolidation cycle time from months to 3 days, enabling monthly reporting and shifting the finance team’s focus from data entry to strategic analysis.

The Challenge: Manual Complexity

Prior to the implementation, Steadfast faced significant hurdles in managing their distributed planning and consolidation:

Time-Intensive Processes: During their IPO, consolidation required 3-4 months of work and heavy reliance on top-tier accounting firms.
Fragmented Data: Financials were locked in heterogeneous ERP systems (SAP ByDesign, MYOB, and Xero).
High IT Dependency: The finance team lacked the autonomy to manage the process without constant technical intervention.

The Solution

Steadfast required a robust solution that could act as a unified data platform for planning, reporting and consolidation. Key aspect of solution included:

Seamless Integration: Ability to pull Actuals and Plan data from diverse ERPs.
User Autonomy: A finance-owned solution requiring minimal IT support.
Advanced Accounting Logic: Support for multi-currency conversion, intercompany eliminations, and equity/purchase method consolidation.
Familiar Interface: A strong Excel interface for effortless reporting and data entry.

Solution Design