Client Case Study Lease Management Solution Industry Retail ecifm Solutions Inc. 3160 Crow Canyon San Ramon, CA 94583 USA Telephone: 925 830 1925 Fax: 925 830 2750 www.ecifm.com
Overview The Need SaaS based comprehensive lease management solution for 450+ retail locations FASB compliance The Solution IBM TRIRIGA Retail Real Estate Application as Software as a Service (SaaS) solution Integration and cross communication with SAP system Synchronization of lease information between SAP and IBM TRIRIGA IBM TRIRIGA Project Manager to track and plan capital projects The Business Benefits Single unified view of real estate portfolio with enhanced reporting capabilities Streamlined and optimized real estate portfolio Compatibility with latest FASB / IASB lease accounting standard Overall lower cost of operations and systems National Retail Chain: Aggressive Expansion and Increasing Retail Footprint The Client: a growing national retail chain provides one-stop shopping for prestige, cosmetics and salon products and services in the United States. The company operates about 450 stores in 43 states. Its stores are conveniently located in hightraffic, off-mall locations and are approximately 10,000 sq. ft. in size. The giant retailer has aggressively expanded since 2007 increasing its retail footprint, and opening hundreds of stores. Need: Managing Leases Effectively and Achieving FASB Compliance With a goal of growing its stores network to 1,000 locations in the near future, the company sought a state-of-the-art Retail Real Estate Management tool and a solution provider capable of accommodating its increasing demand to manage retail leases very effectively. The client required a comprehensive lease management solution to manage leases of its 450+ retail locations. The recently announced Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) rule change requires capitalization of all operating leases including real estate, equipment and IT infrastructure on the corporate balance sheet. Hence the client wanted to seek help in reducing the impact of the change and avoid maintaining dual books. Based on ecifm s credentials and experience in this space, the client chose ecifm s Retail Real Estate application powered by IBM TRIRIGA.. Page 1
Solution: Comprehensive Single Point Solution to Effectively Manage Real Estate Leases and Capital Projects ecifm provided the client with a comprehensive real estate management solution in order to help them manage different aspects of real state and functions namely - lease administration, facilities and capital projects. We are extremely satisfied with IBM TRIRIGA SaaS solution provided by ecifm. - Manager, Corporate Real Estate Systems Solution Components Software IBM TRIRIGA Retail Real Estate Modules Real Estate Management - SaaS Facilities Management Lease Management Capital Project Management To manage the lease data more effectively, ecifm implemented the IBM TRIRIGA Retail Real Estate application as an affordable Software as a Service (SaaS) solution, securely accessible from anywhere over the web. The solution provided the client with a single portfolio view for their legacy Accruent data, hard copy lease information, and other mandated requirements. The secure financial and lease data is stored in ecifm s state-of-theart data center. The single, integrated web-based system was synchronized and communicated with client s corporate SAP system. The ecifm solution created monthly rent amounts based on the sales data transmitted to it from SAP. Rents were sent over to SAP for payment in the system. Other points of synchronization between IBM TRIRIGA and the SAP system were updating the vendor information, the retail location information, and the payment information. ecifm implemented IBM TRIRIGA Project Manager to track and plan capital projects. The solution streamlined identification of operational and financial improvements. It improved evaluation of investments alternatives to maximize the company s returns from capital spend. Page 2
Results: Optimizing and Streamlining Property Portfolio While Reducing Financial and Balance Sheet Impact The Real Estate Management solution helped streamline and optimize real estate portfolio whereby the client could effectively manage retail portfolio from acquisition to disposition, and streamline store planning, execution, remodels, closures and relocation. The system also helped in evaluating and identifying underperforming locations, resources and processes. The integrated real estate management system consolidated client s key business processes, centralized lease and data management processes and generated higher Return on Assets (ROA). It provided ease of use and accessibility over the web. The client now realizes an overall lower cost of operations. Lease management effectiveness helped them with analyzing and forecasting lease renewals and new real estate transactions. The client could easily identify when to renegotiate lease terms and rate, mitigate the risk of missing critical dates, and maximize real estate and asset management with real-time data. Most importantly, the client was able to avoid penalties and overpayments by reducing data errors in lease administration. The solution provided enhanced reporting and supported the latest FASB / IASB Lease Accounting Standard (Topic 840). The client has been more proactive as opposed to reactive in compliance preparedness. Page 3
How Can We Help? Founded in 2001, ecifm Solutions Inc. is an AAA accredited IBM Premier Business Partner providing Integrated Work Place Management Systems (IWMS) for organizations looking to improve their organization s real estate portfolios, facilities and workplace management. The AAA accreditation relays that IBM has endorsed ecifm s ability to provide advanced deployment professionals for the IBM TRIRIGA software suite. ecifm has over 12 years of experience implementing IWMS solutions for various clients in the corporate, education, federal, state and local government. ecifm s value added solutions boost organizations overall operational effectiveness and helps its clients achieve significant return from their investments. For more information about ecifm Solutions Inc., visit ecifm.com or call (925) 830-1925. Visit ecifm.com/iwms/index.php/technology/ for information about IBM TRIRIGA. Copyright ecifm Solutions Inc. 2013 3160 Crow Canyon Road, Suite 240, San Ramon, CA 94583 Office: (925) 830-1925 Fax: (925) 830-2750 Please consider the environment before printing this case study Page 4