Overview
Government Brands LLC is a preferred government provider of software and integrated payment solutions. Headquartered in Alpharetta, Georgia, the company offers comprehensive solutions for all sizes of government entities—from municipalities to federal agencies—with thousands of clients in all 50 states and Canada. Government Brands has over 500 employees, senior advisors and operating partners that work in offices throughout the United States and Europe.
Background
Government Brands worked with RSM US LLP to manage their business better through the implementation of the NetSuite enterprise resource planning system. Following the implementation and configuration, Government Brands determined that a managed services solution from a trusted third party could help continuously optimize its NetSuite investment.
Project
Based on the successful NetSuite implementation and a positive working relationship, Government Brands selected RSM to provide ongoing managed services support. RSM quickly transitioned from implementation to a support role, and has made several key improvements to Government Brands’ NetSuite environment in a year of service thus far.
“I had experience with NetSuite at my previous employer, and we did not use managed support services,” said Jerry Pan, assistant controller and NetSuite administrator at Government Brands. “It can be difficult to get general support directly from NetSuite, but with RSM, it is much easier and they are very helpful. I think it’s been a very good move.”
For example, RSM has provided a variety of NetSuite solutions and support services, including revenue arrangement issue resolution and training, basic saved search and reporting updates, advanced PDF templates for the customer invoicing process, and biannual release guidance and support.
“RSM is very responsive, with very prompt services,” commented Pan. “In many cases, if I have an issue, they can help right away. Sometimes, we have to escalate an issue or talk to a developer, test a solution in Sandbox and then move it into production. We also have had a few situations that were beyond the scope of managed services where we leveraged the RSM development team. That has also worked well for us.”
In addition, during the NetSuite managed services engagement, RSM has introduced critical new functionality for Government Brands. For instance, RSM automated the company’s positive pay file, which was a process that required intensive manual effort and created audit risks. The managed services team also modified transaction forms to default data in key fields for proper recording of activity to the company’s general ledger, and updated customer statements to ensure accurate data is sent to customers for collections.
At times, the function of a role or user responsibilities have evolved for Government Brands, and RSM has helped the company stay ahead of any potential issues with amended workflows and enhanced internal controls.
“Sometimes, responsibilities may change, so we have to modify or change that role within NetSuite,” said Pan. “RSM has also really helped me define workflows—such as the process of approving a vendor record in our accounts payable and how a senior accountant or team leader would approve the record. I got quick help from RSM in that regard, and that has really helped with our internal controls.”
Moving forward, the scope of the NetSuite managed services relationship between Government Brands and RSM appears set to expand further. Government Brands is currently evaluating release updates within the latest version of NetSuite, and RSM may help the company test new features to understand their impact to the overall environment. In addition, RSM may provide similar support and recommendations as Government Brands considers integrating the incentive management module into NetSuite to calculate sales commissions.
Outcomes
Through the NetSuite managed services solution from RSM, Government Brands has an experienced team at the ready to tailor the ERP platform to the company’s specific needs. By leveraging a depth of responsive resources, Government Brands can take advantage of opportunities and address any potential issues in a timely manner. With continued transactions and growth, the company has a bright future, and its NetSuite system is now ready to support increased functionality and demand.
Key benefits of RSM’s NetSuite managed services solution for Government Brands include:
- Enhanced internal controls and more efficient business processes as a result of automation
- Improved customer invoicing
- A better understanding of advanced revenue recognition processes
- Customization of transaction fields for better internal controls
- Customization of segment reporting
- Script development for special needs
