Client Name

Louis Dreyfus Company

Faculty Advisor

Noureen Ayaz

SBS Thought Leadership Areas

Entrepreneurship and Innovation

SBS Thought Leadership Area Justification

This project's main goal is to create and implement a creative, technologically based solution to fix a persistent operational problem that the LDC team faces which is inefficient and fragmented data in revenue database. Our team has developed a well-planned and automated revenue management system targeted to cater LDC's operational needs instead of using a generic apply-to-all Excel Model. This system not only solves the problem of data duplication but also reduces chances of error making it easier to track performance in real time and make decisions, two important components of innovation-driven system.

The project further falls under the category of intrapreneurship which is an extended form of entrepreneurship that brings innovation within an existing organization - LDC. Our team brought entrepreneurial thinking in a business context by designing an organized and scalable financial automation solution that is tailored specifically for LDC business model. According to SBS's Centre of Innovation and Ed-Transformation that focuses on adding innovation into real-world organizational processes, this project serves the purpose right.

Additionally, this project fulfills the criteria of the ‘digital transformation and process automation’ leadership theme. The model of automation which our team has proposed through this project is noteworthy as it incorporates a framework which is transferable and adaptable in a business environment where most of the industries in Pakistan are still heavily dependent on fragmented database systems and manual data entries. This initiative will provide a way forward for other organizations as well that are planning to update their traditional systems that not only lessen their errors but also improve data transparency without investing in expensive enterprise systems which also consume time to be fully developed. The results from our ELP project serve as a significant case study regarding how innovation, technology, automation and systematic thinking is applicable to real world business problems through the application of academic knowledge. This aligns with IBA SBS's strategic idea of providing practical business solutions that bring social impact and drive innovation.

Aligned SDGs

GOAL 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth

Aligned SDGs Justification

SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth is one of the SDGs that this project aligns with. It provides the basis to support and improve inclusive, long-term economic development - sustainable economic growth by increasing the productivity of financial cycle. The customer database, execution of contracts, invoices, contract execution tracking and reporting make up this whole revenue cycle. We anticipate gains in financial transparency and operational efficiency from the project, both being equally necessary for dynamic economic practices in commodity-driven industries like agriculture, Agri-trade or trade.

NDA

Yes

Abstract

This report presents a summary of the results of the Experiential Learning Project (ELP) completed in partnership with Louis Dreyfus Company (LDC) Pakistan, focusing on the automation of the revenue process for enhanced financial performance, efficiency, and transparency. As an industry leader in the agricultural commodity sector in Pakistan, LDC faces operational hurdles due to dependency on manual processes in an already complex functioning supply chain. The project aimed at creating a central Microsoft Excel based automation system to smoothen the key financial processes which include customer database management, contract generation, delivery orders, and most importantly, invoice generation along with final payment reconciliation. The system reduces the possibility of human errors, automates the financial cycle, through application of dynamic data connections, macros, and validation rules. This project eliminates internal process shortcomings and inefficiencies at LDC while also contributing to the major goals of responsible financial reporting, data sensitivity, and innovation in supply chain management.

Document Type

Restricted Access

Document Name for Citation

Experiential Learning Project - Automation of Revenue Cycle for Louis Dreyfus Company

Download

Share

COinS