Global EPM platform replaced
FlexiEPM replaced a global EPM solution previously used for IFRS 16 reporting, while retaining the required functionality and historical reporting outputs.
More than 8,000 contracts processed
The platform calculates more than 50 financial measures for over 8,000 contracts and produces a complete IFRS 16 schedule for every relevant reporting date.
High-performance calculation engine
A complete annual model can be recalculated in approximately six to seven minutes.
Full calculation transparency
Detailed audit reports show the calculation of each contract for each reporting date, providing a complete audit trail for liabilities, right-of-use assets, interest, and depreciation.
Project overview
The project involved migrating TopFarms’ complete IFRS 16 process and historical data from the previous EPM solution to FlexiEPM.
FlexiEPM now supports:
- more than 8,000 active contracts;
- over 50 financial measures calculated monthly;
- complete IFRS 16 schedules for each contract;
- bulk updates using controlled Excel input packages;
- retroactive registration of contracts without reopening closed periods;
- multiple discounting methodologies;
- detailed asset and liability movement analysis;
- audit reports for every contract and reporting date;
- historical data reconciled to previously audited values.
The complete annual recalculation takes approximately six minutes. The full process of copying, processing, consolidating, and recalculating data for a new financial year takes less than 30 minutes, compared with approximately 24 hours in the previous environment.
Challenge
TopFarms had previously implemented a global EPM platform to support IFRS 16 accounting.
The finance team experienced three principal limitations:
- long model-calculation and report-opening times;
- insufficient quality and responsiveness of technical support;
- high SaaS licensing costs for a broad software suite, of which only a limited portion was used.
The scale of the IFRS 16 process made performance a critical requirement. The solution had to calculate more than 50 measures for over 8,000 contracts, with a full accounting schedule generated for every contract and balance-sheet date.
The previous system also maintained each financial year as a separate calculation dataset. Contracts reported late by local entities could therefore create inconsistencies between closing and opening balances. The finance team had to prepare additional reports explaining these differences for audit purposes.
Solution
TopFarms selected FlexiEPM as its new IFRS 16 reporting platform.
The system was deployed in the company’s own IT environment and licensed specifically for the required IFRS 16 functionality, reducing the total cost of ownership compared with the previous SaaS suite.
The FlexiEPM calculation engine was optimized for large contract volumes. It processes more than 8,000 contracts and recalculates a complete financial year in approximately six to seven minutes.
To support efficient contract administration at this scale, the project introduced a dedicated bulk-update workflow.
Users can:
- export all contracts for a selected company or country to a controlled Excel package;
- modify contract parameters and payment schedules;
- add new contracts;
- specify termination dates;
- reload the updated package into FlexiEPM;
- validate and recalculate the complete dataset.
FlexiEPM also introduced consistent handling of contracts recorded retrospectively. Closed periods remain unchanged, while the asset, liability, interest, and depreciation relating to the earlier period are recognized correctly in the current reporting year.
The platform supports three discounting methodologies, including a bank-style day-count convention. This allowed the calculation engine to be aligned with TopFarms’ established reporting methodology and reduced differences during the migration and audit process.
The complete calculation history for 2022 and 2023 was migrated to FlexiEPM. Results for 2023 were compared with the previous platform, and any minor differences were reconciled, explained, and accepted as immaterial.
Business impact
FlexiEPM allowed TopFarms to retain the required IFRS 16 functionality while materially improving performance, support quality, transparency, and cost efficiency.
The main results include:
- annual recalculation reduced to approximately six minutes;
- complete annual update cycle reduced from approximately 24 hours to less than 30 minutes;
- more than 8,000 contracts maintained through an efficient bulk-update process;
- consistent presentation of asset and liability movements between reporting periods;
- correct treatment of retrospectively reported contracts without reopening closed periods;
- more than 20 additional analytical measures added to the existing reporting model;
- detailed movement tables and liability maturity analysis;
- full audit traceability for every contract;
- lower licence and support costs;
- support provided under an agreed SLA by a dedicated FlexiEPM team.
The case demonstrates that FlexiEPM can replace a global EPM platform in a high-volume, calculation-intensive statutory reporting process.
