Hertha BSC goes for EASY in its accounting system

The changes in the starting lineup were ultimately the key reason why the executive team at Hertha BSC decided to get in touch with the project manager, Sven Gebhardt: “Please find a solution to this problem.”

The search was completed without a call for tenders. Sven Gebhardt, who mainly works in controlling, looked into the standard providers of DMS and began contacting them. At one point, a colleague approached him: “Why are you making this so hard? We already have a great solution from EASY that we use for managing our contracts.”

Until then, Hertha BSC had only used its digital contract solution for added support and in the background. The advantages of getting all the document solutions from one single source immediately became clear, however. Moreover, it was found that nothing would stand in the way of using the existing contract management solution more extensively as soon as the corresponding work-flows existed in other departments. This meant that EASY went head-to-head with three other competitors. It ultimately became clear that the flexible offer with its many options for customization, the existing standard interfaces and the good experience over the course of the previous cooperation would best suit the requirements of Hertha BSC.

The responsible person for the accounts payable was already familiar with electronic invoice processing through her previous employer. On the basis of her experience, she hoped to reduce the time spent on each process at Hertha BSC by 25 percent. Both she and Sven Gebhardt were surprised when the processes turned out to be even faster in practice!

The huge time saving is easily explained: predefined sequences in a digital process enhance the organization. In retrospect, Sven Gebhardt is able to recognize the problem: “Whenever it came to the question of ‘Who is going to process this invoice?,’ we were always making exceptions. In the short term, that approach appeared to lead more quickly to the goal, but in the long term, it made coordinated working impossible. Clear, digital pathways automatically result in more discipline.”

In this respect, Hertha BSC started off simply, and with the work-flow that the system suggested to them. During this trial phase, there were no risks whatsoever, as even after the installation, Hertha BSC was able to configure small refinements to the process at any time.

“The fact that the tool is so straightforward to use is extremely important at the practical level. After all, if you ask people what they need from the tool before they’ve had the chance to work with it themselves, their answers aren’t very helpful: they simply agree to anything that sounds halfway reasonable. After a few weeks of use, however, we kept noticing little things that we were still able to optimize. Where do we need another step? Where can a step be omitted? Where should we change the sequences so that everything ultimately runs smoothly?”, says Sven Gebhardt.

The implementation of a digital invoice management solution at Hertha BSC began in spring 2020 during the first lock down. All of the services provided by EASY were implemented without delay, even under such adverse conditions.

The time of the introduction was absolutely perfect: the employees were happy to be able to work from home without any problems using the digital processes. The familiarization with the new software took only a few hours, also from a distance. Since then, some 1,300 invoices have been processed using the digital work-flow.

In 2021, Hertha BSC is planning to convert its accounting system to digital processes and documents one hundred percent. For this purpose, the accounts department has asked all suppliers and vendors to submit future documents electronically only rather than by letter.

The employees in the accounts department are thrilled: “EASY has allowed us to reduce the time it takes to manage the invoice receipt process by 40 percent, and the approval process works more smoothly than ever before.”