Public Affairs Leader Gains Instant Insight into Projects, Revenue with Cloud Software
Company Size
200-1,000
Region
- America
Country
- United States
Product
- Dynamics 365 for Project Service Automation
- Dynamics 365 for Sales
- FastTrack for Dynamics 365
- Power BI
Tech Stack
- Microsoft Dynamics 365
- Power BI
Implementation Scale
- Enterprise-wide Deployment
Impact Metrics
- Cost Savings
- Digital Expertise
- Productivity Improvements
Technology Category
- Application Infrastructure & Middleware - Data Visualization
- Functional Applications - Enterprise Resource Planning Systems (ERP)
- Platform as a Service (PaaS) - Application Development Platforms
Applicable Industries
- Professional Service
Applicable Functions
- Business Operation
- Sales & Marketing
Use Cases
- Predictive Replenishment
- Remote Collaboration
Services
- System Integration
- Training
About The Customer
Global Strategy Group (GSG) is a highly regarded research and public affairs firm based in the United States. The company is known for helping US companies, politicians, and institutions understand public opinion and communicate more effectively. GSG has a diverse client base that includes Fortune 100 companies, political leaders, associations, and nonprofits. The firm has been instrumental in helping high-profile clients like New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio and Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel get elected. GSG also works with institutions such as the University of Pennsylvania, Major League Soccer, and Google to devise communication strategies and mitigate bad press. Headquartered in New York City, GSG operates five additional offices across the United States and employs 85 people.
The Challenge
Despite its successful track record with clients, GSG struggled to get a real-time understanding of its own business operations. The company had no dedicated salespeople, and senior VPs were responsible for both selling and delivering work, making it difficult to disentangle forecast sales from work in progress. This issue was particularly problematic during year-end budgeting and forecasting. GSG had been using Salesforce since 2008 to manage sales deals, but Salesforce lacked out-of-the-box project service automation capabilities, such as billing and time and expense tracking. Employees had to manually copy and paste Salesforce data into spreadsheets to generate reports, which was inefficient and error-prone. Additionally, Salesforce announced a price increase, which further diminished its value proposition for GSG.
The Solution
GSG decided to switch from Salesforce to Microsoft Dynamics 365 to address its operational challenges. After an exhaustive evaluation of 13 different sales management, customer relationship management, and enterprise resource planning solutions, GSG chose Dynamics 365 for its comprehensive features and lower cost. The company initially licensed Dynamics 365 for Sales and Dynamics 365 for Project Service Automation, with plans to roll out additional Dynamics 365 applications in the future. Dynamics 365 for Project Service Automation is a holistic solution that helps billable project-based organizations manage all aspects of client-facing activities, from sales through project staffing, project delivery, and invoicing. GSG engaged Microsoft Partner Velosio to handle the implementation and train employees. Velosio also connected GSG to the Microsoft FastTrack for Dynamics 365 program, which provided implementation best practices and technical assistance. This comprehensive approach ensured a smooth transition and effective utilization of the new system.
Operational Impact
Quantitative Benefit
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