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SUCCESS STORY
Getting ready for Making Tax Digital (MTD)
Kagool supported the client in transforming their VAT returns processes, as part of their journey to comply with the government’s Making Tax Digital initiative. VAT processing was accelerated, saving the finance team time and costs.
Kagool built data models and architecture that would be easily reusable for the client's other transformation programmes, including Power BI analytics and AP invoice automation. This enables better business decisions, and saving time on repetitive, low value tasks.
About the client
The client is a forward thinking, industrial technology company, with headquarters in London, specialising in Security & Defence, General Industry, Energy, and Space & Aerospace. Founded in 1851, it now employs over 22,000 employees globally, with customers in 200 countries. The client strives for constant innovation and improvement.
The Challenge
As part of the government’s Making Tax Digital initiative, businesses must subscribe to new processes for tax returns. April 2021 was the deadline for businesses to comply with the new digital methods of storing and submitting VAT returns.
The client had to transform the way they handled VAT returns, and hitting the HMRC deadline for this transformation programme was of paramount importance to avoid incurring fines.
The ideal solution would be ready and adaptable for further development, enabling compliance with future government requirements, as well as advancements based on changing business requirements.
Our Solution
Our long-standing relationship with the client enabled us to quickly understand how an effective solution could fit their complex tax processes and diverse data landscape.
We worked with the client to define the functional and non-functional requirements, and we collaborated with a third-party tax consultancy to ensure regulatory compliance.
The new architecture was designed not only to drive a the new VAT returns process, making it efficient and cost-effective, but also to build a scalable and adaptable data platform on which other digital transformation programmes can easily be added.
Kagool's product Velocity, developed in partnership with Microsoft, was used to integrate data from SAP source systems into the Azure Data Lake. The data is then curated into SFTP files, ready for the client's third party accountants to send to HMRC.
Crucially, the data models are easily reusable for other digital transformation programmes, including a finance analytics transformation with Power BI.
Finally, Kagool transferred knowledge to the existing Business-as-Usual support partner.
Kagool delivered a reliable and future proof system to ensure month-to-month compliance with HMRC regulations, and support future IT developments.
Outcomes
Kagool ensured the client was using a compliant system before the April 2021 deadline, helping the client to avoid penalties from HMRC.
VAT returns processing is accelerated, making the system more efficient and cost-effective.
The architecture and data models are easily reusable across the business for other purposes. So far, the financial data platform implemented by Kagool has been used in three further programmes:
- Financial analytics transformation
- AP invoice automation
- Intercompany netting for Treasury team
The first of these was carried out internally by the client, while the last two involved Kagool as the IT transformation partner.
Benefits
Compliance
Ensured compliance to HMRC requirements, avoiding costly fines.
Adaptable
Adaptable data model for continually evolving IT landscape and future business or government requirements.
Cost-effective
Cost-effective solution, scalable to future growth.
