Ste. Anne Co-operative Keeps Members Fueled Up With Sage Accpac ERP and SageCRM

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For over 75 years, Ste. Anne Co-operative Oil Ltd. of Steinbach, Manitoba, has focused on providing excellent customer service to members and patrons. The member -owned co-op offers gas and diesel fuel at its convenience stores throughout Southeastern Manitoba, and delivers bulk fuel and propane to its members. Since 1995, the co-op has achieved a significant increase in business, growing from 5,000 to over 17,000 members and expanding from two to 11 locations. This growth has challenged Ste. Anne Co-operative to find more efficient and innovative ways to continue providing superb service to customers.

Meeting the Challenge of Rapid Growth

The rapid increase in membership made it essential for Ste. Anne Co-operative to find more efficient ways to manage accounting and track shareholder information. "We started with the old DOS system and used that into the early 1990s," relates Jake Hildebrandt, General Manager of Ste. Anne Co-operative. "We did everything manually."

By teaming up with 21st Century Solutions, a Sage Software Authorized Partner based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Ste. Anne Co-operative found a better solution. Stuart McKelvie, President at 21st Century, has worked with the co-op to find technology that helps handle the increased business.

"We started working together in 1995," recalls McKelvie. "They began by implementing the predecessor program to Sage Accpac ERP GL and AP to manage their accounting functions."

One of the innovations 21st Century Systems provided was an automated cheque-writing add-on to Sage Accpac that MICR-encoded and signed cheques. The day Hildebrandt no longer needed to sign 8,000 patronage dividend cheques manually, he was visibly pleased. Before the improvement, Hildebrandt usually lost the use of his hand for a few days after the massive cheque signing. Today, the number of dividend cheques is approaching 13,000 but 21st Century will implement EFT to handle this next year.

Using the General Ledger and Accounts Payable modules in Sage Accpac gave Ste. Anne Co-operative the ability to create financial reports and statements much faster, allowing them to see a more comprehensive view of their financial situation.

Hildebrandt remembers the transition from their old system. "Implementing Sage Accpac was a huge thing for us," he recalls. "We went from filling out ledgers manually to entering transactions into a computerized system. It's a big time saver and has revolutionized the way things were done here."

Accommodating the Unique Needs of a Member-Owned Co-op

Sage Accpac ERP's flexibility and scalability features make it ideal, allowing the co-op to add functionality as business needs evolve. Under the cooperative organizational structure, patrons of Ste. Anne Co-operative receive a number of benefits, including competitive pricing for fuel and other products and the opportunity to earn a share in the revenue generated each year. McKelvie recommended adding SageCRM to help the co-op track shareholder activity.

Ste. Anne Co-operative uses SageCRM in the traditional way as a tool to track communication with members. Seamless integration between SageCRM and Sage Accpac ERP allows Ste. Anne Co-operative to better manage customer service and promptly award shareholders for the co-op's success.

"We use it for all of the contacts we have when pursuing overdue accounts receivables," Hildebrandt reports. "We basically log each communication we have with that customer, whether by phone or letter."

Ste. Anne Co-operative also uses CRM to track shareholder information, a customization generated by 21st Century Systems. "All of the share transactions take place in CRM. When it is time to pay out dividends, CRM sends a batch report to accounts payable in Sage Accpac, and we write the cheques," Hildebrandt explains. "This is possible because of the special programming by 21st Century."

Power and Potential

A particularly powerful function of SageCRM will allow Ste. Anne Co-operative to send sales information directly to delivery drivers on the road. "We are currently in the testing phase with wireless delivery information. We will use it to improve efficiencies in our bulk fuel delivery system," Hildebrandt describes. "When a customer calls in an order, we enter it right into CRM, which then sends the order to the delivery driver's Blackberry. CRM also collects the information to confirm that the order was delivered."

Hildebrandt acknowledges that CRM has much more potential than they are tapping now. "We aren't using CRM to its full extent yet. Our sales people are just learning how powerful this program can be for them," he states.

Managing Costs with Sage Software

By deploying Sage Accpac and SageCRM, Ste. Anne Co-operative members have successfully controlled operating costs. "Ste. Anne Co-operative has been able to handle a significant amount of business volume with a negligible increase in administrative staff," observes McKelvie.

Holding down costs contributes to larger dividend payments for shareholders and helps the co-op remain competitive, even with larger retailers in their market. "It is working quite well for us," Hildebrandt informs.

Working with 21st Century Systems

The team at 21st Century Systems has been a valuable asset to the employees at Ste. Anne Co-operative as they learn how to successfully implement the software and take full advantage of its functionality. 21st Century Systems provided the knowledge and experience to facilitate the transfer of information between SageCRM, the Blackberrys, and Sage Accpac ERP by writing tailored integrations.

"21st Century did a lot of custom programming for us, especially in preparing CRM to track share data," Hildebrandt reports. In addition, 21st Century provides ongoing technical support and training so employees can get the most out of Sage Software.

Hildebrandt values the excellent service and attention to detail provided by 21st Century Systems. "Stuart is very concerned about keeping his customers happy, so he is very responsive to our needs. Working with him has been a good experience. He is very knowledgeable and has good people working for him. I would definitely recommend 21st Century Systems to other businesses."