Hills Limited has announced it will end its five year relationship with Salesforce and partner with Microsoft to provide both its back office CRM and ERP functions as the company progresses into the next phase of its digital transformation.
CEO and Managing Director, David Lenz, said the move to Microsoft was undertaken as part of a strategy to update and consolidate to a single cloud-based platform and replace an excess of suppliers with strategic partners including network and communications from Telstra Corporation Ltd and computing hardware from Dell Inc.
“Getting the right platform and the right partner was critical to ensure streamlined operations and continuous improvement in years to come,” Lenz said.
“As well as delivering a clear return on investment for the business, we wanted a platform that would significantly improve the customer experience, streamline interaction with suppliers and create an efficient and collaborative workplace,” he said.
“Hills has grown through acquisition and has inherited a variety of ERP and CRM systems that are not able to deliver the long-term value that the organisation requires. By consolidating suppliers and streamlining information systems, we’ll achieve world class scalable, real-time Software as a Service (SaaS) technologies
across all Hills ANZ locations,” Lenz said.
“Hills will work with a number of Microsoft Dynamics partners to rollout the CRM platform as the first phase of the project over the coming months. The company will then look to consolidate its ERP platform, replacing four separate ERPs with Dynamics 365. Moving to a cloud-based solution will also ensure flexibility and scalability as Hills grows and expands, while at the same time reducing the risk
posed by legacy infrastructure,” he said.
“The Microsoft Dynamics ERP & CRM SaaS model is scalable and together with Microsoft 365, gives us a complete end-to-end business technology stack without having to invest heavily in capex infrastructure. Upon the completion of this project it will deliver opex savings in excess of $1.8 million annually, and will ensure the Company is better positioned to support growth while mitigating complexity and risk,”
Lenz said.
“Hills is an iconic Australian company that, 70 years on, is still evolving and adapting,” Lenz adds. “We are focused on implementing strategies that will deliver improvements in our business and the best outcomes for our customers, shareholders, vendors and staff.”
About Hills Limited
Hills is a majority Australian-owned publicly listed company (ASX:HIL), a value-added distributor of integrated technology solutions that connect, entertain and secure people in the environments they trust the most: their homes, schools and universities, hospitals and aged care facilities, workplaces and government institutions. For more information visit hills.com.au or in New Zealand: hills.co.nz
