Building a Financial Foundation: How Bentley Paved the Way for Strategic Growth with Deltek Vantagepoint

An interview with Caroline Franklin, Head of Finance at Bentley Project Management.

Bentley Project Management is a small business that operates on a huge scale. The project and cost management construction partner works on strategic, infrastructure, residential and commercial schemes across the UK for the public and private sectors.

Its wide variety of projects for high-profile organizations often span multiple years, and the demand for its services has grown rapidly over the past decade. Since the pandemic, Bentley has tripled the size of its workforce to meet the scale of its projects – and, crucially, this growth created space for a dedicated finance role.

Caroline Franklin, Bentley's Head of Finance, was hired to rebuild the company's project management and financial processes from scratch. "The company didn't have a dedicated finance system before; it was just disjointed spreadsheets," explains Caroline. "The company introduced a timesheet system, but it didn't offer the business the information it needed."

Bentley was searching for a robust financial and project management system that could scale with the company's growth ambitions over the next five years.

"I created a list of the essential analysis tools we'd need and scored potential systems in a matrix, looking closely at their capabilities," adds Caroline. "Deltek Vantagepoint came out with the best score."

A Dedicated ERP System for Long-Term Project Management

Bentley Project Management now uses Deltek Vantagepoint as its core ERP system for a faster, more efficient and more comprehensive way to manage projects.

The system was implemented with the company's specific needs in mind. "Deltek listened to our requirements and demonstrated what Vantagepoint can do to meet them," says Caroline.

Using Deltek Vantagepoint, Bentley can generate system-driven reports much faster following month end. "We're able to get project information into the system more easily," adds Caroline. "Our invoicing process is much more automated."

The system is also suited to the company's size, with the capacity to grow as the company expands and takes on larger, more complex projects.

"Deltek Vantagepoint has been developed with our type of business in mind," says Caroline. "It allows us to configure workflows and reports to meet our needs while also covering the fundamental requirements of an accounting system."

A Smarter, More Proactive Approach to Project Management

While Bentley Project Management is still in the early days of using Deltek Vantagepoint, the system is already transforming the way it manages its projects and financials.

As Caroline explains, the finance team has a more accurate view of the work they're billing for: "The timesheet parts of our projects are directly integrated with client billing. We can see where our people are spending their time and when we're not actually recovering money."

This additional project work might have been overlooked before. But now, Caroline's team can see this data before producing and sending an invoice. "We have that early, instant view. We can ensure we're making the right levels of profit on every project."

Insights like these also help the team anticipate potential problems related to project scoping. "Our project managers can easily spot any anticipated issues around fees in a project," says Caroline. "It means that when they need to change the scope of the project, they can start those conversations with clients earlier and avoid any surprises."

Ambitions to Unlock Even More from Deltek ERP

Caroline's team is currently using only the financial capabilities of Deltek Vantagepoint but plans to expand its use as the system becomes more embedded in the company.

"We're particularly interested in Vantagepoint's resource management features," says Caroline. "We want to ensure that people are working on the right number of projects and aren't under or over-utilized."

Bentley Project Management's use of Deltek Vantagepoint showcases how valuable an ERP system can be in a smaller organization. And with such a successful implementation, Caroline had some closing advice for others following a similar path:

"Implementing an ERP system like Deltek isn't something you can rush. You need to make sure the information you're putting into the system is right," says Caroline. "That means carving out dedicated time to do it properly – and not trying to fit it alongside your 40-hour-a-week day job."

Connect Your Organization with Deltek Vantagepoint

Deltek is the leading provider of project and financial management solutions for professional services firms of all sizes worldwide. See how Deltek's ERP solutions can help you gain greater visibility into crucial project data, boost collaboration, and drive business success.