FHI 360 Supports Global Growth and Increases Efficiency

Transforming Lives Worldwide

With a dedicated staff of more than 4,000 across over 60 countries, international non-profit FHI 360 has been addressing global challenges and delivering measurable results through scientific research and innovative solutions for over 50 years. Whether developing bold, data-driven strategies to end the HIV epidemic, fostering peaceful coexistence, promoting equitable access to quality education, or enhancing nutrition and food security for families worldwide, FHI 360 collaborates with communities, governments, peer organizations, and other stakeholders to advance social and economic equity, improve health and well-being, respond to crises, and build resilience across the globe.

Adapting for Growth

For over a decade, FHI 360 successfully relied on Deltek’s Costpoint, including a seamless transition to the Deltek Cloud in 2021. By 2022, having experienced significant growth, the organization sought greater customization. To better meet its new business requirements and adapt to changes in its organizational structure, FHI 360 initiated a project to specifically meet their complex needs. This effort aimed to enhance flexibility and redesign account and organizational structures to align with FHI’s overall business model, indirect rate framework, and strategic goals.

“We’ve been very pleased with Costpoint. It's very strong in the management of indirect cost allocation along with revenue recognition, and billing,” shared Maria Marta Sobico, Director of Financial Systems and Training, FHI 360. “There are also a lot of compliance and regulation concerns when working with the government, but the auditors know the application, which is beneficial.” added Ezra Muna, Associate Director of Financial Systems and Training, FHI 360.

Leveraging a Deltek Solution Partner: Baker Tilly

To ensure the project’s success, FHI 360 turned to a Deltek Solution partner, who provides implementation and consulting services to help maximize the value of Deltek’s products and services, as well as a trusted partner they had previously collaborated with: Baker Tilly. “Having worked with them for a long time, they understand FHI’s organizational processes and have the necessary background information. This makes it very easy for us to work together. They are familiar with our systems and process and know the application, so recommending process changes or ways to optimize Costpoint becomes much more straightforward,” shared Ezra.

Megan LeBrun, Principal, Baker Tilly shared, “We approach projects like this holistically, recognizing that people, processes, and technology all work together. The biggest challenge was not only structuring the system to meet their complex current needs and ensuring long-term flexibility, but also addressing changes from the employee perspective to minimize impact and enhance usability and adaptability.”

Understanding the processes throughout the project proved beneficial when FHI 360 encountered a new challenge: integrating two subsidiaries into the parent organization while customizing Costpoint to the overall organizational needs. “It required significant collaboration with the subsidiary teams to understand how their structures would transition to our new Costpoint, which added another layer of complexity,” said Maria Marta.

A Successful Project and Rollout

Within twelve months of launching the project, FHI 360 was able to update its core structures to meet changing business requirements just in time for the start of its fiscal year. A comprehensive testing and training schedule played a crucial role in this success. Megan explains, “The type of training needed depended on each individual’s role. We first focused on summarizing and presenting the core concepts and changes so employees could grasp the key impacts on their jobs moving forward before diving into the details.”

The project remained on track and went live in October of 2023. “The project was remarkably successful thanks to both the teams at Baker Tilly and Deltek, with day-to-day operations remaining uninterrupted, including labor, procurement, payments, and billing. Baker Tilly and the Deltek Cloud team were outstanding partners, supporting us from inception to go-live,” Maria Marta added.

“It’s been great collaborating with FHI 360 as their business needs evolved,” added Megan. “As a partner, our goal has been to integrate their solution needs seamlessly into the organization, automating processes wherever possible so they can concentrate on running their business rather than managing the system.”

Improving Efficiency and Increasing Automation

The benefits since the transition have been what FHI 360 had desired and expected. “We have significantly eliminated the need for manual intervention, and we’ve been able to support increasingly complex indirect cost allocation models, revenue recognition processes, and automated billing for our various client types—government, businesses, and foundations—directly from Costpoint. We’ve also introduced the Costpoint Time and Expense mobile application. Since many of our staff works or travel to remote areas with limited internet connection, the ability for employees to enter their time or snap a picture and upload receipts to the system has sped up the process of submitting timesheet and expense reports,” explained Maria Marta.

The additional challenge of integrating two subsidiaries was also successfully managed. One of the subsidiaries, which had been using a different application, is now fully integrated into Costpoint, following the same processes and procedures to effectively support their foundation clients.

Strong Relationships Make a Difference

Success in a project like this depends on collaboration from all parties, and FHI 360’s strong partnership with Deltek was instrumental in achieving it. “We’ve engaged with Deltek extensively and have built a solid partnership, particularly in terms of support. They consistently reach out to us to address any issues,” shared Maria Marta.

FHI 360 has also actively engaged with Deltek in various ways to ensure their voice and feedback are heard. Ezra explains, “We participate in focus groups, which are invaluable for understanding upcoming features in new releases. They help us plan effectively, as we know what to expect and when. This proactive approach allows us to prepare for testing, work with Deltek to identify any bugs well in advance, and even provide input on design aspects.”

Looking to the future, Maria Marta shared FHI 360 is evaluating their next priorities. “We value our relationship with Deltek and Baker Tilly and are examining the roadmap to explore additional ways we can continue to grow together.”