Case Study: Independence Capital Partners

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Independence Capital Partners (ICP) is a group of leading private equity funds. Founded in 1997 and headquartered in Philadelphia, ICP includes eight member funds with more than 50 portfolios each. Under the ICP umbrella, member funds conduct their investment activities independently, but share investment expertise and a common infrastructure.

Background
McGladrey was engaged as ICP’s Microsoft Dynamics™ partner to support a two-user Microsoft Dynamics™ GP system and 35-user Microsoft Dynamics™ CRM system.

Project
McGladrey recommended a multi-tenancy (multiple copies operating independent of each other) version of Microsoft Dynamics™ CRM with a Microsoft Office SharePoint® Server integration.

Multiple organizations were created in Dynamics CRM to administer the collection process for capital calls, track potential investments and their activities, and manage potential investors when new funds open. Other departments are using Dynamics CRM to supervise new hire procedures, help desk ticketing and contact management. And in the mail room, it is used with bar coding to track deliveries, including who handles the package, who accepts responsibility and delivery confirmations.

SharePoint was created to improve the overall “deal flow” within the organization and provide a set of content libraries. The system permits external organizations to upload required ICP content and information from an extranet website, which invokes workflows and assigns tasks to users within the information technology, human resources and investor relations departments.

In the ERP system, ICP is using the General Ledger, Bank Reconciliation and Accounts Payable modules with Integration Manager to import certain investor distribution payment transactions. ICP also implemented the Professional Services Tools suite of products, Mekorma’s MICR Check software for printing checks on blank check stock, and MC2’s Advanced Intercompany Transaction program.

Outcomes

  • Consolidated local data sources (Excel spreadsheets and Outlook contacts) to create a centralized system to house and share data across departments and member funds
  • Implemented multi-tenancy version of Microsoft Dynamics™ CRM to allow different operations to function independent of each other
  • Discontinued use of outside reporting service, yielding savings of $3,000 per fund per quarter and a one-year return on investment (ROI)
  • Created functions within Microsoft Dynamics CRM to manage help desk ticketing for more than 300 employees; due diligence on member funds, providing capital to middle-market growth companies; and capital calls
  • Eliminated preprinted check stock on over 100 accounts with integration to Mekorma MICR Check program

They said it
“Our environment is extremely diverse with many unique business requirements. Utilizing Microsoft Dynamics and SharePoint allows us to collaborate across business units in a more seamless fashion while integrating with the Microsoft Office Suite. There is one platform to manage and the interoperability does not compare to any other systems in the market. In McGladrey, we have found a relationship with a single Microsoft partner that understands our business model and is capable of implementing a complete solution.”

— Vincent Bocelli,Director of Information Technology, Independence Capital Partners