Case Study: Fujitsu
"Compiling timesheets has never been a welcomed activity. As a result, a major problem was the
lack of accuracy of effort estimates. Since Web TimeSheet is very user friendly and consolidates
time entry towards projects as well as holidays, sick time, etc., our people are happier to enter
time. We are now able to measure efficiency of our people and finally have accurate effort
estimates that makes sense."
Nicola Zarrilli,
Fujitsu Services
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RESULTS SUMMARY
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Company
Fujitsu
Vertical Industries
Computer Hardware, Consulting
Proven ROI
Fujistu has drastically reduced their estimate to billing time after replacing
their homegrown time and billing solution with Replicon's Web TimeSheet.
- Decreased their time and expense approval process from days to minutes.
- Reduced their billing cycle from days to minutes.
- Historical project reports allow for accurate project costing and budgeting.
- Reports are now created using the simple reporting tool.
- Enhanced project management, due to better visibility into employee
productivity.
- Estimates and activities are now completed accurately and on-time, due
to Web TimeSheet's ease of use.
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Type of Business: IT Hardware/Software Services
Uses Web TimeSheet for: Tracking time, activities and expenses
Corporate Headquarters: Tokyo, Japan
Company Profile
Fujitsu is a leading provider of IT-based business solutions for the global
marketplace. With approximately 186,000 employees supporting customers in
more than 70 countries, Fujitsu combines a worldwide corps of systems and
services experts with highly reliable computing and communications products
and advanced microelectronics to deliver added value to customers.
Headquartered in Tokyo, Fujitsu Limited reported consolidated revenues of 4.6
trillion yen (US$47 billion) for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2009.
The Challenge
Fujitsu had effort estimates that needed to accurate when preparing estimates on
a project for their client. They also needed a time tracking system that was easy
to use by tech savvy and novice users alike.
Several years ago, in order to keep track of billable hours, expenses, and project
timelines, Fujitsu developed an internal time and expense tracking system using
a small application that took data from a database at the end of the month and
generated an Excel file that was e-mailed to the users individually. The Excel file
was the official form that needed to be completed by each employee and
archived by the personnel department for the Italian national security. The form
contained information such as the working days, holidays taken, sick time, overtime,
etc. for each day of the month and in
addition to completing this form, each user had to log the project activities during
the month on a separate form.
As a result, users that weren’t familiar with Excel or administrators that didn’t have
checks and balances in place for the form, made errors or did not complete the form,
which created inaccuracy when preparing effort estimates and comparing actual costs.
In addition, this internally created time tracking solution could not fulfill the company's
growing needs. The need to ensure estimates were filled in with accurate data caused backlog
in client service tracking, as someone in the personnel department had to manually check the
forms that were e-mailed back to them. This process was painful, time-consuming, and costly.
When Fujitsu saw the enormous backlog of forms that came from each of their offices, the
company realized it was time for a better solution.
The Solution
As a leader in hardware and system services, Fujitsu could not afford inaccurate effort estimates. To deliver accurate
effort estimates, Fujitsu needed a time and expense tracking solution that would provide complete visibility into projects.
At any time during a project's lifecycle, Fujitsu needed to provide clients with reports on estimated completion times, total
project hours, and project costs. Fujitsu also needed an system that was easy to use for all their users, regardless of their
skill level.
“Immediately after we have rolled out Web Timesheet our users have verified the easy of use of the system and it is easy
for the management team to ask for accuracy in the data entered.” said Zarrilli. “With this system you can really measure
the efficiency of our people and we can also measure the accuracy we achieve in our effort estimates. By finely
measuring the various activities for each project we can adjust our estimates model, finally making estimates that make
sense.”
Fujitsu first decided what data they wanted to get and how they wanted to organize their projects. They tried a free trial of
Web TimeSheet to see how it compared to their current system and then selected Web TimeSheet since was easy to use,
easy to administer, fully supported and it was inexpensive. The fact that it was flexible was a bonus.
“The system is so flexible. Depending on how you set it up, you can achieve different levels of functionality and usability.
For instance, if you realize at a later stage that you made mistakes, it is very easy to correct them without affecting too
much (if not at all) the system and the history of data.” said Zarrilli. “I think this is fundamental when deciding on a
standard system (projects, tasks, users, etc) if you want to get back a consistent set of information.”
The Results
Accurate Effort Estimate Tracking
“The data for effort estimates has not only been easier to collect, but accurate as well.” said Zarrilli. “Many of our users
have adopted the system with ease, and with e-mail notifications and approvals, time tracking has been accounted for.”
Increased Project Profitability and Client Satisfaction
Web TimeSheet's robust reporting means increased accountability and client satisfaction. With just a few mouse clicks,
Fujitsu now provides clients with immediate, real-time updates on project timelines and project costs.
“With this system we have simplified our internal procedures and made our users happy as they have one less form to fill
in.” said Zarrilli. “At a glance managers can compare effort estimates to actual costs.”
Over 90% Decrease in Client Billing Times
Web TimeSheet's simple reporting tools have significantly reduced the time it takes for Fujistu to prepare their monthly
time billing.
"Our billing is now prepared in a matter minutes, while it used to take days with the previous system," said Zarrilli. "With
Web TimeSheet, billing is now completely automated, whereas in the past, we relied on spreadsheets and hard copies,
which was a time consuming process, and not always accurate."
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