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Vistry Group Navigate Huge Merger with Access Coins
Vistry Group was formed in January 2020 following the merger of three homebuilders. With Countryside Partnerships joining in 2022, it has become the UK’s leading homebuilder, selling 16,000 homes in 2023.
Following the merger, Vistry Group needed to replace its disjointed and outdated legacy software solutions with one fully integrated ERP system, with one goal in mind: to achieve ‘One Vistry’. Can we edit to 'Access Coins was the obvious choice.
Business size
Large
Industry
Homebuilder
Product
Access Coins
Challenge
- Disjointed and outdated legacy software following a three-way merger
- Systems used by Bovis Homes, Linden Homes and Vistry Partnerships to combine or replace
- A merger, a restructure and a pandemic, as well as a major technology implementation
Approach
- Chose Access Coins as the single source of truth across the group
- Transferred all users and processes to Access Coins solution as quickly as possible
- Remote training delivered for over 250 people in the Partnerships business
Results
- One true set of data across the entire Group
- Only one IT recruit needed to support a tripled user base
- Over 1,000 users within the Group
Results At-A-Glance
- One version of the truth: All business units have access to the most up-to-date version of information, breaking down silos and improving cross-collaboration between teams
- Economies of scale: Choosing Access Coins as a single solution platform enabled Vistry Group to achieve impressive economies of scale
- Lean IT support: The IT team only needed to recruit one person to help support their tripled user base
- One system to upgrade: Upgrades or system enhancements now benefit the whole business and only need to be made to one system, with less time spent managing integrations and security
- Cloud-hosted: Hosted on Microsoft Azure, relieving the IT team of managing IT infrastructure and back-ups, and accessible from anywhere on a range of devices
- Scaled with growth: Access Coins has scaled with the huge growth of the Vistry Group, with over 1,000 users within the group
Finding The Right ERP Solution for a Complex Homebuilding Business
Vistry Group set out with one goal in mind: to achieve ‘One Vistry’. With such a disjointed portfolio of software currently in use from their time operating as independent companies, it was imperative they made a change early and quickly.
As a tried and tested construction-specific system, already successfully implemented by Bovis and Linden as well as many other leading UK homebuilders, Access Coins was decided as the obvious choice for Vistry Group.
They knew that this would be a huge change that would require considered implementation and resource management. Managing change is challenging for a business at the best of times, but throw in a merger, a restructure and a pandemic, as well as a major technology implementation - Vistry Group needed a software partner they could trust.
“The fact that Access Coins is commonly used within the housebuilding industry gave us confidence that it was the solution which offered the least risk”
Jill Coley, Group Head of Finance, Vistry Group
Why Vistry Group Chose Access Coins
Vistry Group faced the challenge of combining or replacing a variety of systems used by Bovis Homes, Linden Homes and Vistry Partnerships with one single ERP solution. This major change project aimed to fully integrate the Vistry team, rationalise processes across the business functions and achieve economies of scale.
When deciding which software to pursue, Vistry highlighted key benefits Access Coins had over the other software on their shortlist.
Reduced Risk
Jill Coley, Group Head of Finance for the Vistry Group, was an Access Coins advocate, having implemented the solution at Bovis Homes. As a tried-and-tested construction system used by many leading UK homebuilders, the choice of Access Coins for Vistry Group was considered the least risky option which made the most business sense.
Construction-Specific Solution
The Chief Information Officer for the Vistry Group, identified a major advantage of Access Coins: As a construction-specific and homebuilding ERP system it would require much less input and time to adapt to their business’s needs, when compared to a generic ERP solution.
''The fact that Coins is a standard product which does not need total configuration has been a huge benefit to us.''
- Chief Information Officer, Vistry Group
‘Cradle to Grave’ Solution
The Vistry Group also selected Access Coins because of its end-to-end, or ‘cradle to grave’, approach to home building. Coins covers every part of the home building lifecycle, from land acquisition and procurement planning through to sales and customer service to the end of a warranty period of a property. This helps to consolidate and simplify the group’s tech stack while increasing efficiency by handling a huge range of functionality on one powerful system.
Consolidating Software to Streamline Company Processes
The decision was made to transfer all users and processes to the Access Coins Financial and Commercial Procurement solutions used by Bovis Homes as quickly as possible.
This ambitious timescale began in early 2020 with the transfer of Linden Homes, followed by 8 out of the 10 Partnerships business units being transferred in November 2020. This left only 2 remaining business units yet to transfer at a later date.
''There was a real driver to transfer the first 8 Partnerships business units to Coins quickly in order for them to truly become part of Vistry Group ''
Jill Coley, Group Head of Finance, Vistry Group
Economies of Scale from a Single Platform
Choosing Access Coins as a single solution platform enabled Vistry Group to achieve impressive economies of scale.
Despite their hugely expanded support role, the Vistry Group IT team only needed to recruit one person to help support their tripled user base. This was in no small part due to the supported integration process supplied by Access Coins, as well as the work hours saved by consolidating huge numbers of software into one comprehensive platform.
Under the new implementation, any upgrades or system enhancements now benefit the whole business and only need to be made to one system. This has led to less time being spent to manage integrations and security.
''We’ve now got one ERP solution for everything we do as Vistry Group – we can achieve economies of scale, we can support people easier and if we implement an upgrade or enhancement it benefits the whole rather than a small part of our business.''
- Chief Information Officer, Vistry Group
The Power of True Integration
‘One Vistry’ was the initiative to integrate Vistry Group into one single business. The implementation of Access Coins as a single construction software system for the whole business was essential to truly achieve this aim.
For example, central service teams, such as group accounts, could only be truly centralised if one platform was used by all, consolidating information and providing a single source of the truth.
This now means that all business units across the group will always have access to the most up-to-date version of information, breaking down silos and improving cross-collaboration between teams.
As of 2024, Vistry Group now use the following core Access Coins modules:
- Land appraisal
- Commercial Procurement
- CVR
- Analytics and Reporting
- Financials
- Build Progression
- Plot Master
“Consolidation is helped hugely by us all being on one system – we know that all information that’s input into Access Coins provides one version of the truth.”
Jill Coley, Group Head of Finance, Vistry Group
Navigating Challenges During Implementation
As implementation happened during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, training needed to be delivered remotely. This presented unique challenges, as Vistry Group quickly realised it was harder to conduct remote-training than classroom-based training.
To help overcome this challenge a third-party training company was recruited to deliver an intensive program of short remote sessions for small groups of people.
“We needed to deliver training to over 250 people in the Partnerships business to make sure not only that everyone knows how to use Access Coins, but also that we are all using Access Coins in the same way.”
Jill Coley, Group Head of Finance, Vistry Group
A Leaner IT Operation in the Cloud
One of the key advantages of Access Coins for Vistry Group was that it could be hosted on the cloud, rather than on premises. Hosted on Microsoft Azure, Vistry Group felt assured that it was secure and safe, as it was already trusted by leading global companies, governments, and start-ups alike.
The Vistry Group is a strong advocate for cloud-hosted systems, as they relieve the IT team from the responsibility of managing IT infrastructure and back-ups and can easily scale in line with business requirements.
Access Coins' ability to be accessed from anywhere on a range of devices also made it a perfect solution for Vistry Group, allowing teams to work and collaborate from anywhere, whether they were working remotely or in the office.
“There is zero input required from Vistry, which is fantastic because it means I can run a leaner IT operation and Access Coins are taking care of the system - the uptime, the data centre, any backup, disaster recovery that we need. It’s also accessible from anywhere.”
- Chief Information Officer, Vistry Group
Growing on One Platform
Access Coins has scaled with the huge growth of the Vistry Group, and there are now over 1,000 users within the group. Future projects to further consolidate Coins across the 26 business units now under the Vistry Group include feeding sales and customer service data into the core financial and procurement analytics provided by Coins.
“We are very keen that when we acquire a business, we all use one set of systems, one platform, and Coins has delivered on that.”
- Chief Information Officer, Vistry Group
