Grant Thornton's Working Capital Analytics Practice

1. pg. 1
Working Capital Analytics
Leveraging the Power of Analytics to Support Decision Making
Date: February 14, 2017
2016
Working Capital Funds have been used throughout the Federal government for well over 100 years. The first revolving fund is
thought to have been established for the Navy around 1878. The ultimate objective of WCFs are to eliminate duplication of
services, leveraging economies of scale, streamlining and standardizing business processes, simplifying funding, and consolidating
acquisition strategies, while maintaining a singular focus on high-quality service delivery. However, without the correct line of
sight into its operations, these objectives may be compromised and in spite
of being in existence for over a 100 years, WCFs are still consistently faced
with these difficult questions:
• Can you run a business without knowing the true cost/rates of your
goods and services?
• Do you know if your customers have paid for your goods and
services on time?
• Do you know if your operating model is recovering the entire cost
of your operations and are you allocating overhead accurately?
• Do you have the correct governance model in place to aid in the
financial decision making process?
• Is your financial model flexible enough to cross service a variety of
customers and to respond to fluctuations in supply and demand?
If you are looking for support around any of these questions, Grant
Thornton’s Working Capital Fund Analytics might be the solution for you.
With the flexibility that WCFs offer, as well as the range of services provided
and customers supported, there is a need for total cost visibility and the
expectation of continuous improvement in cost and performance in delivery
of services. This requires WCF to convert its wide array of financial, operational, and performance data into analytics that provide
valuable insights to inform data-driven decision making.
Our WCF Analytics solution provides direct line of sight into metrics that matter so that executives and managers can analyze
their operations effectively. A sample report from our WCF analytics below provides:
1. Overview of products/services sold
2. % of orders sold on time (based on agreed upon SLAs);
3. Planned revenue vs actual revenue; etc.
Grant Thornton’s proven and repeatable
Working Capital Analytics methodology
can:
ü Increase transparency into full cost of
operations and related overhead
ü Increase transparency into service level
agreements and
products/services/solutions/business
lines performance towards cash
management
ü Improve cycle times for
payables/receivables, DSO/DPO, etc.
ü Identify optimum payment cycles
ü Assist with rate stabilization (beginning
of FY) and cost recovery (end of FY)

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Working Capital Analytics
Leveraging the Power of Analytics to Support Decision Making
Date: February 14, 2017
2016
These and other metrics (unobligated balances, carryover, reserves etc.) will help your operations target and improve inefficiencies
rapidly.
Comprehensive WCF Review
Based on our experience supporting the implementation and operation of WCFs across the Federal government, we have
developed a high-level assessment to evaluate current financial and operational processes and to identity opportunities for
improvement. We recommend a 60- to 90-day approach to conduct an assessment of your WCF to:
1. Confirm that existing financial policies and procedures are complete and comply with applicable
laws/regulations/guidelines;
2. Review the WCF governance model for adequacy in driving operational efficiency and effectiveness and
reinforcing trust with customers and external stakeholders.

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Working Capital Analytics
Leveraging the Power of Analytics to Support Decision Making
Date: February 14, 2017
2016
3. Review methodologies for measuring service provider cost and performance.
4. Assess whether costing and pricing methods are fair, reasonable, and transparent.
5. Analyze WCF budgeting and forecasting processes as well as risk mitigation strategies.
6. Evaluate the order management process efficiency and effectiveness from order acceptance through financial
closeout to provide strong financial management as well as customer service.
7. Create a reporting framework/dashboarding initiatives to keep managers and executives appraised of key
performance indicators.
During this high-level assessment, we will evaluate performance against an objective list of criteria contained in a scorecard as well
as compare performance and key metrics to those of other similar WCFs. The assessment will follow a structured analysis
approach that includes: Current State Analysis, Gap Analysis, and Recommendation Development. The outcome of the
assessment is a clearly outlined roadmap to improve, mature and/or stabilize the WCF management practices.
Grant Thornton Understands Working Capital Funds
Grant Thornton is an industry thought leader in Federal financial management. We
have recently partnered with the National Academy of Public Administration
(NAPA) to bring agency leaders together develop solutions to common WCF
management challenges such as rate setting, governance, and cash management. The
NAPA-GT government-wide Working Capital Fund Group was established in 2015
(WCF Group) with participation from a large section of federal agencies with
WCFs. With active guidance from agency WCF managers, Grant Thornton SMEs
and NAPA Fellows, the WCF Group is collaboratively working on strategies to help
address critical WCF issues. Through this effort, government executives and
managers can discuss WCF issues, share lessons learned, and gather best practices.
Additionally, we leverage our past experience working with the Department of
Defense, NASA, Department of Energy, Department of Health and Human
Services, Environmental Protection Agency, Department of Labor, and numerous
other revolving funds to bring best practices in WCF management.
Contact Information
Shiva Verma
Principal
Phone: 703-373-8740
Email: Shiva.Verma@us.gt.com
Aurpon Bhattacharya
Senior Manager
Phone: 703-637-2984
Email: Aurpon.Bhattacharya@us.gt.com
Leigh Sheldon
Senior Associate
Phone: 703-837-4434
Email: Leigh.Sheldon@us.gt.com