Organisation

Australian Eggs

Industry

PA Product

KEY POINTS

  • Australian Eggs transitioned from manually tracking project milestones and budgets in spreadsheets to using Power BI reports.
  • This shift eliminated data duplication, reduced errors, and gave project managers instant access to the data they need.
  • By integrating Power BI with Business Central, the organisation improved operational efficiency. Monthly budget variance dropped from 15–20% to just 1–2%, and manual reporting tasks were completely eliminated, saving time and enabling better financial control.
  • The client’s success was amplified by a collaborative relationship with PA. Fast turnaround times, clear communication, and valuable technical input helped Australian Eggs continuously improve its reporting environment and unlock new capabilities.

Reach out to learn how we can help you achieve more with technology.

Your information will never be shared or sold to a 3rd party,
please read our privacy policy.

“Project managers click the report in Power BI and all the information is in front of them. This has enabled efficiencies in admin work and freed up time to focus on service delivery.”

Jessie Zhang, Finance Manager, Australian Eggs.

The Organisation:

Australian Eggs is a member owned not-for-profit company providing marketing and research & development (R&D) services for the benefit of Australian egg farmers.

The organisation faced a familiar challenge: managing multi-year projects with disconnected systems and a lack of data insights. Project managers manually tracked milestones and budgets in spreadsheets, while finance operated independently, resulting in duplicated efforts and delayed reporting.

Australian Eggs needed a more innovative, connected solution to manage their projects and funding. Their long-standing partnership with Professional Advantage, having used Microsoft Dynamics GP for many years, led to the implementation of Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central and Microsoft Power BI, transforming their approach to project management, budgeting, and reporting.

The Vision:

Finance manager Jessie Zhang, a long-time employee with a deep understanding of the company processes, envisioned a solution that would provide project managers with insight into their projects and also bridge the gap between finance and project management. The goal was to:

  • Eliminate manual, spreadsheet-based reporting.
  • Improve data accuracy.
  • Empower their project managers with real-time insights.
  • Align financials and project planning.

With support from Professional Advantage, Australian Eggs implemented Power BI reports over Business Central data to bring this vision to life.

The Challenge:

Before adopting Power BI, the organisation relied heavily on manual processes:

  • Project milestones and the respective costs incurred were tracked in spreadsheets.
  • Finance and project teams operated in silos, leading to duplicated efforts.
  • Project managers lacked visibility into real-time data, often missing key project milestones and budget insights.
  • Manual tracking led to variances between budgeted and actual expenditures.

“Project managers manually saved all the invoices and tracked milestone due dates in spreadsheets. It was so time-consuming. There was duplication of work that finance already handled.”

Jessie Zhang, Finance Manager, Australian Eggs.

The Solution:

With the move to Business Central and the integration of Power BI, PA worked with Australian Eggs to design and deploy Power BI reports tailored to their project management needs. They connected to Business Central as the data source for financial and project data, which provided:

  • Milestone Tracking Reports: Project managers can track due dates and project progress in real time.
  • Project Expense Reports: Insight into actual versus budgeted spend, enabling proactive fund management.
  • Flexible Funding Management: Supports client engagement activities like workshops and training.
  • Forecasting Enhancements: Added to reflect approved additional funding and prepayments.

“Now, Project Managers have a tool. They don’t need to wait for finance to send reports; they can access live data anytime.”

Jessie Zhang, Finance Manager, Australian Eggs.

The Impact:

The impact has been transformative:

  • Improved Accuracy: Errors are identified and corrected much sooner.
    “The Power BI reports have helped us to improve data accuracy. Errors can be easily identified and fixed during the month. It’s a huge time saver.”
  • Time Savings: Manual tracking has been eliminated, saving countless hours and freeing up time for more strategic work.
  • Improved Planning: Project managers can plan their weeks based on accurate milestone data.
  • Budget Alignment: Near real-time visibility into project data has empowered the organisation to maintain strong alignment between budgets and actual spend.
  • Empowered Teams: Project managers now self-serve data and can manage their budgets more effectively.

“The insight we get with Power BI gives us full visibility of our budgets and project delivery. With budgets and actuals within a 1 to 2% variance, we know exactly where we stand at any moment.”

Jessie Zhang, Finance Manager, Australian Eggs.

Future Plans:

Australian Eggs continues to evolve its reporting capabilities.
They are currently enhancing their reporting process by:

  • Adding Forecast Columns: To reflect additional approved funding and improve budget accuracy.
  • Including Prepayments: To give a clearer picture of remaining funds.

The organisation also plans to use Power BI reporting during board and team meetings to enhance discussions with real-time data insights.

“Project Managers use the report, they give feedback, and we improve it. That makes me really happy.”

Jessie Zhang, Finance Manager, Australian Eggs.

Working with Professional Advantage

The working relationship between Australian Eggs and the PA team has always been very collaborative and open, especially when discussing improvements or ideas.

“Our Client Management Team is very helpful. I usually talk to them first, and they always respond very quickly with feedback.”

Jessie Zhang, Finance Manager, Australian Eggs.

From initial planning to ongoing enhancements, PA’s team provided more than technical support. They became trusted advisors.

“Sometimes they bring an expert consultant to our team meetings to have discussions with me so we can align our plans. The consultants have different views, which are very valuable for us. We can take their advice and think in a different way.”

Jessie Zhang, Finance Manager, Australian Eggs.