Why Financial Institution Unit Trust Corporation Replaced SAP with Microsoft Dynamics 365 and Chose HSO to Help Modernize Finance and Operations

The Unit Trust Corporation (UTC) is one of the largest financial institutions in the Caribbean. For 37 years, they have been helping their citizens with the mission of ensuring the financial well-being and security of every household in Trinidad and Tobago. In order to continue this mission, UTC realized that they needed to embark on a digital transformation.

Many of the software systems they were using, including SAP, were becoming outdated. Kerri Maharaj, Chief Financial Officer at UTC commented, “The old system we were on was extremely difficult to navigate. It required heavy IT involvement and outside consultant involvement if we wanted to make a change.”

They also needed improvements in areas such as reporting, bank reconciliation, and the way they managed the investment process from beginning to end. Warren Sookdar, Chief Information Officer at UTC, put it this way: “The need for more precise information started to outstrip our ability to provide it. We have to be able to innovate, because if you don’t innovate, you’re going to become uncompetitive.”

They recognized that choosing the right software was crucial to the company’s progress. After extensive research, the team decided that Microsoft Dynamics 365 was the best fit for The Unit Trust. “Dynamics 365 was hands down the winner. All our employees and team members who were involved in the process loved the interface, loved the ease with which it can be used and the ease with which it can be configured,” said Nigel Edwards, Executive Director at UTC.

Once they had chosen the software, they needed a Microsoft partner that could smoothly implement and integrate it, tailor it for UTC, and provide training for employees. Based on their extensive experience working with financial services companies and Microsoft business applications knowledge, HSO proved to be the perfect fit for the mission-critical project.

“We found HSO to be very responsive to our needs to make the project successful every step of the way," said Franz McConney, Advisor, Strategic Projects at UTC. "You have to have the confidence that your partner is looking after your best interests, and that’s the type of working relationship we got with HSO on this project.”

Nigel Edwards, UTC's Executive Director, added, “I was impressed simply by the fact that they [HSO] asked the right questions. They were very knowledgeable about our business, which was important to us…I can easily say that all our expectations were met and exceeded in this project.”

The Unit Trust Corporation is more than pleased with their decision to implement Microsoft Dynamics 365 with the help of HSO. They now have a system that delivers all of the benefits they were looking for and are able to move forward with a more cost-effective and productive application.