A monolithic treasury management system (TMS) was not what Scott Taylor, Treasurer, Bandwidth, was looking for. Instead, he wanted a light-touch technology solution that would help the company achieve its growth plans, while being flexible enough to leverage the latest technological developments. The API-based solution that Bandwidth developed in conjunction with ICD and Trovata has not only achieved these outcomes but also set a precedent for future treasury technology architecture – and won a Highly Commended Accolade for Treasury Technology Trailblazer in TMI’s 2020 Corporate Recognition Awards.
Cloud-based communication platforms have experienced a boom in usage in recent years, not least as a result of Covid-19. As such, Bandwidth – a leading cloud-ready voice, messaging, and emergency service connectivity provider – is growing rapidly.
To enable the company’s financial operations to scale with the business, Taylor was brought on board in 2019 with the goals of establishing a formal treasury function and making the associated processes more streamlined and efficient. This meant bringing previously outsourced cash management responsibilities back in-house, switching to more modern cash management banks, and putting in place dedicated, automated, treasury technology.
A different path
“We wanted a treasury workstation, but given previous implementations I had worked on, a fully blown ‘monolithic’ TMS was out of the question,” says Taylor. “We needed a light-touch technology that would assist in a matter of weeks, not years,” he adds.
Bandwidth subsequently chose Trovata as its cash forecasting platform. As well as being cost-effective, virtually no IT resources were required for the implementation. An application programming interface (API) connection was set up with Bandwidth’s enterprise resource planning (ERP) system to automatically pull data into Trovata.
Building on this technology win, Taylor then selected ICD Portal to enable the company’s cash management to be insourced again. Having worked with the ICD team at a previous company, he knew the portal would be a perfect fit for Bandwidth. In addition to the ease with which the platform would enable investments in money market funds (MMFs) and Federally Insured Cash Accounts, Taylor also chose ICD based on its partnership approach and dedication to customer service. Another benefit of using ICD was its vision for using technology to make the treasurer’s life easier – which dovetailed with both Trovata’s ambitions and Taylor’s.
Co-creation and integration
The natural next step was to integrate the workflows between the two technology vendors. ICD and Trovata worked together on the integrated workflow concept, with input from Taylor, but with virtually no resource requirements from his side, thanks to the use of cutting-edge API technology.
This integration establishes a straight-through process for the free flow of data across platforms. As such, Taylor uses Trovata to forecast and easily identify that there is excess cash to invest. He then performs the investment transaction using ICD Portal and all of the information automatically populates back into Trovata, saving time and eliminating manual errors.
The integrated workflow provides speed and agility, as well as confidence in having up-to-the-minute, accurate data available. And with the ICD workflow now fully integrated into Trovata, Bandwidth is finding its cash forecasting has improved significantly. Making investments is also easier than ever.
The TMI judges were impressed by the concrete benefits achieved by this collaborative project, which has paved the way for other treasury functions to leverage integrated workflows. “Using APIs in this way is incredibly easy,” says Taylor. “It is possible to keep all of the technology and treasury architecture you already have, while gaining a much more efficient way to pull your data into one place – and you can make short-term investments in just a few clicks.”
The judges also appreciated the fact that Taylor has ideas for further improving his treasury tech set-up. “I see an additional area for development being the ability to make the investment via ICD in a pop-up window in Trovata, or using suggested actions in Trovata,” he says. Taylor also wants to link the cash solution to the company’s general ledger and to a provider to pull FX data into Trovata, again via APIs.
In addition, Taylor is keen to embrace real-time payments and collections. He believes that automated investment solutions will be critical to keep pace with the real-time environment, and having the integrated workflow in place will be invaluable when working in the era of 24/7/365 treasury. The TMI judges look forward to watching how this trailblazing solution develops throughout 2021.
