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Enterprise Product Partners Increases Compliance and Reduces Costs with AssureNET GL

Overview

Houston-based Enterprise Products Partners is a leading North American provider of midstream energy services to producers and consumers of natural gas, Natural Gas Liquids (NGLs) and crude oil. It is among the largest publicly traded energy partnerships in the world with an enterprise value of approximately $18 billion. Enterprise is highly sophisticated and their successes and challenges are magnified by the volume of business managed; 140 companies make up Enterprise Products, with three public companies being a part of the group: Enterprise Products Partners LP (EPD), Enterprise GP Holdings L.P. (EPE), and Duncan Energy Partners (DEP).

Challenges

Prior to implementing an the account reconciliation solution they use today, they relied heavily on extensive spreadsheets, which had to be printed, circulated, evaluated, and hand signed. “We wasted a lot of paper and time. Our internal and external auditors hated it. They had to acquire physical copies of all the reconciliations, and make sure they were accurate and signed. It took so much time, not to mention the compliance issues it created,” said Robert Maddox, Lead Accountant, Enterprise Products Partners.

EPP required a solution that provided a high level of visibility in account reconciliation, the ability to share account reconciliation responsibly among more people, and a desirable ease-of-use for internal and external accountants.

As the company continues to grow organically and through acquisitions, headcount doesn’t decrease; however, to stay current with their constantly expanding requirements, EPP constantly looks for ways to increase their efficiency.

“The biggest challenge has been training people to think in a new way, to avoid unnecessary printing or building hundreds of spreadsheet files. Change is always challenging in an organization this size, but we’ve had great tech support to get us through,” Maddox said.

Objectives

EPP had three key goals when they implemented AssureNET GL. They wanted to make it easier for auditors to access account reconciliations (to be able to see what’s really going on, in less time) while trimming billable hours in the process. And they wanted to be able to share account reconciliation responsibilities among more people.

When looking at applications, EPP sought to recognize cost savings by replacing their manual processes with an electronic system that provided ease-of-use and visibility to 145 users who reconcile 5,000 accounts monthly. They sought comprehensive technical support that was available when they needed it, and an application that returned more in savings than what the system cost to implement and maintain. They ran a cost-benefit analysis and selected a solution that provided the visibility, features, and tools they required at a reasonable cost.

From a compliance perspective, they needed an application that would enable their accountants and internal audit group to log into the system remotely and pull out key risk accounts or those they flagged to monitor. This same solution enables external audit groups to electronically sort and review accounts to ensure Sarbanes-Oxley requirements are met.

Capabilities Provided

Testimonial

“We looked at the solutions on the market, the visibility and features they offered, and the price. AssureNET GL meets our requirements and it provides the best solution for the best price.” - Robert Maddox, Lead Accountant

Other Information

If you’d like to learn how you too can simplify the management of the account reconciliation process, contact Trintech today.