Fairmas & Tidan Success Story

Reshaping Tidan Hotel’s financial planning and analysis 

The Tidan Hospitality and Real Estate Group has been a leader in the real estate industry since 1970. Despite their success, managing financial planning for their 12 hotels was a challenge. Tidan’s reliance on manual processes for consolidating financial data led to inefficiencies and errors.  

In this article, Christine Larocque, Director of Accounting for Tidan’s Hospitality Division, shares insights on how Tidan transformed their financial operations with FairPlanner by Fairmas, a financial planning and analysis (FP&A) software tailored for the hospitality industry. 

Challenges Before Fairmas 

Christine shared that before adopting FairPlanner, Tidan struggled with financial planning and management due to the absence of an effective tool. The entire budgeting process was manual, relying on Excel spreadsheets, which were time-consuming and prone to errors. Forecasting was rarely done due to the rigidity of their existing ERP system, and limited reporting capabilities. Consolidating financial data from various sources was also challenging. Without integration, it was difficult to analyze historical data or track financial performance effectively, leading to delays and inaccuracies in decision-making. 

Choosing Fairmas 

She added that Tidan evaluated multiple financial planning solutions and chose FairPlanner by Fairmas for its hospitality-specific features, ease of use, quick implementation, and reasonable pricing. The Fairmas team’s proactive approach and understanding of Tidan’s needs influenced their decision. 

Implementation and Key Features 

The implementation process was smooth and efficient. The user-friendly interface allowed for a quick onboarding process with minimal training required. Key features like the ability to compare actuals with budgets seamlessly stood out, making the software a valuable addition to Tidan’s financial operations. 

Improvements After Implementing Fairmas 

Since implementing FairPlanner, Tidan has seen significant improvements in its financial processes. The budgeting process, once slow and error-prone, is more efficient. Forecasting, which was almost non-existent, is now a regular part of their financial planning. Tidan can easily switch between historical data and generate comparisons, enhancing its quarterly financial analysis. This streamlined process has saved considerable time and allowed the team to focus on strategic tasks, improving overall efficiency. 

Better-Informed Financial Decisions 

Before Fairmas, making financial decisions on loans was challenging due to a lack of comprehensive data. With FairPlanner, Tidan developed a 12-month rolling schedule for banks, reducing errors from manual entry and enabling better-informed decisions. 

Time Savings and Improved Collaboration 

Implementing FairPlanner has led to significant time savings and improved team collaboration. Quarterly meetings are now more efficient, and department heads have easy access to the financial data they need. This transparency fosters better communication, leading to more cohesive decision-making processes. The benefits of time savings, enhanced accuracy, and better-informed decision-making continue to drive Tidan’s success.  

Recommendation 

Christine highly recommends Fairmas especially for hotel properties.

She said, ‘’one of the most impressive aspects of the Fairmas team is their unwavering commitment to every customer, whether you’re new or long-standing. They consistently provide meticulous care and attention, ensuring that support is always readily available, no matter where you are on your customer journey. Their software is easy to use, fast, and allows for instant comparisons of data. For e.g., comparing financial data from 2019 to today, a pre-COVID year, is now just a click away. The Fairmas solution has significantly improved our financial planning and analysis processes, making it an invaluable tool for our ongoing success.’’