The verdict in three sentences
A mid-sized group that consolidates its KPIs by hand receives its monthly report 10 days after close, too late to correct the following month. An executive dashboard connected to the ERP and CRM, with 25 KPIs refreshed every night, costs between 20,000 and 40,000 EUR excl. VAT and ships in 10 weeks. Reporting moves to day 2, and threshold alerts flag drifts mid-month.
Why consolidation takes 10 days
In a group with 5 subsidiaries, whether in Amsterdam or Lyon, each entity exports its figures from the ERP, sometimes from two different ERPs after an acquisition, and financial controllers copy them into a shared workbook. Sales data comes from the CRM, payroll from the HR system, cash from bank statements. Charts of accounts then have to be aligned, intercompany flows eliminated and variances checked.
This process ties up two controllers for a week every month. It produces a static document with no way to drill down from a figure to the original invoice or order. And during those 10 days, the leadership team decides with last month's numbers.
| Criterion | Spreadsheet reporting | Connected dashboard |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly report turnaround | Day 10 | Day 2 |
| Refresh frequency | Monthly | Every night |
| Controller time | 2 people, 5 days a month | 2 people, 1 day a month |
| Detecting a margin drift | The following month | Within 24 h by alert |
| Drill-down to detail | Impossible | By subsidiary, client, product, order |
| Copy errors | High (manual copy and paste) | Low (automated, tested rules) |
Architecture and cost in 2026
The project consists of connectors that extract data nightly from the ERP (Exact, AFAS, Microsoft Dynamics, SAP Business One or Odoo depending on the subsidiary) and from the CRM, a data warehouse that harmonises master data, and a presentation layer: web dashboard, mobile view for the CEO and alerts by email or Teams.
| Component | Scope | Indicative 2026 budget (EUR excl. VAT) |
|---|---|---|
| Scoping the 25 KPIs | Definitions, calculation rules, owners | 2,500 to 4,000 |
| ERP and CRM connectors | 5 subsidiaries, 1 to 2 ERPs, 1 CRM, payroll, bank | 6,000 to 13,000 |
| Data warehouse and harmonisation | Group chart of accounts, intercompany eliminations | 5,000 to 10,000 |
| Dashboard and subsidiary views | Web and mobile, role-based access | 4,000 to 8,000 |
| Threshold alerts | Margin, order book, cash, DSO | 1,500 to 3,000 |
| Acceptance and training | Reconciliation with 3 months of past reporting | 1,000 to 2,000 |
| Total | Delivered in 10 weeks | 20,000 to 40,000 |
Recurring costs run around 400 to 900 EUR excl. VAT a month: data warehouse hosting, presentation tool licences depending on the number of viewers, connector maintenance. A generative AI layer can then explain variances in plain language, for an extra 3,000 to 6,000 EUR excl. VAT.
The 25 KPIs that matter
The classic trap is asking for 120 indicators. A leadership team actually reads about twenty. A typical selection for an industrial or service group includes revenue and gross margin by subsidiary, order book, sales conversion rate, DSO, available cash at 13 weeks, payroll as a share of revenue, headcount, customer service level and a few business-specific indicators. Each KPI has an owner, a written definition and an alert threshold.
Mini case study
Laurent, CEO of a group with 5 subsidiaries and 85 M EUR in revenue, has two financial controllers spending 5 days a month on consolidation. At 650 EUR per loaded day, the process costs 6,500 EUR a month, or 78,000 EUR a year.
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The dashboard costs him 34,000 EUR excl. VAT and 8,400 EUR of annual recurring costs. Consolidation time drops to 1 day per controller, saving 62,400 EUR a year. In month three, an alert reveals a 3-point margin drop in one subsidiary on a product family: fixed in three weeks instead of two months, it avoids about 45,000 EUR of lost margin. The project pays for itself in under 8 months.
FAQ
Do all subsidiaries need the same ERP?
No, the dashboard connects to several ERPs and harmonises data in the warehouse. Each additional ERP adds 2,000 to 4,000 EUR excl. VAT for its connector.
Is the data reliable from the first month?
Acceptance testing compares the dashboard with 3 months of past reporting, with a variance tolerance below 0.5 %. Remaining gaps are documented and fixed before go-live.
Who can see what?
Access is role-based: the CEO sees the group, each subsidiary director sees their entity. Detailed payroll data stays restricted to HR and finance.
Power BI or a custom tool?
Power BI or an equivalent tool fits the presentation layer in 8 cases out of 10, with licences around 12 to 20 EUR per user per month. Custom work is mainly justified for connectors and harmonisation.
How long until the first KPI is live?
The first 5 KPIs are visible in week 5, all 25 in week 10.
Let's scope your project. We price your executive dashboard (KPIs, ERP and CRM connectors, warehouse, alerts) at 20,000 to 40,000 EUR excl. VAT, delivered in 10 weeks. Detailed quote within 48 h. WhatsApp +221 77 596 93 33.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
