Case Study
OLD MUTUAL
Old Mutual Cuts Complexity and Cost with IDU
ABOUT OLD MUTUAL
Old Mutual provides investment, savings, life assurance, asset management, banking and property and personal insurance in Africa, Europe, the Americas and Asia. Old Mutual began in Cape Town in 1845 as South Africa’s first mutual life insurance company, offering financial security in uncertain times.
Today the Group is made up of four strong businesses operating successfully in their respective markets and enabling positive futures for their stakeholders. They have been listed on the London and Johannesburg stock exchanges, among others, since 1999.
THE BUSINESS CHALLENGE
Old Mutual’s Retail Division faced a cumbersome, paper‑intensive budgeting process that relied heavily on Excel spreadsheets. With more than 130 budget areas to manage, consolidating data was time‑consuming, prone to errors, and lacked transparency. The iterative nature of spreadsheets made it difficult to maintain accuracy and accountability, while managers spent more time fixing formulas and consolidating figures than analyzing meaningful financial data. As the organization grew, this manual approach became unsustainable, creating inefficiencies across hundreds of cost centres.
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THE SOLUTION
In 2001, Old Mutual implemented IDU‑Concept’s budgeting module to replace spreadsheets with a robust, front‑end solution. The rollout was rapid — going live in just 10 days — and immediately streamlined the budgeting process. IDU’s intuitive architecture and web‑based design provided transparency, accountability, and ease of use, even for non‑financial managers. Real‑time consolidations allowed cost centre managers to focus on relevant numbers rather than managing the process, while built‑in functionality supported everything from itemising accounts to individualising remuneration.
The result was a simpler, faster, and more cost‑effective budgeting system that scaled from 130 budget areas to over 800 cost centres, empowering Old Mutual to achieve efficiency and accuracy across its divisions.
A PARTNER IN SUCCESS
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“Partnering with Old Mutual to transform their paper‑intensive, spreadsheet‑driven process with IDU was a milestone. The speed of implementation — just 10 days — and the scale across hundreds of cost centres demonstrates how quickly IDU delivers efficiency, transparency, and real impact.” – Kevin Phillips, CEO, IDU
“It is brilliant in this niche space, catering for all budgeting and forecasting needs a company may have. IDU keeps things simple and easy to use. It has been a very good experience, and quick to learn its unique features and capabilities.”
Sivegan Naidoo, Operations Manager, Old Mutual
THE RESULT
Rapid implementation: IDU went live in just 10 days.
Streamlined budgeting: Processes became simpler, faster, and less costly.
Real‑time consolidation: Managers gained instant access to relevant figures across 800+ cost centres.
Improved accountability: Transparent reporting empowered line managers and non‑finance users alike.
