City of Vernon

The Challenge: Drowning in Complex Legacy Systems & Workarounds

When Elma Hamming, CPA, CMA, joined the City of Vernon, British Columbia as Director of Financial Services in March 2024, she inherited a financial reporting process that was, in her words, a “mishmash due to growth, change, and limited resources.” The city’s previous year-end statements relied on a mix of old legacy solutions and manual Excel workarounds, with comparative data misaligned between systems they were a challenge to audit. A recent transition to a new Workday ERP system in January 2024 further complicated matters, requiring a complete remapping of the general ledger (GL) structure. With a tight timeline, limited budget, staffing shortages, and an audit looming, Elma faced a daunting task: produce accurate, compliant financial statements without overwhelming her team or depending on external auditors to prepare them.

Manual processes were time-consuming and increased the risk of error, pulling focus from strategic priorities like council reporting and long-term financial planning. Elma, who had previously worked with F.H. Black & Company Incorporated at other organizations, turned to FHB and their ARLO solution to transform Vernon’s financial reporting to maximize efficiencies and give the city a strong foundation for the future .

The Solution: Automating with ARLO for Speed and Simplicity

Elma and her team partnered with FHB to implement ARLO, a cloud-based platform designed to streamline financial reporting. Despite a compressed timeline, FHB’s consultants—Christine Gilbert, CPA, Tricia Fraser, CPA and Michael Spurlin —worked closely with Vernon to map the new Workday GL structure to ARLO and automate the production of financial statements.ARLO’s intuitive interface, resembling familiar tools like Word and Excel, allowed Vernon’s team to quickly adapt, even with limited prior exposure. Unlike their prior solution, which Elma found unnecessarily complex and non-intuitive for annual use, ARLO simplified data manipulation and statement adjustments. For example, FHB customized ARLO to handle Vernon’s unique water utility reporting, netting out regional district transactions seamlessly. This flexibility ensured the city could produce polished, compliant financial statements without the steep learning curve of legacy tools while enhancing the quality of data analysis.

The Results: Efficiency Gains and a Path to Strategic Focus

The implementation delivered immediate efficiencies. By automating GL imports, grouping of  accounts, and statement updates based on Vernon's specific rules, ARLO eliminated the need for manual Excel workarounds, saving significant time during the audit process. “It’s definitely easier to manipulate than our previous solution,” Elma said, noting how ARLO’s user-friendly design reduced the complexity of mapping changes and adjustments. The city successfully completed its audit with no major findings, a significant achievement given the year’s challenges.ARLO also positioned Vernon for future efficiencies with capabilities and content that would have been extremely difficult and time consuming to incorporate into their prior solution. ARLO's PSAB content library prepares the city for upcoming reporting requirements, such as PS 1202 compliance in 2027, with pre-built templates and crosswalks. Elma’s team plans to expand ARLO’s use to Local Government Data Entry (LGDE) reporting and potentially quarterly council reports, further reducing manual workloads. “It simplifies the process,” Elma said, especially for onboarding new staff with limited public sector experience—a critical advantage given the public sector's staffing challenges.

By automating repetitive tasks, ARLO freed up time for Elma’s team to focus on strategic priorities, such as financial planning and community impact. The city is also exploring ARLO’s benchmarking capabilities to compare performance metrics like reserves and debt against peer municipalities, aligning with Elma’s interest in PSAB’s Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) ratios for long-term financial health.

A Trusted Partnership

Elma’s long-standing relationship with FHB, spanning her roles with the Town of Smithers, City of Rossland, Town of Oliver, City of Penticton, and now the City of Vernon, underscores the reliability of the partnership. “I knew I was in good hands,” she said, appreciating FHB’s willingness to take on extra workload during the compressed timeline. The team’s support, combined with ARLO’s intuitive design, turned a high-pressure, high-risk project into a sensational success story. The City of Vernon’s journey with ARLO demonstrates how automation can transform municipal finance from a “mishmash” of manual tasks into a streamlined, strategic function—saving time, reducing errors, and empowering teams to deliver greater value to their communities.

Ready to streamline your financial reporting? Contact F.H. Black & Company Incorporated to learn how ARLO can transform your processes.

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