With David Ashlin, Al-Futtaim Group Finance
How Al-Futtaim transformed statutory reporting with ONESOURCE
Discover how Al-Futtaim standardised statutory reporting across 90+ entities, reduced reporting cycles by 40%, and improved audit readiness with ONESOURCE Statutory Reporting.
Introduction
As one of the Middle East’s largest diversified conglomerates, Al-Futtaim operates across more than 20 countries with over 200 legal entities spanning multiple industries and regulatory environments. Managing statutory reporting across such a complex landscape created increasing pressure on finance teams — from fragmented data and manual processes to differing local GAAP requirements and tight filing deadlines.
To modernize financial reporting and improve consistency across jurisdictions, Al-Futtaim embarked on a multi-year finance transformation journey powered by ONESOURCE Statutory Reporting.
See how Al‑Futtaim approached statutory reporting transformation with ONESOURCE Statutory Reporting
Watch the full video here
The challenge
Before implementing ONESOURCE Statutory Reporting, Al-Futtaim’s reporting process relied heavily on spreadsheets, manual data mapping, and disconnected workflows. Managing multiple local GAAP requirements and reporting deadlines across jurisdictions introduced complexity, inefficiencies, and increased compliance risk.
The organization faced several key challenges:
- Manual mapping of SAP and consolidation data into local financial statements
- Version control issues and inconsistent disclosures across entities
- High dependency on key individuals for country-specific reporting
- Long reporting cycles, with some statements taking up to 3–4 weeks to finalize
- Increased audit queries and limited centralised visibility into reporting progress
As regulatory scrutiny intensified, the business needed a scalable and standardized approach to statutory reporting that could improve governance while maintaining local flexibility.
“We shifted from manual, deadline-driven statutory reporting to a digitally enabled, standardized, and audit-ready process that frees finance to focus on insight, not iteration.”
David Ashlin
Al-Futtaim Group Finance
The solution
Al-Futtaim selected ONESOURCE Statutory Reporting to centralize and standardize statutory reporting across the organization.
Integrated with SAP S/4 and SAP BPC, the solution enabled Al-Futtaim to automate disclosures, standardize templates, improve auditability, and establish a single reporting framework across multiple jurisdictions.
The implementation followed a phased rollout approach:
- Development of master templates across key jurisdictions
- Automated trial balance mapping from SAP BPC into ONESOURCE
- Workflow-driven reviews and approvals, including auditor collaboration
- Roll-forward functionality to streamline recurring reporting cycles
- Centralised governance and visibility for Group Finance teams
The flexibility of ONESOURCE also allowed the business to maintain local disclosure requirements while achieving global consistency.
The results
With ONESOURCE Statutory Reporting in place, Al-Futtaim achieved measurable improvements across efficiency, control, and audit readiness.
- Reduced reporting cycles by up to 40%
Automation significantly shortened financial statement preparation timelines, helping teams reduce manual effort and accelerate reporting cycles. - Approximately 18 hours saved per financial statement
Automated disclosures and standardized workflows reduced repetitive tasks and freed finance teams to focus on analysis and review rather than manual preparation.
- Improved audit readiness and governance
The organization established a full audit trail from trial balance through to disclosures, improving transparency, consistency, and supporting workpapers across entities.
- Standardized reporting across 90+ entities
Using 14 master templates, Al-Futtaim centralised statutory reporting while still accommodating local compliance requirements.
- Greater visibility for Group Finance
Finance leadership gained centralised oversight into reporting progress, quality, and timelines across countries and entities.
Looking ahead
Al-Futtaim continues to expand its finance transformation journey with ongoing support from Thomson Reuters through regulatory content updates, enablement programs, and access to global expertise.
By moving to a centralised and automated reporting model, the organization has built a scalable foundation that supports future growth, evolving compliance requirements, and broader reporting transformation initiatives — including ESG reporting.
At a glance
Industry
Diversified conglomerate
Headquarters
Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Solutions
Thomson Reuters ONESOURCE
(Statutory Reporting)
Year founded
1930
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