From legacy complexity to a global finance blueprint
WPP Media buys more advertising than any other company in the world.
In the United States alone, the organisation manages tens of billions of dollars in annual advertising spend across multiple legal entities, operating under the scrutiny of internal audit teams, external regulators, SOX compliance requirements, and some of the most demanding financial governance standards in the industry.
But behind the scale and complexity sat a challenge many large organisations face.
A legacy finance platform that had evolved over time and had become increasingly difficult to maintain, costly to upgrade, and reliant on manual processes that consumed valuable time across the finance function.
The business needed more than a technology upgrade.
It needed a platform capable of supporting growth, improving operational efficiency, strengthening governance, and creating a foundation for future innovation.
That’s where Vannda came in.
A new approach to transformation
When WPP Media began its transformation journey, the objective wasn’t simply to replace an ageing ERP system – the ambition was much bigger.
The organisation wanted to establish a finance operating model that could be rolled out across multiple international markets, creating consistency, visibility, and control without sacrificing local requirements.
The first challenge was the United States – WPP Media’s largest and most complex market. Success here would create a blueprint for future deployments across Canada, Ireland, France and the UK.
As Andy Tennant, CIO Media for WPP Media, explains:
“ERP projects have a reputation for being expensive, disruptive and, too often, unsuccessful. What stood out about Vannda was their ability to combine deep technical expertise with a relentless focus on getting the business live successfully.”
Building for scale, not just go-live
Rather than creating another heavily customised platform that would become difficult to maintain, Vannda focused on building a scalable, sustainable solution.
Working closely with WPP Media’s finance and operations teams, the project delivered:
A modern Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance & Operations platform
A global finance template designed for multi-country deployment
Automated controls and governance aligned to SOX requirements
Integrated reporting capabilities that reduced manual effort
Robust integrations with critical business systems, including Mediaocean
Centralised master data governance
Automated testing to support future upgrades and continuous improvement
The result was a platform designed not only for today’s requirements, but for tomorrow’s ambitions.
Delivered in 11 months
Despite the complexity of the environment, Vannda delivered the US implementation in just 11 months. For an organisation operating at WPP Media’s scale, that achievement was significant.
The project established a single finance platform capable of supporting billions of dollars of transactions while providing the controls, reporting and governance expected of a global enterprise. More importantly, it gave finance teams greater confidence in the data they were using every day.
Processes that had previously relied on manual reconciliation and spreadsheet-based workarounds became automated and auditable. Audit readiness became part of day-to-day operations rather than a separate exercise.
And leadership gained greater visibility across the business.
Creating the foundation for AI
While the original project focused on finance transformation, its impact is increasingly being felt in another area: readiness for AI.
Like many large organisations, WPP Media is exploring how AI and intelligent automation can accelerate operational processes, reduce manual effort and unlock new efficiencies.
But as Andy points out, organisations cannot fully benefit from AI without first fixing the underlying systems and processes.
“The exciting part about AI isn’t just the technology itself. It’s what becomes possible when you have the right processes, data and systems underneath. Modern platforms create the foundation that allows organisations to move faster and adopt new capabilities with confidence.”
By modernising its finance platform, WPP Media has created AI-ready foundations for future innovation.
The business impact
Today, WPP Media benefits from:
Improved financial governance and compliance
Reduced manual reporting and reconciliation effort
Greater confidence in financial data
Faster and more efficient financial processes
Enhanced audit readiness
A scalable global finance model
A proven blueprint for international rollouts
A stronger foundation for future AI initiatives
Most importantly, the organisation now has a platform built to support growth rather than constrain it.
Looking to the future
The successful US deployment for WPP Media validated a core template that is now being rolled out across additional markets, including Canada, Ireland, France and the UK. For WPP Media, the project wasn’t simply about replacing legacy technology. It was about creating a finance platform that could evolve alongside the business.
For Vanda, it demonstrates what is possible when deep Dynamics expertise is combined with a practical understanding of finance transformation, governance and operational change.
Technology projects succeed when they solve business problems.
This one delivered exactly that.
“ERP projects have a reputation for being expensive, disruptive and, too often, unsuccessful. What stood out about Vannda was their ability to combine deep expertise with a relentless focus on delivery. They have consistently delivered for us, on time, and with the confidence that the business is ready.”
Andy Tennant
CIO, WPP Media
Key results
11-month transformation
Delivered one of WPP Media’s largest finance platform modernisations in under a year.
Global blueprint established
Created a scalable template for rollout across the USA, Canada, Ireland, France and the UK.
Audit-ready by design
Embedded governance, controls and compliance into everyday operations.
Tens of billions in annual transactions supported
Providing visibility and control across one of the world’s largest media buying operations.
Manual effort significantly reduced
Replacing spreadsheet-driven reporting and reconciliation with automated workflows.
AI-ready foundation
Creating the platform, data structures and processes needed for future intelligent automation.