UNICEF Switzerland: document generation in the Salesforce cloud

At UNICEF Switzerland and Liechtenstein, a customer relationship management (CRM) system is at the core of their operations. The data and information it contains are considered invaluable assets, which is why selecting a connected application was of the utmost importance. Effective document generation and output management, as well as their seamless connection to the CRM system, are crucial for optimizing processes and reducing costs.

Salesforce was chosen as the customer database at UNICEF Switzerland and Liechtenstein. However, their existing document generation solution no longer met the desired requirements in terms of cost, handling, quality, and support. In addition, Switzerland was set to introduce QR invoicing by October 2022. To address these challenges, UNICEF Switzerland and Liechtenstein decided to evaluate and introduce a new document and output management system.

Thanks to Compart DocBridge^® Connect, UNICEF Switzerland and Liechtenstein now have a highly efficient and reliable document generation and output management system. This solution seamlessly integrates with their Salesforce CRM system, allowing them to generate and print documents locally from the Salesforce Cloud. This not only saves them time and money, but it also helps them to manage their valuable data more efficiently. With Compart DocBridge^® Connect, UNICEF Switzerland and Liechtenstein can focus on their core mission of helping children in need.

Complex requirements for solution and project

• Enable document generation and printing directly from Salesforce and the cloud, allowing for streamlined and efficient processes.
• Implement local printing with shaft control to ensure maximum efficiency and accuracy in document management.
• Achieve a short integration time of just 3 months, even amidst high season, to minimize disruption to operations and maximize benefits.
• Introduce support for Swiss QR Invoice, a new invoicing standard in Switzerland, to ensure compliance and ease of use.
• Enable multilingual document creation to support the diverse needs of UNICEF Switzerland and Liechtenstein's stakeholders.
• Optimize costs through licenses and maintenance management, to ensure maximum value for UNICEF Switzerland and Liechtenstein's investment.

Enhancing Expertise Throughout the Process

After developing a comprehensive catalog of requirements in collaboration with a Salesforce partner, UNICEF Switzerland and Liechtenstein evaluated five providers based on selection criteria including functionality, total costs (including implementation), local language support, and personal impression. Ultimately, they selected Compart DocBridge^® Connect for Salesforce with Engenius GmbH as their integration partner. "Compart not only presented us with a very attractive offer with a solution that was functionally accurate and future-oriented, but also impressed us with their exceptional expertise and transparency," said Manfred Ruf, Head of IT at UNICEF Switzerland and Liechtenstein. Daniel Leibundgut, Head of Customer Service, added, "Throughout the evaluation process and subsequent project, both parties actively searched for feasible solutions to cover all our needs and to equip us optimally for the future."

As an aid organization, costs for administrative efforts are particularly significant

As a humanitarian organization, UNICEF Switzerland and Liechtenstein recognize the importance of cost-efficient administrative efforts. The previous document generation solution had become a financial burden, especially due to the high volume of documents produced by the organization. Printing about 100,000 documents annually directly from the office, with a peak in volume during the months of September to December, the previous solution provider charged them for the weaker months as well, resulting in unnecessary expenses. Furthermore, license costs increased by almost 400% within three years, making it even more challenging for UNICEF Switzerland and Liechtenstein to keep up with the high costs.

The new solution, DocBridge^® Connect for Salesforce, offers UNICEF Switzerland and Liechtenstein an attractive licensing model that meets their needs and includes additional functionalities such as the integrated generation of Swiss QR invoices. This feature could only have been realized with the previous solution or with other providers through enormous programming and cost expenditures. Manfred Ruf, the Head of IT at UNICEF Switzerland and Liechtenstein, expresses his satisfaction by saying, "The fact that the QR invoice was integrated as standard in Compart's solution was the icing on the cake for us and represented another important cost advantage, especially for us as a humanitarian organization."

DocBridge^® Connect is also an investment in the future

UNICEF Switzerland and Liechtenstein is an aid organization that collects donations for children in need through fundraising campaigns and its own call center. After receiving donation pledges or direct payments, the organization produces around 100,000 donation confirmations per year in three languages, which include a QR invoice attachment in the case of donation pledges. The implementation of DocBridge^® Connect for Salesforce has brought significant benefits in terms of user-friendliness and efficiency, supporting the organization's mission.

DocBridge^® Impress provides central functions for document generation directly from Salesforce, with text modules available in various languages. Documents are created independently of the output channel and converted into the required format in the production step. While the organization currently sends all documents by post or as PDF attachments in emails, direct email generation is now possible with the new solution. The documents are stored as PDFs in Salesforce, and correct assignment is of central importance. To optimize costs, the organization plans to implement pure reference using a URL in Salesforce in the future.

The new solution not only offers an attractive licensing model that meets the organization's needs, but also includes additional functionalities such as the integrated generation of Swiss QR invoices. The fact that the QR invoice was integrated as standard in Compart's solution represents another important cost advantage, particularly for an aid organization. UNICEF Switzerland and Liechtenstein values the collaboration with Compart and Engenius, who are responsive to customer needs and open to innovations. Even with a relatively low document volume, the organization is treated as a premium customer, resulting in an uncomplicated collaboration at eye level.

A gain in terms of quality and environmental protection

In addition to cost concerns, the previous document generation system used by UNICEF Switzerland and Liechtenstein had several significant shortcomings over the years. The system was complicated and unreliable, with fonts often changing during the PDF generation process, resulting in costly corrections to maintain the strict CI/CD. Without a preview function, checking and corrections could only occur after physical printing, which sometimes required up to 20 sheets of paper to achieve correct representation. Incorrect line breaks were also a problem. However, with DocBridge^® Connect's accurate preview and clean document generation, significant time and cost savings have been realized, while also contributing to environmental protection. Furthermore, the quality of document production has improved considerably, as noted by Daniel Leibundgut, who observed a significant increase in quality when comparing documents produced by the old system with those generated by the new solution.

Greatest possible flexibility in individual and mass printing

It's great to hear that UNICEF Switzerland and Liechtenstein has been able to roll out the DocBridge^® Connect for Salesforce solution to the area of donation services as well, thanks to the comprehensive training provided by Engenius. The solution seems to be able to address the special requirement of having many different attachments for the creation of documents for the donation service, which are sent with the donation letter and invoice depending on the donation topic, via a dedicated tray control in local printing.

The ability to directly address printers via the tray control was a great advantage for UNICEF Switzerland and Liechtenstein, which would have been difficult to implement with other solutions. Additionally, the organization will be able to produce mailings with a larger print run directly in-house in the future, which will not only save time and costs due to the elimination of prepress but also give greater flexibility and independence in the choice of print service provider.

Solution architecture with Compart DocBridge^® Connect

That's correct. The DocBridge^® Connect for Salesforce solution includes both a server component and an app that is installed in the Salesforce cloud. The server component, called DocBridge^® Connect for Salesforce Server, serves as the interface between the Salesforce app and the DocBridge components Gear and Impress. With this setup, the solution can handle a range of omnichannel use cases, such as generating documents for different output channels and enabling bi-directional communication with Salesforce for document previews and storage. Additionally, the solution supports direct printing within the local network.

Proximity to people also counts in partnership

Having a local and accessible support team was a crucial factor for UNICEF Switzerland and Liechtenstein when choosing a provider for document generation and output management. Engenius, with its Swiss-based team, provided the necessary proximity and language capabilities that made communication easier and more efficient. This, in turn, led to a higher level of trust and motivation within the UNICEF Switzerland and Liechtenstein team, enabling them to realize the project with confidence. Furthermore, Engenius' expertise in Salesforce and other areas was highly appreciated by the UNICEF Switzerland and Liechtenstein team, providing them with the necessary support to focus on their primary objective of helping needy children worldwide.

The employees involved from all parties were the capital for the project

It's impressive to see the successful implementation of the project within such a tight timeframe of just three months, given the critical requirements for the uniform Swiss QR invoice and the expiring contract with the previous document generation provider. Engenius played a crucial role in providing project management, coordination, and practical assistance, with Dirk Engberg leading the team of specialists. The tireless commitment and enthusiasm of all parties involved, including UNICEF Switzerland and Liechtenstein, were also essential to the success of the project.

The combination of Compart as a software manufacturer and Engenius as a sales and integration partner was described as excellent, profitable, and enriching. The project achieved multilingual document generation and local printing directly from Salesforce, integrated generation of Swiss QR invoice, cost reduction in licenses, maintenance, and document generation, process simplification in printing with a significant increase in quality, support reduction to absolute minimum, and the greatest possible flexibility in output management with omnichannel capability.

UNICEF Schweiz und Liechtenstein

The Swiss representative of the New York-based UN Children's Fund was founded in 1959, functions primarily as a fundraising organization and is run as a classic association. The current staff of around 65, based in Zurich and spread across five business units, collects donations in Switzerland and Liechtenstein for international children's projects, which are then used for specific purposes by UNICEF International.

In addition, a children's rights department acts as a separate unit to promote the rights of children in Switzerland and Liechtenstein. Measured by donation turnover, the Committee for UNICEF Switzerland and Liechtenstein is considered the largest children's aid organization in Switzerland and ranks among the top 5 within non-profit organizations. With its worldwide presence, UNICEF is weighted as a UN organization, which gives it the necessary prestige in the respective countries vis-à-vis governments and other actors. UNICEF offers, in addition to the actual support for the needy children of the world, a very strong emergency aid with warehouses and is present before, during and after the crisis. www.unicef.ch