The company
Global Information Systems Technology Pvt. Ltd. (GIST) stands as a pillar in India’s information landscape. For over three decades, GIST has been a leading content and information solutions company, serving as a crucial link between global STM (Scientific, Technical, and Medical) publishers and hundreds of academic institutes, government bodies, and corporate organizations across India. Specializing in the distribution of e-books and e-journals, GIST navigates the complexities of multi-currency transactions and caters to the diverse requirements of its varied customer segments.
Operating at the intersection of global publishing and diverse Indian markets requires exceptional operational agility. GIST’s commitment to delivering scholarly content efficiently necessitates robust, integrated systems capable of handling unique customer templates, complex financial transactions, and seamless workflows.
The challenge
Trigya Innovations, a Zoho Premium Partner with over a decade of experience, emerged as the catalyst for GIST’s transformation. Led by Founder and CEO Balvinder Singh, Trigya Innovations runs the show with a team of over 40 experts across offices in Haryana, Kanpur, and New York. Their deep expertise in Zoho’s suite, combined with a commitment to understanding client-specific business processes, positioned them perfectly to address GIST’s unique challenges.
Trigya’s approach involves not just implementing software but architecting solutions. Their team, who has specialized Zoho One experts , dives deep into client workflows to build tailored, efficient systems using the full potential of the Zoho ecosystem, including advanced tools like Zoho Creator and Catalyst.
Challenges: The Strain of Disconnected Systems
As GIST grew, its reliance on a patchwork of disconnected software systems began to hinder efficiency and scalability. The core challenges were:
- Fragmented Operations: GIST used Salesforce for CRM, Tally for finance, and Happay for travel and expense management. These systems operated in silos, preventing seamless data flow.
- CRM Limitations: Salesforce, despite modifications, became difficult to use and couldn’t effectively integrate with their financial system (Tally), creating data inconsistencies.
- Diverse Customer Needs: Managing different templates and requirements for academic, government, and corporate clients within a rigid system was cumbersome.
- Manual Workarounds: Significant manual effort was required for tasks like multi-currency conversions, managing complex terms and conditions, calculating TDS for remittances, and bridging data gaps between systems.
- Lack of Unified View: Without a centralized system, gaining a holistic view of sales, finance, and operations was difficult, impacting strategic decision-making.
“The problem we face along with Salesforce, is that we are using Tally for the financial software, and for tour and traveling we are using Happay software. So in that way we are using multiple softwares.”
The Solution: A Unified Ecosystem with Zoho One
GIST discovered Trigya Innovations through a web search. Recognizing the complexity of GIST’s business , dealing with global publishers, diverse Indian clients, and multi-currency transactions, Balvinder Singh from Trigya Innovations and his team invested time in understanding GIST’s specific needs through detailed demos and requirement gathering.
“He would like to understand our business because our business was slightly different,”
Trigya Innovations identified Zoho One as the ideal solution. It offered a comprehensive suite of integrated applications under a single license, addressing GIST’s need for unification and providing better value compared to maintaining multiple disparate systems.
“Balvinder basically suggested that Zoho One could be the solution for us… he understood that it is not feasible for us to work with just one software,”
The implementation focused on replacing the fragmented stack and automating complex processes:
- Custom Core Processes with Zoho Creator: Recognizing the unique requirements for proforma invoices and remittance calculations. Trigya leveraged Zoho Creator to build custom modules. These modules allowed GIST to input details in one place, with automation splitting data and creating necessary entries in Zoho Books.
- Integrated Sales & Finance: Zoho CRM replaced Salesforce for sales management, seamlessly integrating with Zoho Books (which replaced Tally) for a unified view of customer interactions and financial transactions.
- Streamlined Expenses: Zoho Expense replaced Happay, integrating expense management directly into the Zoho ecosystem. This sorted out their travel expenses and made their reimbursement claims hassle free.
- Project Management: To boost internal efficiency, Zoho Projects was introduced as the central hub for managing tasks, timelines, and team collaboration. It brought structure to project execution, improved accountability, and ensured nothing fell through the cracks. With real-time tracking and streamlined workflows, teams could stay aligned and deliver results more effectively.
- Advanced Customization: Trigya utilized HTML/CSS for custom templates within Creator and even leveraged Zoho Catalyst for functionalities beyond Creator’s standard capabilities, ensuring the solution precisely matched GIST’s needs.
“Once this module was showcased to us we were convinced that we were going in the right direction,”
Results: Efficiency, Automation, and Integration.
The transition to Zoho One, guided by Trigya Innovations, yielded significant benefits for GIST:
- Unified Platform: Replaced multiple disconnected software tools (Salesforce, Tally, Happay) with a single, integrated ecosystem.
- Process Automation: Significantly reduced manual effort previously required for data entry, currency conversions, TDS calculations, and managing terms & conditions.
- Improved Data Flow: Seamless integration between CRM, Creator, Books, and Expense provided a consistent and accurate view of business operations.
- Customization Success: Tailored solutions built on Zoho Creator and Catalyst addressed GIST’s unique business logic effectively.
- Cost-Effectiveness: Consolidated software needs under the Zoho One license, offering better economic value.
Future Vision: Towards Total Automation
GIST is focused on leveraging the Zoho platform further to achieve total automation and gain deeper insights through custom reporting.
- Implementing Zoho People, Zoho Recruit, and Kiosk applications like biometrics for comprehensive HR and attendance management.
- Developing custom templates for purchase order management.
- Creating advanced custom reports, likely using Zoho Analytics, to overcome financial reporting challenges and gain strategic insights.
Conclusion
GIST’s journey with Trigya Innovations and Zoho One highlights the power of an integrated platform in transforming complex business operations. By replacing a fragmented system with a unified, customizable solution, GIST streamlined critical workflows, automated complex calculations, and reduced manual effort. This transformation not only improved current efficiency but also laid a scalable foundation for achieving their future vision of total automation and data-driven decision-making, solidifying their position as a leader in India’s information solutions landscape.