Mendix Enables Siemens Finance Teams to Develop Their Own Applications

The finance department of Siemens Industrial Software Co., Ltd. oversees the company’s financial management, including accounting, budgeting, expenditure control, and supporting business decisions.

They also deepen cross-departmental cooperation to enhance financial management and provide critical data for corporate operations and investment activities.

In today’s digital age, the finance department faces opportunities and challenges for digital transformation. Traditional workflows consumed significant human and time resources and relied heavily on manual processes.

For example, basic financial reimbursement involved manual verification of paper documents submitted by departments, requiring at least 1.5 hours of labor weekly. Similarly, managing approximately 100 annual agent recruits required handling manual approval processes across multiple departments, which was time-consuming and error-prone.

Self-Sufficient App Development

Digital transformation was essential to reform manual processes, transitioning to automated workflows that minimized errors. However, for a non-IT finance team, this presented several challenges:

Lack of IT knowledge and tools to support digitalization efforts.
IT department prioritization constraints meant not all business needs could be addressed promptly.
Communication barriers with the IT department due to differing understandings of business and system logic.

Through internal communication with Siemens IT and knowledge-sharing sessions, the finance department learned about Mendix, a platform that allows non-IT users to develop applications independently.

Inspired by examples from other departments, the finance team began exploring the platform and, during a work-from-home period, completed self-directed training, earning basic developer certifications in just 10 working days.

Despite having no prior software development experience, the team found the certification process straightforward by dedicating 3-4 hours daily to study video courses and practice.

Process Optimization with Low-Code

Using Mendix, the finance department developed several applications.

Partner Recruitment and Update System

This platform automates processes such as agent recruitment, qualification review, contract signing or updates, certification issuance, and name changes. Benefits include:

Reduced manual and repetitive tasks: Workflow automation eliminated email-based communication, with the system triggering approvals and generating contracts and certificates automatically.
Improved communication and approval efficiency: Approval time for new agents decreased from 1-1.5 months to approximately one week.
Transparency: Users can track approval status in real-time and provide support when needed.
Compliance: Templates and rules ensure process standardization.
Unified document and information storage: Cloud-based storage prevents data loss and provides access to all departments anytime, anywhere.
Flexible management: Features like contract template management, customizable fields, and workflow dashboards enhance adaptability to changing business needs.

Reimbursement Document Submission System

This mobile application allows employees to register reimbursement information by scanning a QR code. Finance staff can directly access submitted data, eliminating manual verification and entry processes.

Flexible Work Management System

Developed during a period requiring limited office attendance, this system enabled real-time tracking of attendance schedules, ensuring smoother collaboration and planning within the department.

Using Mendix, the finance team accelerated application deployment, saving human resources and overcoming communication barriers with IT.

For example, the “Partner Recruitment and Update System” was developed in just 40 days, compared to an estimated 3-4 months using traditional methods. Smaller applications like the reimbursement and attendance systems were completed in just five days.

A New Era of Efficiency

The finance department summarized the benefits of low-code development:

Time Savings: Medium-scale applications can be developed in 40 days versus 3-4 months traditionally, with ample time for user testing before deployment.
Labor Savings: Applications require just 1-2 developers for completion.
Real-Time Visibility: Business users can track project progress and ensure workflows align with logic, enabling quick error resolution.
Easy Deployment: Cloud-based deployment via the Siemens Dayu platform simplifies the process with guided steps and one-click publishing.

“Traditional development is like steering a large ship where passengers and captains have distinct roles. Low-code is like piloting a kayak where passengers are also captains, allowing for flexibility and quick adjustments,” said Yu Chao, Finance BP and Project Lead.

By embracing Mendix, the finance department has paved the way for further innovation, planning to expand its use in broader digitalization projects to enhance financial and cross-departmental processes.