Beca moves finance to Oracle cloud in Asia Pacific

Beca's shift to Oracle's cloud finance system reflects a common challenge for established project-based consultancies: managing growth and compliance while relying on heavily customized, older software. Such legacy systems often incur high maintenance burdens and can hinder efforts to standardize reporting or integrate new automation technologies. The transition suggests a strategic choice to prioritize a unified platform over the flexibility of highly tailored, but potentially inefficient, bespoke solutions.

The integration of AI-powered insights and agentic AI capabilities is a key driver for Beca, as stated by CFO Mark Fleming. This suggests the company views automation not just as a cost-cutting measure but as a way to free up finance teams for more value-added work, supporting better decision-making and client service. The focus on automating procure-to-pay and supplier invoice handling with agentic AI indicates an intent to move beyond basic process digitization.

Oracle's perspective, shared by Meredith Rowan, Group Vice President of Applications for Australia and New Zealand, highlights a broader demand among advisory and consulting firms for integrated finance platforms. This demand is driven by the need to manage complex projects, distributed teams, and evolving client requirements. The Beca implementation, led by Deloitte New Zealand, serves as an example of how such firms are seeking to strengthen financial controls and automate routine processes to improve overall performance.