{"id":62612,"date":"2025-05-22T08:25:54","date_gmt":"2025-05-22T08:25:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.templafy.com\/?post_type=case&p=62612"},"modified":"2025-06-02T14:25:24","modified_gmt":"2025-06-02T14:25:24","slug":"bdo-canada","status":"publish","type":"case","link":"https:\/\/www.templafy.com\/case\/bdo-canada\/","title":{"rendered":"BDO Canada"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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CASE STUDY<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How document automation saved BDO Canada $1.65 million in one year<\/h1>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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\u201cPeople didn\u2019t have to change the way they work\u2014they just got a better way to do it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Brion Hendry<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Partner and Assurance Innovation Leader, BDO Canada<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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\"BDO<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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\"Bdo<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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INDUSTRY<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Accounting<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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OFFICE LOCATIONS<\/p>\n\n\n\n

80+ offices in Canada<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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EMPLOYEES<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4,500+<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n

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Tackling complexity with the right technology<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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BDO Canada is one of the country\u2019s leading professional services firms, spanning 80+ offices and 470 partners. But their size came with a major challenge\u2014each team had its own way of creating documents, managing branding, and ensuring compliance. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Without a single source of truth, employees were wasting time searching for templates, struggling with outdated tools, and manually fixing formatting errors. Maintaining consistency across business lines was nearly impossible. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We spoke with Brion Hendry, Partner and Assurance Innovation Leader at BDO Canada, about how Templafy helped them simplify their document creation process, cut out inefficiencies, and save more than $1.65 million in just one year. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n

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The results<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
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  • Saved $1.65m in one year by reducing time spent on manual document creation<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Reduced the number of templates for engagement letters from 24 to 4, simplifying maintenance<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Built a centralized library of 600+ templates that automatically update, ensuring accuracy and compliance<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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    The challenges<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
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    • Scattered assets made it hard to locate the right information, leading to wasted time and errors in documents<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Outdated technology was difficult to maintain and prone to outages<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Inconsistent templates and processes made quality and brand control impossible<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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      What challenges did you face when creating documents? <\/h6>\n\n\n\n

      Our biggest challenge was inconsistency. With so many offices and partners, we had a million different ways of doing things. Every business line had its own way of creating documents, managing branding, and handling operations. Standardization was always a struggle. Any time we talked about streamlining things, the response was always, \u2018That\u2019s great\u2014just make sure you use my template.\u2019 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

      On top of that, our technology was outdated. We had systems that only a handful of people knew how to maintain. If those people left, we\u2019d be in trouble. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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      With so many different templates, how did you manage storage and versioning?<\/h6>\n\n\n\n

      Not very well! Before Templafy, our content was scattered everywhere. We had different SharePoint sites, multiple versions of the same document, and people creating their own templates. If someone needed the latest version of a document, they had to search through emails, shared drives, or ask a colleague. It was inefficient, and people wasted a lot of time just trying to find the right file.  <\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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      You started with a Templafy pilot program. How did that go?<\/h6>\n\n\n\n

      We took a bold approach with our pilot\u20141,000 users right out of the gate. Typically, we test with 50-100 users, but interest was high. We had people across different teams raising their hands to participate, which was a great sign.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

      One of the smartest things we did was set up a network of \u2018change agents.\u2019 These were mid-level managers and engaged employees who became the go-to experts within their teams. With so many offices, we couldn\u2019t monitor everything ourselves, so these change agents helped us gather feedback, drive adoption, and ensure people were actually using the tool. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n

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      “Last year, we generated over 120,000 documents through Templafy, saving us about $1.65 million.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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      Brion Hendry<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Partner and Assurance Innovation Leader, BDO Canada<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n

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      <\/h3>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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      How have your different user groups responded to Templafy as a new technology? <\/h6>\n\n\n\n

      People find Templafy very natural to use. Now, everything is in one place, and people know exactly where to go to find what they need. The integration with Microsoft Office was also a game-changer. If you introduce a tool that forces people to leave the platforms they\u2019re used to, adoption becomes a struggle. Keeping everything within the Microsoft ecosystem made it a smooth transition. People didn\u2019t have to change the way they work\u2014they just got a better way to do it. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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      Where did you see the biggest change with Templafy? <\/h6>\n\n\n\n

      Engagement letters were the first big win for us. These are essentially contracts between us and our clients, and they\u2019re long, complicated documents filled with variables. Each of Canada\u2019s ten provinces and three territories has different legal requirements. On top of that, we operate in two languages, so every engagement letter had to be translated.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Just for one service line, we had 24 different versions of these letters. Across four business lines, the complexity was overwhelming. With Templafy, we were able to consolidate those 24 templates into four. Automated gating questions determine the right legal language, industry requirements, and client details, so the document is customized automatically.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Today, every engagement letter across BDO Canada is created using Templafy. What started as a pilot quickly became essential to our workflow.  <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n

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      \u201cToday, every engagement letter across BDO Canada is created using Templafy. What started as a pilot quickly became essential to our workflow.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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      Brion Hendry<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Partner and Assurance Innovation Leader, BDO Canada<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n

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      <\/h3>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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      What has the financial impact been since introducing Templafy?  <\/h6>\n\n\n\n

      Last year, we generated over 120,000 documents through Templafy, saving us about $1.65 million.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

      We\u2019re accountants, so we track every minute of our day. When we roll out a new tool, we survey our teams to understand how much time they used to spend on a task versus how much time they spend now. Our team takes that data, does the calculations, and presents real numbers to leadership.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

      So when they ask, \u201cIs Templafy worth the investment?\u201d I don\u2019t have to guess. I can show them exactly how much time and money we\u2019re saving.   <\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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      How easy is it to maintain Templafy? <\/h6>\n\n\n\n

      When we started looking for new document tools, we went straight to the people maintaining our current systems and asked, \u2018Which would you rather manage\u2014our existing system or Templafy?\u2019 Their answer was immediate: \u2018Templafy, and it\u2019s not even close.\u2019 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

      That was huge. We didn\u2019t just need a system that worked, we needed one that could scale. I didn\u2019t want my team to be responsible for maintaining every single document template across the firm. Templafy allowed us to empower different departments to manage their own content while still keeping everything controlled and consistent.   <\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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      How has Templafy improved your overall employee experience? <\/h6>\n\n\n\n

      For us, accuracy is critical. Every document we produce goes through multiple rounds of review, which often involves a significant amount of time spent correcting formatting errors, branding inconsistencies, and wording issues. This led to a lot of frustration.   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Templafy transformed our workflow. By standardizing branding, automating formatting, and ensuring content accuracy, we significantly reduced the amount of manual work required. This not only saved us time but also eliminated the recurring frustration associated with fixing errors and inconsistencies.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n

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      \u201cTemplafy allowed us to empower different departments to manage their own content while still keeping everything controlled and consistent.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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      Brion Hendry<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Partner and Assurance Innovation Leader, BDO Canada<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n

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      <\/h3>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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      What kinds of documents are you creating with Templafy now? <\/h6>\n\n\n\n

      Templafy started as a solution for our business lines, including assurance, tax, and advisory, but what we\u2019ve seen over time is that internal teams are adopting it too.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Now, groups like IT and our project management office are using Templafy for status update decks, business requirements documents, and project templates. It\u2019s no longer just about external-facing documents\u2014it\u2019s about making internal processes smoother, too. It\u2019s become an essential tool across BDO Canada.  <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n

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      The solution<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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      \"Time<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

      Scalable across teams and locations<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Different departments can manage their own content while maintaining firm-wide consistency. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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      \"Configuration\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

      Seamless automation within familiar workflows <\/p>\n\n\n\n

      All assets available directly within Word and PowerPoint, building on tools people already know how to use.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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      \"Group\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

      Centralized asset management <\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Company-approved templates, messages, and visual elements all updated in real-time. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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      \"Time<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

      More efficient reviews and approvals <\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Centralized libraries generate more accurate documents, requiring fewer manual checks. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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      \"\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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      119.750<\/span>120.000<\/span><\/div>\n\n\n\n

      documents generated last year<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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      $<\/span>1.00<\/span>1.65<\/span> million<\/span><\/div>\n\n\n\n

      saved last year on document generation<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n

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      \"\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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      About BDO Canada <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

      BDO Canada LLP is a leading provider of professional services to clients across a variety of sectors and segments. For over 100 years, our team has served communities across Canada through an integrated service offering including accounting, assurance, tax, and consulting services. This is complemented by deep industry knowledge and positions BDO to advise clients with both domestic and global needs.

      BDO Canada LLP, a Canadian limited liability partnership, is a member of BDO International Limited, a UK company limited by guarantee, and forms part of the international BDO network of independent member firms.

      BDO is the brand name for the BDO network and for each of the BDO Member Firms<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      https:\/\/www.bdo.ca\/<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n
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      How document automation saved BDO Canada $1.65 million in one year.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":62881,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","industry":[27],"class_list":["post-62612","case","type-case","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"acf":{"alternative_featured_image":"","alternative_mobile_image":"","header_mode":"light","footer_mode":"dark","book_a_demo_mode":"dark","exclude_from_search_results":false},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.templafy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/case\/62612","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.templafy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/case"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.templafy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/case"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.templafy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=62612"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.templafy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/62881"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.templafy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=62612"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"industry","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.templafy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/industry?post=62612"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}