Digitalization of the Tax Compliance Management System (Tax CMS)

With us, you can build an effective and future-proof Tax Compliance Management System (TCMS) that is sustainable in terms of both tax expertise and digitalisation. Thanks to our many years of experience in industry, IT and consultancy, we can provide you with practical solutions tailored to your needs, from project planning to ongoing operations, combining the best tools on the market with seamless implementation.

We can help you take your Tax Internal Control System to the next level with #nextleveltaxcompliance!

The benefits of upgrading to a digital tax CMS

Over the past decade, numerous companies have invested significant effort in building a Tax Compliance Management System (Tax CMS), but now face the challenge of operating the Tax CMS sustainably in regular practice.

In our view, this is primarily because most Tax CMSs rely on manual sample checks, the continuous execution and documentation of which—often in an Excel-based risk control matrix—is associated with considerable effort.

Additionally, we have found that the intended sample checks are often poorly integrated with the relevant processes. Consequently, when changes are made to the underlying processes, the sample checks quickly become ineffective. In short, many Tax CMSs exist on paper but are not implemented sustainably in practice.

Consequently, the goals of a Tax Compliance Management System — particularly indemnification, efficiency improvement and facilitating tax audits — are often not achieved. This is because these goals require an effectively implemented Tax CMS!

The WTS consulting approach

In most cases, digitalisation is the solution! But how can the Tax CMS be further digitalised and tax risk management optimised?

The answer lies partly in processes and partly in data. Rather than, or in addition to, manual risk assessments, ERP raw data should be analysed using audit rules, and risk-mitigating measures should be derived based on the results. This makes it much easier to implement automated audit routines instead of manual spot checks.

Although it sounds simple and plausible, it is nevertheless complex in practice! In particular, there is no 'one size fits all' approach. This is because analysing ERP raw data requires an in-depth understanding of its structure and the underlying processes. Therefore, the tax department cannot avoid reflecting on where tax-relevant decisions are made within the company, at least fundamentally.

We will support you on this journey, working with you to develop a bespoke consulting approach. Our goal is always to establish a customised, largely digitised Tax CMS. We offer various implementation solutions in both SAP and non-SAP environments. We have extensive experience of implementing a wide range of digitalisation solutions, and our business partnering provides us with the perspective of a practitioner. We guarantee a pragmatic and practical implementation approach.