Mexicco's Tax Administration Service selects software from PeopleSoft to update tax system
Pleasanton, CA — August 5, 2004 — On July 29, 2004, Mexico's Tax Administration Service (SAT), the equivalent of the Internal Revenue Service in the United States, signed a deal with PeopleSoft valued at more than $50 million. The project includes revenue from software license, professional services and maintenance fees, and will be recognized over a 24-month period.
After a bidding process, SAT licensed PeopleSoft Enterprise Financial Management, PeopleSoft Enterprise Customer Relationship Management, PeopleSoft Enterprise Performance Management and PeopleSoft Enterprise Portal. The agency said it will engage PeopleSoft Global Services to provide implementation and consulting services for the project.
PeopleSoft added that its applications and technology will enable Mexico to update its taxation system, providing more responsive service to the country's individual and corporate taxpayers and increasing countrywide tax collection.
SAT employs more than 30,000 people in over 1,100 offices across Mexico. Today, the country's federal tax system is populated by numerous centralized and decentralized databases across 66 countrywide collection centers. The agency's primary goal for its "Modernization and Integration of the Information Systems of SAT" project is to consolidate the data into a single, integrated platform to better identify individual and corporate taxpayers and increase collections from noncompliant taxpayers. With the implementation of the new platform, the World Bank, financer of the deal, estimates SAT can reduce tax evasion and increase tax revenues through improved collections.
"Governments today are embracing technology to streamline business processes, become more responsive to taxpayers and increase revenues," said Craig Conway, president and CEO of PeopleSoft. "PeopleSoft continues to provide solutions that help modernize and reform government processes around the world, and we are very proud to be working with SAT on this important initiative."
PeopleSoft won the deal after SAT conducted a vendor evaluation that included testing each company's solution over a three-month period in a controlled environment. Three external academic and research institutes assisted SAT in its evaluation process — The Center for Research and Advanced Studies for IPN (Cinvestav), the National Laboratory for Advanced Information Systems (Lania) and the Autonomous Technical Institute of Mexico (ITAM).
The evaluation committee chose PeopleSoft for its product functionality, its ability to flexibly support complex internal and external business processes, and its performance in the testing environment.
A core component of the SAT implementation is PeopleSoft Enterprise Revenue Management, an end-to-end solution recently delivered with the release of PeopleSoft Enterprise CRM 8.9. According to the provider, the solution enables service-focused organizations to more effectively manage collections, locate lost revenue, adjust to dynamic market conditions and provide a consistent citizen experience. For SAT this means it can collect and manage fees from revenue streams such as federal and state taxes, property taxes, vehicle registrations, business licenses, building permits, health care services, public housing, court fees, parking tickets, and social services.
"There is a clear market opportunity for software solutions that solve the challenges of revenue-generating government agencies," said John Kost, managing vice president, Gartner. "Every year government organizations forgo millions of dollars in uncollected debt due to ineffective revenue management systems. To maximize their collection abilities, many organizations require solutions that connect complex billing and collection technologies with front-office constituent care solutions."
When complete, the "Modernization and Integration of the Information Systems of SAT" project will provide Mexico's taxpayers with a variety of online services through an SAT portal, and direct contact to SAT via multiple channels such as Web, phone and e-mail. Taxpayers will have secure, online access to personalized account statements with complete information on their fiscal situation. They can also access features including a payment calendar, message center and service status.
Mexico's Tax Administration Service, according to PeopleSoft, will benefit from the use of electronic media to deliver improved institutional services to taxpayers; more effective methods and systems to increase tax income, control payments and reduce fiscal evasion; increased efficiency through improved resource allocation and integrated computing systems; and an information system that supports the organization's operational, tactical and strategic objectives.
