Case Nasdaq

Fueling innovation with risk and compliance driven end-to-end automation

The case is written as a summary of a presentation given at a Digital Workforce event in 2024.

The organization

Nasdaq is a leading global technology company that operates one of the world's largest and most influential stock exchanges. Founded in 1971, Nasdaq revolutionized the financial industry by introducing the first electronic trading system, and today, it continues to be a pioneer in the capital markets. Beyond its stock market operations, the company provides premier platforms and a wide range of financial services including market technology, data analytics, and financial products to businesses and investors worldwide.

Service provided by Digital Workforce

Digital Workforce is a market-leading provider of industrial-scale Intelligent Automation services. Our globally recognized, unique Outsmart service offering is built on a multi-technology Business Process Automation platform, bundled with managed services. Outsmart provides the necessary tools on demand to transform a business. Leveraging technologies like Robotic Process Automation (RPA), Artificial Intelligence (AI), and Business Process Management (BPM) we optimize processes and ensure our clients’ custom solutions run smoothly 24/7.

Nasdaq began collaborating with Digital Workforce in 2018 by introducing Robotic Process Automation (RPA) in its Finance Department. The company chose Digital Workforce as its dedicated partner for business process automation, citing its wide range of specialized services and expertise in applying diverse technologies to create custom solutions.

Digital Workforce has provided Nasdaq with a comprehensive range of services over the years, including training, consultancy, development, on-demand technology, and solution maintenance. Today, Nasdaq leverages Digital Workforce’s Outsmart platform - a multi-technology Business Process Automation solution offering a range of tools as a managed service – and has put priority on transforming labor-heavy tax operations.

Nasdaq’s intelligent automation journey

Re-evaluating tax operations

In 2018, as Nasdaq introduced automation, the company was also preparing to implement a new cloud-based ERP system. Existing processes were thoroughly mapped and refined to ensure a smooth transition. This groundwork provided a clear direction for automation, ensuring that the processes selected were thoughtfully considered and well documented.

During the process redefinition, it became clear that automation efforts needed to focus on solving challenges in Indirect Tax. The new ERP system couldn't meet the demands of indirect tax processes, and manual work was time-consuming, costly, and often carried significant risks. To develop an innovative approach, Nasdaq’s Global Head of Indirect Tax, Mariam Lahdo-Aguilera took on a pivotal role in driving conversations among all stakeholders and leading the transformation effort.

"For example, the new ERP system included some incorrect VAT codes when the transactions were created. One of our initial automation solutions took this incorrect value out of the system and brought in the correct values outside the system. We quickly came up with different solutions, and I thought: It's all about being innovative, thinking outside the box, and collaborating with the correct people”, Mariam Lahdo-Aguilera, Global Head of Indirect Tax, Nasdaq.

Value drivers and success metrics

“A very exciting tool I’ve been working quite a lot with is Digital Workforce’s Outsmart -platform which allows systems, humans, and automation tools to work together in a unified workflow. We speak of end-to-end process automation, which is very compelling”, Mariam Lahdo-Aguilera, Global Head of Indirect Tax, Nasdaq.

Automation provides a powerful tool to enhance organizational efficiency and effectiveness in a rapidly evolving business landscape. At Nasdaq, it provides the ability to quickly adapt to new reporting requirements and implement changes with ease, while also strengthening compliance and ensuring adherence to the latest regulatory standards.

Nasdaq committed from the outset to extensively involving its employees in automation and prioritized the development of globally scalable solutions. This approach, combined with flexible access to a wide array of technologies and expert knowledge have reduced the need for manual intervention and saved the company significant costs.

Automation adds value to Nasdaq’s operations in 4 crucial areas:

pro02

Agility

future

Compliance and risk mitigation

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Cost efficiency

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Culture: Technology and innovation

Success metrics for Tax Process Automation include:

  • Accuracy improvement: Improved accuracy and reliability of tax calculations and reporting
  • Risk mitigation: Improved risk management controls in preventing errors and other compliance-related issues
  • Efficiency gains: Reduction in time and resources required to complete a task
  • Cost savings: Savings achieved through automation, including reduced workload costs and reduced penalties

Automated processes

Automated processes include:

  • Automated Tax Engine: Automatically generates manual tax codes at the transaction level.
  • Automated VAT Payables Due Dates: Sends automatic notifications if VAT payments are not processed.
  • Self-Billing Process: Automates validation of VAT registration numbers and self-billing agreements before issuing invoices, with results documented.
  • Automated VAT Registration Number Checks: Validates EU and non-EU customer VAT registration numbers monthly and before issuing AR invoices, with automatic documentation.
  • OUTS and Exempt Process: Automates the extraction and identification of invoices related to such transactions.
  • Pro-rata calculation and cost allocation: Automates partial VAT exemption calculations (pro-rata) and cost allocation.

Case example

End-to-end automation of partial vat exemption calculations and cost allocation

“A very exciting tool I’ve been working quite a lot with is Digital Workforce’s Outsmart -platform which allows systems, humans, and automation tools to work together in a unified workflow. We speak of end-to-end process automation, which is very compelling”, Mariam Lahdo-Aguilera, Global Head of Indirect Tax, Nasdaq.

A recent example of Nasdaq’s end-to-end process automation handles partial VAT exemption calculations (pro-rata) and cost allocation. In tax, a pro-rata calculation is used to determine the portion of input VAT that can be reclaimed by a business that makes both taxable and exempt supplies.

Nasdaq’s pro-rata automation extracts data from sales and purchase invoices to validate reconciliation and cost center information and produces a pro-rata calculation. The automation issues tasks for Nasdaq’s business and finance controllers and creates an audit trail in the automation tool.

Each case in the automated workflow can be tracked from start to finish. The solution incorporates human involvement to review and approve calculations, handle exceptions, and manage deviations from the standard process.

Business impact

The results of automation in Nasdaq’s Indirect Tax are reflected in increased efficiency, reduced costs, enhanced accuracy, improved compliance, and better risk management. By involving humans at critical points, Nasdaq ensures effective process supervision, liable decision-making, and productive use of its experts’ time.

“…the trend we see is more regulation and growing requirements… It’s a lot about being able to act on data. Not just having data available but also getting those signals and having a transparent process that can be checked and have visibility on decisions made. You need to, as much as possible, spot the deviations automatically and engage people to handle them at the right time.”

“Ultimately, we aim to create automations where the decision points and workflows can be easily understood and retraced. So that in two years, when someone asks why this decision was made, why we filed this type of tax declaration, you’re able to show the process and show through both human and automated decisions what was done and why. If you want to streamline these processes and roll them out globally, you need to have automation”, Mariam Lahdo-Aguilera, Global Head of Indirect Tax, Nasdaq.

Future view

At the cutting edge of tax process innovation, Nasdaq’s Indirect Tax leverages Robotic Process Automation (RPA), Machine Learning (ML), Optical Character Recognition (OCR), Business Process Management (BPM), and Generative AI, all integrated with a modern ERP system. With these advanced capabilities, the department continues to realize its vision of streamlined tax processes and minimal human intervention.

Nasdaq’s leadership also recognizes the interconnectivity between processes across functions. The company views automation as a means to facilitate seamless workflows throughout the organization and has begun to explore more opportunities for end-to-end process automation.

“We have documented everything, so if someone wants to use the information within the organization, they are free to do that. And I’m also invited to different teams within Nasdaq to discuss what we have done within the Indirect Tax area. Together with our automation team I’m already involved in developing other finance processes… transfer pricing and tax reporting and so on... I’m inspired by the response and the eagerness to adopt these solutions.”

“…by using (automation) technologies, we have seen that you can transform entire operations. I’ve been the driver and with new things it’s also natural to receive ‘no’s along the way. But I want to encourage others: Don’t give up – try to see a ‘yes’ in every ‘no’. Just back off a little, let people digest, and go back and try again with more data or a different angle”, Mariam Lahdo-Aguilera, Global Head of Indirect Tax, Nasdaq.