Air France's sports club moves to SEPA with Exalog
After using the Exabanque software for ten years, the Air France Sports Association has adopted Direct-debits, another solution from the editor Exalog, to manage its SEPA direct debits and mandates.
Philippe Herbinet, retired pilot, looks back at the implementation of the software.
Could you tell us about your association?
Our association offers a variety of sports activities to Air France employees and retirees and their dependents. We have 7,800 members in 46 sports, divided into several sections.
What is your position and role within the association?
I am a volunteer in the Roissy golf section, of which I was President for 10 years. I have been in charge of the members’ direct debit collections since my arrival.
How do you collect direct debits?
In 2005, I had created a direct debit card system that allowed me to avoid having to manage too many checks. Thanks to this system, I was able to make a monthly direct debit per member. To pay the golf courses, I first edited Excel files that I then converted into text format. Then I was in charge of the remote transmissions via Exabanque, another Exalog solution that we were using at the time.
The arrival of SEPA has forced us to change our operations. Since we were satisfied with Exabanque, our choice naturally fell on Direct-debits, the solution dedicated to direct debits from our editor Exalog. I made my first SEPA direct debit on the software in March 2014. Today I manage nearly 500 mandates with Direct-debits.
In general, how did the implementation of the software go?
Thanks to Exalog’s very available and attentive support, the implementation went smoothly.
How did you hear about the migration to SEPA?
I learned about the transition to SEPA thanks to a message posted by Exalog on the home page of the Exabanque software.
How did your implementation go?
The adoption of SEPA initially complicated my task because I was not familiar with either the XML format or the sequential status, concepts that did not exist when I worked on Exabanque. But the support was able to clear everything up and today I am completely autonomous.
What functions do you use in the mandate management option?
I use the multi-criteria search as well as the history storage of the mandates and their amendments.
What conclusion can you draw from your use of the Direct-debits software?
In my opinion, the online help of Direct-debits could be improved. But on the whole, the software suits me perfectly.
Exalog's perspective
A project to enrich the online help of Direct-debits is planned. We are indeed aware of the limitations mentioned by Mr. Herbinet. At present, our support teams are working to fill this gap and answer questions from our users. Once the online help has been expanded, users will be able to use the software more independently.