The Challenge

Prime Share operates a fleet of vessels serving multiple cotistas (owners) and clients. The company's business model depends on precise cost tracking, fair allocation of shared expenses, and transparent billing to maintain trust with both vessel owners and clients.

However, Prime Share's financial operations were held back by a fundamental problem: data was everywhere and nowhere at the same time. Costs were tracked in spreadsheets, some in Conta Azul, and some in external systems. There was no clear view of which vessels were profitable, which were losing money, or how much each boat actually cost to operate.

"We had information scattered across multiple places," one team member explained. "When we needed to close the month, we'd spend days hunting for numbers, reconciling spreadsheets, and still end up with questions about what was real."

The pain points were real and costly:

• No vessel-level visibility. Costs like fuel, maintenance, marina fees, and crew salaries were recorded globally or by marina, not by boat. This made it impossible to know if a vessel was profitable.
• Inconsistent classifications. Different team members classified expenses differently. One person might label something as "maintenance," another as "reimbursable," creating confusion and rework.
• Manual, fragmented processes. Month-end closing relied on copy-paste between systems, manual calculations, and ad-hoc validation. It was slow and error-prone.
• Billing misalignment. Without clear per-vessel cost data, it was hard to bill cotistas fairly or to know if the company was actually making money on each boat.
• Lost information. In one month, critical financial data was lost during a system transition, forcing the team to rebuild numbers from scratch.

These challenges weren't just operational headaches—they were barriers to growth. Without clear financial visibility, the company couldn't confidently expand its fleet, negotiate better terms with suppliers, or make strategic decisions about which vessels to invest in.

The Solution

Prime Share's leadership recognized that the path forward required more than better spreadsheets. They needed a structured, auditable financial system built around vessels as the core unit of analysis.

The team partnered with Berry Consultoria to design and implement a comprehensive financial transformation. The approach was methodical and focused on three pillars: structure, standardization, and governance.

Building Structure: Cost Centers by Vessel

The first step was to reorganize Conta Azul around vessels. Instead of tracking costs by marina or category, Prime Share created a dedicated cost center for each boat. Every expense—fuel, maintenance, marina fees, crew salaries, insurance, trackers—would now be allocated to the specific vessel that incurred it.

"Once we had cost centers by boat, everything changed," a team member shared. "Suddenly, we could see the real picture. We could ask: 'Is this boat making money? What's driving its costs? Where can we optimize?'"

The team also introduced a formal chart of accounts cleanup. They removed unused lines, simplified the DRE (Demonstração de Resultado do Exercício), and organized reporting around vessels and cost groups. This made the financial statements easier to read and faster to close.

Standardizing Classifications

With structure in place, the team tackled consistency. They defined standard classifications for every type of expense and revenue:

• Reembolsos (reimbursable costs): fuel, maintenance, specific supplies
• Administração (admin fees): crew salaries, insurance, trackers, marina fees
• Receita Prime (company revenue): the admin margin charged to cotistas

Every transaction now had a clear, consistent label. Descriptions were standardized so that anyone reviewing the data would understand exactly what each entry represented.

"Standardization sounds boring, but it's powerful," one finance team member noted. "When everyone uses the same language, reconciliation becomes fast. Audits become easy. And most importantly, the numbers are trustworthy."

Establishing Governance and Cadence

The final pillar was governance. Prime Share established a formal monthly closing process with clear roles, responsibilities, and timelines:

• Biweekly review meetings to validate numbers and resolve discrepancies before presenting to leadership.
• Daily data entry to ensure end-of-month readiness and reduce last-minute scrambling.
• Cross-functional validation involving operations, finance, and accounting teams to catch errors early.
• Controlled Conta Azul access for authorized personnel to extract data daily, ensuring data freshness while protecting integrity.

The team also created a centralized working spreadsheet that fed directly from Conta Azul. This eliminated manual copy-paste and reduced the risk of duplication or data loss.

"The governance piece was critical," a team leader explained. "We didn't just implement a system—we built a discipline. Now, closing the month is predictable. We know who does what, when it's due, and what the quality standard is."

The Transformation

The results have been tangible and immediate.

Vessel-Level Profitability Visibility

For the first time, Prime Share can see the true profitability of each vessel. The company identified which boats are generating strong margins and which are underperforming. This insight has already informed decisions about resource allocation, maintenance priorities, and pricing strategies.

One example: the team discovered that certain vessels had cost allocations that didn't align with actual usage. By correcting the rateio (cost allocation) based on real invoice data, they improved the accuracy of per-vessel margins and identified opportunities to optimize operations.

Faster, More Reliable Month-End Closes

What once took days of hunting for numbers and reconciling spreadsheets now happens in a structured, predictable process. June's close was completed on schedule. July was targeted to close by August 1st. The team went from reactive scrambling to proactive planning.

"We went from 'Where's that number?' to 'Here's the validated close,'" a team member said. "That's a huge shift in how we operate."

Reduced Manual Work and Errors

By automating data extraction from Conta Azul and standardizing classifications, the team eliminated hours of manual entry and reconciliation each month. The risk of duplication or data loss—which had caused problems in the past—is now mitigated through controlled access and validation protocols.

Better Billing and Cotista Relationships

With clear per-vessel cost data, Prime Share can now bill cotistas with confidence. Invoices show exactly what costs are being passed through and what the admin margin is. This transparency has strengthened relationships and reduced disputes.

Foundation for Strategic Growth

Perhaps most importantly, Prime Share now has the financial visibility needed to grow strategically. The company can:

• Evaluate new vessels with clear cost models and profitability projections.
• Negotiate with suppliers based on actual per-vessel usage data.
• Optimize the fleet by identifying underperforming boats and making informed decisions about maintenance, upgrades, or divestment.
• Expand services with confidence that pricing reflects true costs.

Ongoing Improvements

The transformation isn't finished. The team continues to refine cost allocations, expand per-vessel reporting, and integrate additional data sources. They're working toward a fully automated daily reconciliation and are planning to introduce predictive cash-flow modeling based on vessel-level data.

"This is a journey, not a destination," a finance leader reflected. "We've built the foundation. Now we're building on it. Every month, we get better at understanding our business and making smarter decisions."

The Bigger Picture

For Prime Share, this transformation represents more than just better accounting. It's about aligning financial visibility with operational reality. Vessels are the core of the business—they generate revenue, incur costs, and require management decisions. By organizing finances around vessels, Prime Share has created a system that supports both accountability and growth.

"We're now running the business with our eyes open," a team member concluded. "We know what's working, what's not, and where to focus. That clarity is invaluable."

As Prime Share continues to grow its fleet and expand its services, the financial foundation built through this transformation will enable faster decision-making, better risk management, and more confident strategic planning. The company has moved from scattered data to structured insight—and that shift is already paying dividends.