When an unstructured way of working no longer suffices

Client case

When an unstructured way of working no longer suffices

Problem

Our customer managed his production department through a mix of legacy software, Excel sheets, Access databases, email and shared network drives. In the past 8 years, several attempts have been made to replace parts of this software landscape. All these efforts were unsuccessful. The assignment was to lead a project with the aim to select and implement one system that supports both the planning and registration processes of the production department. The goal the production department had in mind, was a user-friendly solution for the work floor and one “single source of truth” for the production department and all other departments who are dependent on the results of the production process (e.g., packaging and supply chain).

Maarten was the project leader for this project. Maarten creates trust. With energy and enthusiasm Maarten knows how to inspire project members and with his decisiveness he can turn a failed project into a successful one.

Approach

If several attempts have been made to successfully complete a project and it has not happened still, the system or the implementation partner are often not the cause. Other factors are at play. Think of ineffective leadership, an incomplete overview of all project stakeholders and their visions, lack of involvement of the stakeholders, wrong (financial) incentives, changing project goals, unclear functional requirements, lack of direction, insufficient planning and / or procrastinating decisions.

At the start of this project, we therefore spent a relatively long time thinking about what we had to do differently in order to realize a successful project this time. We have formed a new ‘leading coalition’. This team, consisting of a mix of external parties, new employees and department heads, showed a working solution to the end users in a short time. This prevented project fatigue. In addition, a lot of effort was put into the area of change management before, during and after implementation. The users were trained and supported on the work floor. The new managers were coached in their role as change managers and in demonstrating good example behaviour. Senior management showed themselves as a sponsor of this project and emphasized its importance.

Results

The production process has been standardized, which has radically changed the way of working for many production workers. As a result of this project, all departments dealing with the production process now have real-time insight into the expected and available production quantities by means of interfaces and reports (PowerBI in this case). By using scanners (supported via PowerApps), the system is directly fed with real-time data from the production floor and administration on paper, via Excel, email etc. is unnecessary.

Decisive factors during this project

The customer expressed it as follows in the evaluation: “The preconditions of the project were not ideal. It takes tactics and decisiveness to operate in this environment successfully. The difference that Next Ready Partners makes, is that they also tackle issues that are not directly related to the project but are necessary for results.”

Get useful answers from your data

Client case

Get useful answers from your data

Problem

In cooperation with an international knowledge institute from Delft, we carried out a project to see whether it is possible to make predictions regarding budget overruns on projects, by means of data analysis techniques (machine learning). Can we predict at an early stage which project will run on budget and which project will be exceeded by 20% or more? 

Maarten has led this project. He has carefully composed the project team and safeguarded the necessary project preconditions. He made sure that international knowledge was available on time. In a short period of time, he achieved great results with this team and learned a lot about what does and does not work around machine learning.

Approach

The project had an exploratory approach. With a small team, composed on the basis of Belbin profiles, we worked together for six weeks on drawing up a data model. For this model we used the seven steps of machine learning. A step-by-step plan that Google also uses successfully.

Results

After six weeks we had a working algorithm and presented our results to the management. In addition to deeper substantive knowledge on new techniques, such as machine learning, the lessons learned from this project apply to many more projects. For examples: (innovative) projects require trust between team members, select team members who complement each other, make agreements in advance about semantics (language) and make sure you have data in order (structured and well maintained) before you start. Some of our key indicators which help predicting budget overrun are the ‘core team size’,  the department which is responsible for the project, the average hours per day a person is spending on a project and the seniority of the team.

Decisive factors during this project

As we see it, the crucial moment was before the start of the project. Agreeing together that we should stop talking and analyzing, but just free up the time, budget and space to start this kind of exploratory project, without guarantees on the outcome.

Great team and methodologies lead to success

Client case

Great team and methodologies lead to success

Problem

The client was dealing with an outdated ERP system, poorly adjusted to the current business situation. Maintenance costs to keep the ERP system up and running were increasing, partly caused by international changes in laws and regulations. This led to a migration from AX2009 to Dynamics 365 Finance & Operations. On top of that, the organisation’s growth to a turnover of more than 250 million euros required a redesign of the management warehouse processes.

This project was led by Maarten. Maarten creates trust. With his energy, enthusiasm and experience, he is able to inspire project team members and develop well performing (project) teams, capable of getting a new ERP system up and running a month ahead of schedule.

Approach

From an “old” on-premise ERP system to a new ERP system which is managed in the cloud, is way more than just a technical change. That is why we opted for an approach in which we first put a small, less complex subsidiary on the new system. This allowed us to properly control the technology and the system. One of the important changes in this case, is that organisations have to anticipate for new software versions that suppliers push through (Microsoft in this case). If you don’t implement new versions yourself, it will be done for you. As a result, the organisation has to test more frequently. 

After six months of experience with the new system, we took a big step as a team. We migrated the largest, most complex subsidiary (with the most interfaces, highest volumes and dependencies) to the new platform. As project methodology we opted for a scrum approach and a team that was composed on the basis of Belbin profiles. As a result, the project core team members knew each other’s strengths and weaknesses. By closely following the chosen project methodology and because of this high performing team, we managed to go live a month ahead of schedule, within budget and with the desired quality.

Results

A new ERP system, which was available to the company ahead of schedule, allowing faster and easier processing of future changes in laws and regulations. New, more efficient warehouse processes, with scanning and computer-controlled picking and packing as the standard. An ERP system that uses new technologies for mobile applications and new techniques (machine learning) and provides a number of new functionalities that users were waiting for.

Decisive factors during this project

Every project has setbacks, difficult phases and time and budget constraints. One of the pitfalls in this project was that we wanted to make the system even more beautiful and added more functionality than agreed. After all, the project was running on schedule, so why not? NRP has been able to distinguish itself by bringing in an experienced project manager, who is able to distinguish main and side issues. Who was rigorous when it comes to planning and remained focused on realising business benefits. A project leader who motivated and inspired the team and who acted as a catalyst by introducing best practices.