We were engaged to work with the UK’s largest fast food delivery company operating over 1,000 stores across the UK and Ireland.  Having successfully worked with the Chief Information Officer in a previous role, he contacted us again to manage the implementation of another complex large-scale IT system.

Due to rapid expansion, the company had outgrown its existing legacy systems and processes.  Our brief was to manage the implementation of a full suite of Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 R3 modules across the entire business. This foundational system would allow the company to increase efficiency and continue its rapid growth using scalable processes and a best in class IT solution.

The company operated multiple separate legacy systems in different departments including finance, supply chain operations and warehousing, which were often providing conflicting information. Migrating users and data from these disparate systems onto a single system of record was also beneficial because the ERP system would provide ‘one version of the truth.’

Another particularly challenging aspect of the work revolved around timings.  The supply chain dependencies of a food delivery company are extremely time sensitive. If the system go-live delayed distribution by even 24 hours it would have had a major financial impact on the whole business.

Approach

CMG provided an embedded Change Team in the retailers Head Office.  The team was tailored to meet the needs of the project at each stage of the implementation. Core team members included the Testing Manager, Training and Communications Manager, Cutover Manager and Programme Manager. The key stakeholders in the project were the directors of the areas most affected by the changing system – Finance and Supply Chain Operations.

To kick things off, we ran a vendor selection process for a new ERP system and upon selecting the most suitable vendor we worked closely with them to implement the software across the business.

Once the client had selected Dynamics AX as the best fit, we managed the mapping of ‘as-is’ and ‘to-be’ processes. This exercise enabled the project team to understand the business requirements and ensured that the necessary systems were integrated with the ERP. The ‘to-be’ processes were also used in the configuration exercise that was led by vendor.

Following configuration, our testing team rolled out a full schedule of testing including functional testing, systems integration testing, user acceptance testing, end-to-end testing and performance testing. Testing was rolled out in several phases and involved users from all areas of the business.

Training was then delivered to circa 150 end users in the business using our ‘Train the Trainer’ methodology. This involved the Training Manager on the Change Team working with Key Users in all the changing departments to develop a full set of training materials for their teams, including a bespoke ERP training course for each user and over 50 quick reference guides. The Training Manager then delivered a ‘Training Delivery Skills’ workshop to the Key Users, enabling them to successfully train and then support their teams in all aspects of the change brought in by the ERP implementation.

Outcome

The Go-live was planned to occur over a weekend in order to fit within the distribution schedule of the client.

As there was so little margin for error in the implementation, a Cutover Manager was brought onboard to run an extensive operational readiness programme. This involved working with Key Users and stakeholders to plan and coordinate three ‘Dry Runs’ to practice the eventual system go-live. The project team also defined and supported a post go-live support plan that ensured the transition period was as smooth as possible.

After all the planning we were pleased to see that the launch happened successfully with no adverse impacts to the running of the business. Several weeks after go-live, the business was able to meet customer demand and reached recorded levels of manufacturing.