What would you do if you realized you were to maintain master data for a global enterprise that lacked governance for data creation, handling, and processing? While it would require a ton of accurate manual coordination and ensuring master data is processed efficiently, it is a perfect recipe for disaster.
Now replace it with an automated data steward that gives your teams the complete overview of how master data evolved throughout the value chain while automating most recurring tasks. It is what the MDM solution achieved for the team. Along with proactive item and customer management, we also provided DaaS services to manage their day-to-day activities of creating/updating customer, supplier, employee information and performing data validation during and after data loads.
The Challenge
Manual data migration during rollouts and M&A
The client used JDE (JD Edwards) as ERP, Oracle Sales, CPQ, Field Service cloud as CX platform, and Baxter Planning as supply chain planning system. The client had grown to 14 regions across three continents through organic growth as well as through mergers and acquisitions. They have to roll out their JDE and other applications globally. This requires the migration of data from existing legacy applications to this new platform. It included information about all stakeholders and data involved in sourcing the raw materials and supplying the final goods, such as customers, employees, contracts, and suppliers. The old traditional process using manual code took multiple months for data migration and had a lot of data quality problems.
Absence of Master Data governance process
There was a lack of standardization and an established change management process in each of these applications, and master data is scattered across all these systems. As a result, the different teams had to coordinate with each other manually via email or SharePoint for items defined in the system, even for the changes. In addition, the KYC (Know your customer) process involved was manual, too, with teams resorting to SharePoint data which makes verification of duplicates an arduous task. Finally, the lack of control security at the organizational level further contributed to the governance woes of the client.
Manual price-related calculations
The client used spreadsheets to determine item prices sourced via different suppliers. They then fed the information to the JDE to process the transactions. Unfortunately, there was no automated process for this, which meant that every time there was a change in supplier price or exchange rates, the team had to sit with elaborate spreadsheets and do it all over again. They have to spend multiple weeks completing this exercise.
The Solution
Data as a Service (DaaS) for automating Data Migration
We replaced the current manual-heavy data migration process with the Birlasoft DaaS platform. The new platform could seamlessly extract data from multiple sources, profile it for identifying patterns, and enrich it by figuring out missing data and setting up rules for enrichment. We also set up the solution to validate data against key metrics, load it post validation, and rerun validation checks to ensure data has been correctly loaded in the application. Birlasoft also equipped the client team with automated DaaS processes for efficient day-to-day data management.
Product Data Hub (PDH) for Product Data Governance
Birlasoft introduced a Product Data Hub (PDH) cloud, which had a new item definition/request process combined with standardized change management. It allowed the responsible teams to receive notifications automatically, and the product data steward came into the picture for transaction handling. In addition, all the changes were pushed only after the requisite approval from the teams responsible for overseeing the tasks.
Furthermore, we also introduced price calculation and business rules along with item security to streamline the processing further. The framework notified the relevant people every time there was a change in item cost, transfer price, or sales price across regions. A secure PDH backed with item security based on role and responsibility ensured efficient data handling and integrity management.
Customer Data Management (CDM) for Customer Data Governance
Birlasoft also introduced advanced customer data management for the client. It gave them real-time access to critical data via an intuitive dashboard to generate in-depth reports. We also introduced a streamlined KYC process to eliminate sending data through SharePoint for every change. In addition, it had an automated approval notification system implemented to manage changes, and the presence of the cloud meant that data could be accessed and managed on the go.
The Impact
Streamlined processes for master data maintenance
With PDH on board, the team seamlessly cut down on manual coordination. We automated the master data management to ensure teams could coordinate workflows with standardized approval processes. It resulted in significant improvement in data quality throughout the value chain. All of it resulted in the Client MDM team being able to oversee data flow across sources with greater visibility. With CDM as part of the Sales Cloud, the Client MDM team improved the customer management process significantly without compromising on security, helping to improve customer data quality.
Quick turnaround time for data conversion
The implementation of the DaaS Platform led to a significantly lower time for migrating vital data, from a few days to a few hours. In addition, the focus on standardization and multiple validation checks meant the team could upkeep data quality while transferring and uploading data across solutions.
Empowering the MDM team to maintain data quality
Birlasoft, with the help of the DaaS Platform, also enabled the Client MDM team to cut down their reliance on third-party vendors for critical data loading concerning their orders. In addition, it used the same data validation, enrichment, and standardization for its BAU maintenance activity, ensuring the team could maintain optimum data quality throughout.
