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apsolut implements SAP Ariba at ZKW Group GmbH
Company
ZKW
Branch
Automotive
Products
Main headlights, fog lights and daytime running lights in laser, LED, xenon and halogen technology, additional lights and electronic parts
Number of employees
ca. 10,000
Turnover
1.25 billion €
Headquarters
Wieselburg, Austria
Websitewww.zkw-group.com
Agile SAP ARIBA-GO LIVE, parallel to SAP S/4HANA implementation
ZKW is one of the leading manufacturers of lighting systems and electronic components for the global automotive industry. In the course of the SAP S/4HANA transformation project, ZKW Group GmbH also wanted to replace the existing SRM system. The decision to use SAP Ariba to handle procurement in the future was made after an extensive reference telephone call, which was organized and moderated by apsolut. During the telephone call, the purchasing manager of an existing apsolut customer answered questions from ZKW managers and reported on his experiences with the tool. The consulting company’s in-depth know-how and best practices also played a key role in choosing apsolut as an implementation partner.
Connecting SAP Ariba Buying to the new SAP S/4HANA ERP system, which was currently in the middle of the implementation phase, proved to be a challenge. During the SAP S/4HANA implementation, ZKW established new processes, which the apsolut team adapted to SAP Ariba using agile methods.
During the first workshops, new scenarios for the procurement of direct materials were discussed, which had previously been directly integrated into the production process via the existing SRM system. The direct materials are now stored in the SAP S/4HANA system and therefore do not represent a standard process in SAP Ariba. Both the material upload and reservation processes were developed by apsolut and now help ZKW to reserve catalog items and then take them directly from the warehouse. This challenge was accompanied by new processes, such as budget reservation and service purchasing including service entry sheets, which ZKW also implemented with the SAP S/4HANA implementation.
However, apsolut not only supported the customer with regard to the functional requirements for SAP Ariba, but also provided significant assistance with cross-project communication. For example, a business partner concept was developed in SAP S/4HANA that served to synchronize suppliers in SAP Ariba Buying. apsolut mastered these challenges by closely coordinating with all parties involved, thereby creating a system with a high level of integration, automation and global reach. The system was used by 1,800 users immediately after the go-live.
Hubert Buchsteiner (CPO, ZKW Group) looks back on the project with great satisfaction:
"apsolut led us in a very cooperative and super-competent manner throughout all phases of the project! Above all, the open collaboration between all project members kept motivation high throughout. The project team gets on very well with each other. We were also impressed by the solution-oriented approach and the ability of the entire project team to make quick decisions!"
As a result of the successful project, apsolut was commissioned by the ZKW Group to support further global rollouts.
Consolidation of different ERP systems onto one SAP S/4HANA system
Successful go-live with 1,800 users
Implemented tools
SAP Ariba Supplier Lifecycle and Performance
SAP Ariba Buying
SAP Ariba Commerce Automation
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Thomas Henzler, Chief Information Officer, PILLER Blowers & Compressors
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“For the new Ariba system, wewere able to onboard more than 1,400 users in three national subsidiaries with only little training effort. With regard to our Procurement processes, we have gained significant transparency and control.“
Jane Wanger, Global Procurement Systems & Support bei KSB
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“apsolut impressed us in the project work with McKesson above all through the open and cooperative partnership. The project team gets on very well with each other. But we were also impressed by the solution-oriented approach and the fast and efficient enablement of our support staff.”
Annette Römer, Project Manager, McKesson Europe AG
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"Being able to design our purchasing processes flexibly, digitally and above all efficiently offers great added value. We will therefore continue to expand our system in the direction of SAP Ariba."
Armin Kaczmarek, Senior Vice President Corporate Purchasing, Vorwerk
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"As our experiences with apsolut were so positive across all national companies, we have already doubled the number of monthly support days twice. Thanks to apsolut, we now have the resources we need to implement rollouts in other national companies. At the moment, they are ongoing in Spain, Portugal, Italy, and France."
Sandra Mancino, Application Consultant, C&A
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"When selecting a partner for our procurement transformation, a high level of technical know-how was of course also important to us. Here, apsolut was able to convince us with best practices from customers of a comparable size. The decisive factor in the end was the experience in change management! Only in this way were we able to introduce a fully-fledged procurement system that is also accepted by all employees."
Göktürk Simsekol, Digital Transformation Director, Flint Group
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„apsolut not only guided us through the project with the utmost professionalism and a proactive approach – the decisive factor was that apsolut enabled us to operate the new tool independently and to manage the next steps ourselves. apsolut’s employees quickly familiarised themselves with our system and processes, which made it easier for us to achieve the project goals within the given timeframe. I would also like to praise their flexibility in adapting to changes and their flexibility in implementation, with clear communication and excellent project management. We look forward to benefiting from this expertise more often.”
Zinah Matar, Digital Business Development Manager, Juffali Commercial Vehicles
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“With a partner like apsolut, not even a pandemic is able to stop us! When the project started, we were a little skeptical, due to the fact that the project team was unable to meet face-to-face. But we are now delighted to say that all our concerns have proven to be unfounded.“
Chandrashekhar Saldur, AGM - Global Procurement & Projects, ETG Group
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"When selecting our implementation partner, apsolut was able to prevail over internationally active competitors thanks to its excellent understanding of our requirements, openness in partnership, and great flexibility. Thanks to the very good cooperation with the apsolut team, we successfully completed the project and signed a support agreement for future developments."
Julia Graubner, Senior Procurement Project Manager, K+S
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„apsolut not only guided us through the project with utmost professionalism and a proactive approach – decisive was the fact that apsolut enabled us to operate the new tool independently and to control the next steps ourselves. In addition, thanks to apsolut, we have been able to establish the right network, including with the right contacts at SAP Austria. The project has been an overwhelming success and we have managed to foster an almost friend-to-friend relationship with the apsolut team."
Gerald Goldgruber, Strategic Manager for Process Management and SAP, Frutura
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"Of course, we are immensely proud of how we implemented this complex transformation together. The always competent and more than punctual execution moved us to initiate a parallel project for partial process innovation in the ongoing project. Actually a no-go, but with apsolut no problem! With this positive experience, it was easy for us to initiate another project, which is currently being implemented. One thing remains to be said: Without the team around Bodo Hempelmann, this journey would definitely have been more difficult!”
Manuel Steffen, Project Officer Source-to-Pay, Evonik Industries
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"apsolut led us in a very cooperative and super-competent manner throughout all phases of the project! Above all, the open collaboration between all project members kept motivation high throughout. The project team gets on very well with each other. We were also impressed by the solution-oriented approach and the ability of the entire project team to make quick decisions!"
Hubert Buchsteiner, Group Vice President Purchasing, ZKW Group
Success Story
"A transformation program of this scale needs a strong internal team from Procurement and Internal IT, but of course also experienced and committed external partners. The most important aspect is that everyone then works together with passion and conviction towards the common goal. In addition to the strong know-how of the consulting implementation partner – in our case apsolut – a strong line of communication from the partner to the software supplier SAP is also necessary."
Martin Traxl, Head of Strategy & Digitalization, OMV
“The cooperation with the international apsolut project team from Germany and India was very effective despite the tough schedule. Due to the high degree of standardisation and automation, we were already able to realise potential savings and, in particular reduce process costs.”
Markus Ortlieb, Director Global Procurement, ProMinent GmbH
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‘With its flexible and transparent procedure, apsolut perfectly complemented our own limited personnel resources. Together, we were able to address topics like multi-line items or dependencies with other tools. It’s unbelievable how much knowledge and expertise we were able to gain,’
Regina Krüger-Wendel, Chief Procurement Officer, Atruvia
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"Together with apsolut, we started as a pioneer in Central Procurement and we are very pleased that we were able to reap the first fruits of this pioneering work so early on.”
Stefan Ehrhardt, Head of SAP Governance Purchasing, MAHLE
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"Although personal contact was very limited due to Corona, a strong team formed during the intensive project phase. The decision-making paths at BITZER and apsolut were always short so that issues could be dealt with promptly and the planned go-live date achieved. The home office was not an obstacle, but also gave us the necessary flexibility for a project of this size.
All team members have done a great job, I have rarely worked so well with a consulting firm!"
Steffen Bauer, Project Manager, BITZER
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"apsolut demonstrated a high degree of flexibility and commitment during the project. The structured working methods and the dedicated team enabled us to meet the urgently needed go-live deadlines."
Paul Trautmann, Manager Procurement Processes & Projects, Röhm GmbH
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„Every time we came up against an unexpected challenge during the course of the project, apsolut immediately showed up possible options to resolve the issue. We always knew to what extent we had freedom of movement within the constraints of the cloud solution.”
Linna Krasnikov, SCC System Administrator, Kärcher
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“We knew that this was apsolut’s first project for a health insurance company, but that didn’t matter. Because apsolut always listened to us, understood our requirements and finally delivered solutions. We could design different processes for direct and indirect purchasing. Together we work professionally in state-of-the-art mode.”
Michael Spiess, Chief Procurement Officer, Sanitas Krankenversicherung
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“After the first Ariba roll-outs, we continued to work with apsolut to jointly develop our Ariba Suite. We usually work together at eye level, and I appreciate apsolut’s open and honest advice. I always have the feeling that the best solution for the customer is their guiding principle. This level of honesty is what led us to working together for so long.”
Małgorzata Pośpiech, SCM Process Manager, JOYNEXT
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‘We’re on the right track to being able to take full advantage of the potential that this transformation offers, as apsolut not only gives us the expertise that we need, but also has an incredibly agile and committed approach. apsolut no longer feels like an external partner to me, but more like an internal department, with whom I hope we can continue to work well into the future.’
Dr. Bei Mortensen, IT Business Service Owner – SCM & Manufacturing, GEA Group
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“We had many specific requirements and together with apsolut we found a solution for each one of them. We used to search for supplier information, now we do find it. We are really very satisfied!”
Tanja Sefrin, Project Manager, KUKA
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"With apsolut, we have gained a partner who has implemented our requirements effectively and efficiently in the configuration of Ariba in a practical manner and in a breathtaking amount of time. The customer-oriented approach was one of the main reasons why we also chose apsolut for the implementation of SLP and Contract Management."
Frank Unfried, Director Digitalization Purchasing & Indirect Spend bei Pfleiderer
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"apsolut impressed us in our project , particularly because of the open and cooperative partnership. The project team gets on very well with each other. But we were also impressed by the solution-oriented approach and the fast and efficient enablement of our support staff!"
Annette Römer, Project Manager at McKesson Europe
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„We were able to roll out Ariba very quickly, because we established a pragmatic and open culture of cooperation with the apsolut team from the very beginning, and we were prepared to systematically align ourselves with the standard“,
Sarah Eve Wiedemann-Geiß, who oversees purchasing and supplier management at Bausparkasse Schwäbisch Hall
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"apsolut has been supporting us in the ope-ration of our SRM system for 10 years. It does not matter whether we report a problem in the production system or want to discuss change requests. We are contacted by apsolut in a timely manner to resolve our concerns or discuss our requirements in detail. apsolut always provides the important piece of securi-ty in the background - if anything goes wrong, they always help quickly and straightforwardly."
Torsten Enseroth, SAP S/4HANA Solution Architect, Friedhelm Loh Group
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„Despite all the digitalisation and automation, we still work in a people business. During this project, we have grown into such a resilient, unified team that we’ve managed to meet all of our deadlines up to this point, even though some of them were quite ambitious. Ultimately, that also motivates everyone involved to do their part in driving the project forward!“
Simon Bohn, Global Solution Architect Procure to Pay, STIHL
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"apsolut pro-actively asked us questions from the outset, discussed our aims and created a new roadmap. This approach was the complete opposite of the original project and it worked fantastically,"
Patrick Tydex, Project Manager, Zentis
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"The mix of virtual design discussions, system demonstrations and break-out sessions, supported by best-in-class tools that allowed us to annotate and track tasks and decisions during screen sharing, enabled us to work closely with apsolut even though distances of up to 12,000 kilometres had to be bridged. We were very pleased that both our projects could be successfully implemented with the help of apsolut."
Alina Aftene, Procurement Solutions Specialist, Delivery Hero
"From the beginning of the project, we have made a remarkable change together with apsolut. The Döhler employees find their way through the easy user interface without any prior knowledge of SAP. As a result, our purchasing department is no longer an operational procurement office, but a team of in-house consultants."
Shibu Palakalodil, Projektleiter SAP Ariba-Implementierung
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„We were looking for a specific solution that did not exist yet. We didn’t want to compromise. So we looked for the right partner to model a flexible tool so that we could configure the specific processes ourselves. We used our expertise and creativity to make Squando our global supplier management tool.“
Ketylin Morello, Purchasing Strategy and Market Intelligence & Functional Product Owner for Squando, Schaeffler
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