The document describes Honam Petrochemical's implementation of a new business intelligence system using SAP solutions to improve management reporting and decision making. The existing system provided outdated, manipulated reports on a periodic basis, hindering accurate performance measurement and strategic decisions. The new SAP-based system provides executives with real-time, consistent data access on any device to monitor KPIs across business units and support expansion. System development involved benchmarking, a phased approach, and ensuring user involvement to identify required reports and make the system intuitive to use. The benefits included timelier, personalized decisions using measurable indicators across all areas of the business.
3. COMPANY BACKGROUND
Headquarters : Seoul, South Korea
Industry :Petrochemicals
Revenue : US$7.3b (2011)
Employees : 1,700
Company details :
- Makes and distributes a variety of petrochemicals
- Founded in 1976
- Nine affiliate companies located throughout China,
Malaysia, Indonesia, the UK, and Pakistan.
- Overseas branches located in Beijing, Shanghai,
Qingdao, Guangzhou, Hong Kong, Moscow, and New
York City.
4. ISSUES
HPC needs reliable report to :-
- measure management performance
- provide information for increasing sales and reducing
cost
Existing system provided out-of-date and “sanitized”
reports.
Individual managers manipulated the data to make their
departments “look better”
The report data were stale and presented on a periodic
basis.
5. ISSUES (Cont’s)
Executives wanted :-
- anytime access to the most timely data but did not
want to be overloaded with unnecessary data so
they could focus on the “watch-up indicators” which
crucial to business.
- up-to the minute date on their desk top
- access via the web or mobile device
- enterprise-wide data that could be accessed and
shared easily across various units and functions to s
upport expansion.
6. SAP Solution :-
- SAP ERP:
- SAP NetWeaver BW 7.0; and
- SAP Business Objects XI 3.1
When IT stepped in and developed a new system based on SAP
BusinessObjects solutions to provide executive-level access to
updated business intelligence data, the impact was phenomenal.
Learn about not only the benefits, but also the strategy and
implementation process behind the system.
7. Q1. LIST AND DESCRIBE THE INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS OF
HPC’S NEW MANAGEMENT SYSTEM
Information requirements of new system involve identifying
who needs what information, where, when, and how.
i. HRP needs reliable reports that are able to
accurately measure management performance and
provide useful, accurate information for increasing sales
and reducing costs.
ii. Executive wanted
To see current data to get a real view of what was
actually happening on the plant floor or in the sales
office.
8. CONT’S
Anytime access to the most timely data, but they did not want
to be overloaded with unnecessary data so they could focus
on the “watch-up indicators” considered crucial to the
business
Up-to-the-minute reports that they could see quickly
on their desktops.
The data can be access via the Web or their mobile
devices.
Enterprise-wide data that could be accessed and
shared easily across various business units and
functions to support the company’s expansion
geographically and by product line.
9. HPC’s existing systems provided managers with reports to
guide their business decisions, but in many cases the data in
the reports were out-of-date and “sanitized”.
Individual managers were processing and manipulating the
data to make their departments “look better” to senior
management.
The report data were also somewhat stale and presented only
on periodic basis.
WHAT PROBLEMS THE NEW SYSTEM DESIGNED TO
SOLVE?
10. WHAT WERE SOME OF THE MANAGEMENT ORGANIZATION, AND
TECHNOLOGY ISSUES THAT HAD TO BE ADDRESSED BY THE NEW
SYSTEM
MANAGEMENT ORGANIZATION TECHNOLOGY
Develop new business
process
Monitoring the
implementation of the
new system.
Allocation of human
and financial resources
Conduct employees
training
Change of corporate
culture
Accessible of data (via
Web-based and mobile
devices)
Determine the right set
of reports and
dashboards
Extracting data from
SAP NetWeaver
Business Warehouse
ISSUES
11. In many cases, the existing HPC’s systems provided out-of-date
and “sanitized” data in the reports. Moreover, the reports data
are presented only a periodic basis.
It really affecting the management decision making because
the systems allow the individual managers to process and
manipulate the data to make their departments “look better”
to senior management.
As a result, the decision making are made based on the
inaccurate, manipulated, inconsistent and untimely data
(based on last quarter’s number).
Q2. TO WHAT EXTENT WERE “PEOPLE” PROBLEMS AFFECTING
MANAGEMENT DECISION MAKING AT H[C?
12. In order to determine the right set of reports and dashboards
for HPC’s executives, the information systems team started by:
- asking the executives to list existing reports, and
- assess the usefulness of each reports
Then, a highly intuitive Web-based user interface was created
to make the system very accessible and required little training
for users to use the system.
The information systems team visited various manufacturing
plants to encourage users to start working with the systems as
well as had in-dept discussion with executives about the
system’s benefits and how to use it.
HOW DID THE SYSTEM’S DESIGNERS MAKE THE SYSTEM MORE
“PEOPLE-FRIENDLY?
13. User information requirements drive the entire system-
building efforts.
End user must have sufficient control over the design process
to ensure that the system reflects their business priorities and
information needs, not the biases of the technical staff.
End user of HP’s played role to help the project information
systems department by providing them the existing report
that they already used.
Q3. WHAT ROLE DID END USERS PLAY IN DEVELOPNING HPC;S
NEW SYSTEM
14. HOW DID THE PROJECT TEAM MAKE SURE USERS WERE
INVOLVED?.
Once HPC’s project team determined the business intelligence
tools for the solution, its focus turned to determining which
data and reports were required by the company’s 200 high-
level users of the new system.
The team started by asking executives to list existing reports
they were already receiving and to assess the usefulness of
each.
The list was cut to more manageable size and the executives
were asked if there were any additional reports or data from
which their organization groups could benefit.
15. The project team make sure the user are attended the training
on how to use the new system or to access data and reports.
To encourage users to start working with the system, members
of the information department conduct a discussion with the
user about the benefits as well as how to use the new system.
Information systems department also to run campaigns to
ensure that user are using the system with most effective way.
CONT’S
16. The users involved are very important in developing new
systems to make sure that the information's or users needs
that was determined were fulfilled.
If that is not happened, the new systems were plan to develop
might be failed and not achieved the management objective.
Eventually, the project might be ‘white elephant’ and result in
wasting of time and money as well.
WHAT WOULD HAVE HAPPENED TO THE PROJECT IF THEY HAD
NOT DONE THIS?
17. Phased approach – HPC used a phased approach in
implementing the new system. HPC waited until the company
was experienced with ERP software and confident in its data
quality and its data collection and processing methods.
Benchmarking – HPC CIO, Jong Pyo Kim also emphasized the
important of benchmarking with other companies in the
industry before designing and implementing an executive-
facing system. Most manufacturing will want access to similar
data and performance indicators.
Q4. WHAT OTHER STEPS DID HPC TAKE TO MAKE SURE THE
SYSTEMS WAS SUCCESSFUL?
18. 1. SAP BusinessObjects Dashboards
SAP BusinessObjects is a drag-and-drop visualization tool
designed to create interactive analytics for powerful,
personalized dashboards based on SAP’s BusinessObjects
business intelligence platform.
BusinessObjects software can be used for performance
management, planning, reporting, query and analysis, and
enterprise information management, and provide self-service
access to data from database and Excell spreadsheets.
Q5. WHAT TYPES OF SYSTEMS-BUILDING METHODS AND TOOLS
DID HPC USE FOR BUILDING ITS SYSTEM?
19. 2. SAP BusinessObjects Web Inteligence
SAP BusinessObjects Web Inteligence is an ad hoc query,
reporting, and analysis tool that is used to create queries or use
existing reports, format retrieved information, and perform
analysis to understand trend and root causes
CONT’S
20. 1. Timelier Decisions :
Reduces time needed to collect, process, and track
data for decision making. Supports faster decisions
with quicker and more thorough analyses. Delivers
timely information and various analytics to end users.
2. Personalized Delivery Of Information :
Provides option for Early Warning System of data alerts,
allow for differentiated or personalized delivery of
information for executives, managers, and front-line
employees.
Q6. WHAT WERE THE BENEFITS OF THE NEW SYSTEM? HOW DID
IT CHANGE THE WAY HONAM RAN ITS BUSINESS? HOW
SUCCESSFUL WAS THIS SYSTEM SOLUTION?
21. 3. Measurable Watch-Up Indicators Across All Business
Areas:
Ensures consistency of information and establishes
structure for global sharing of information, increases
business competitiveness through increased use of
global information systems.
4. Improved Accessibility:
Displays data via management cockpits, dashboards, or
widgets, provides unstructured details and causal
analysis, leverages visual graphics to improve
readability.
CONT’S
22. Executives not longer are limited to sanitized, stale data in an
outdated presentation format.
Management discussions and decisions are based on timely,
consistent, and accurate company-wide data.
HOW DID IT CHANGE THE WAY HONAM RAN ITS BUSINESS?
23. The system is very successful to solve the problems occur at
HPC.
The system reduces the time required to collect, process, and
track the data, executive decision making takes place more
rapidly.
HPC’s information systems are now ready for global
information-sharing as the company expands.
HOW SUCCESFUL WAS THIS SYSTEM SOLUTION?