Switzerland
ARIS Platform Improves Workflow
The new ARIS Platform software helps Brenntag Schweizerhall streamline business processes and improve workflows.
The ARIS project team (from left to right): Beatrice Del Principe, Christian Messmer (Project Manager), Markus Näher, Ralph Deuster, Urs Salvisberg and Philipp Winter.
Photo: Brenntag
Launched in December 2007, the extensive IT project was concluded in late May 2008 with workshops for employees in purchasing, sales and production. Ludger Kruse from Corporate IT in Mülheim, Germany was very pleased with the results: "The team achieved a lot in just a short time and successfully modeled the processes. All employees who participated were very enthusiastic about the workshops." This was confirmed by Beatrice Del Principe, who was responsible for the Swiss project together with Christian Messmer and Ludger Kruse. "Employees submitted more than 200 suggestions for improvement to the project," she noted. She finds it "typically Swiss" that employees not only discuss concerns and suggestions internally; they also manage to persuade external consultants. Integrating Brenntag Schweizerhall in the business group was only one reason for the complex IT project. Messmer explains: "Our IT group was also interested in tapping synergies and using the models for SAP tests." Integrated Modeling Of Business Processes Brenntag has used the program from the well-known software and consulting company IDS Scheer for three years, with the goal of consistently modeling, standardizing and optimizing business processes in the European subsidiaries. The sophisticated ARIS tool allows detailed modeling and thorough analysis of business processes and provides answers to such questions as: Who works on a task in what order, what activities are carried out and what software systems are used? “This makes it possible to identify organizational, structural and technical weak points and develop strategies for improvement,” explains Ludger Kruse. “In the end, the best process solutions prevail and can be standardized." In addition to Germany and Switzerland, the subsidiaries in France, Belgium and Central and Eastern Europe (Brenntag CEE) rely on the ARIS software. Brenntag hopes to improve its organization and management in Europe and have better control over cross-national business processes. In June 2007, Ludger Kruse and his team were awarded the Business Process Excellence Award from IDS Scheer (see together 3/07). Contact: Ludger Kruse Beatrice Del Principe ludger.kruse@brenntag.de beatrice.delprincipe@brenntag.ch Further information:www.ids-scheer.de
top