Integrating best practice with SAP: Maintaining market leadership at a major global brewer

Business challenge
A major global brewer enjoying impressive scale, with a portfolio of more than 120 popular brands, facilities in 61 countries around the world, 2005 revenues of 10.8 billion (US$13.7 billion), and more than 100,000 employees. However, the very scope and scale that signified the brewers success also added unwanted and costly complexity. For example, to support its globally dispersed operations, the company had multiple human resource systems with little or no integration among them. As a result, managers lacked visibility into shared data and HR information, and had no common key performance indicators by which to measure the effectiveness of their workforces. To complicate things further, most of the existing HR processes were manual, with limited self service or automationa waste of valuable time and resources. Ultimately, the brewers leadership position was being jeopardized by the inadequacies of its existing HR systems. As a result, the company sought to eradicate its information silos and inefficiencies, and establish a single, integrated HR system for all of its global employees. The brewer expected such a system to improve the quality and efficiency of HR services, increase the use of HR best practices, consolidate HR-related data and improve its transparency, and reduce costs by streamlining key HR processes.

Solution
To achieve these goals, the company sought the help of an experienced partner. Because of Pecasos* expertise in HR IT best practicesgained from more than 10,000 implementations across 36 countriesthe brewer chose Pecaso for this important initiative. Pecaso analyzed the brewers situation and goals and designed a customized blend of consulting and mySAP ERP Human Capital Management (HCM). Pecaso began the project by integrating and standardizing the brewers diverse HR processes including performance management, personnel and career development, recruitment and selection, and training and learning. To do so, Pecaso identified best practices in each of these areas from the brewers global organization, and then formulated new processes that combined the best of these optimal approaches. Once new, optimized processes had been designed, Pecaso then built underlying SAP-based technologies to put the new processes into action and established uniform key performance indicators to measure their efficacy. This effort involved establishing required enhancements to mySAP ERP HCM, creating blueprints to guide the technology rollout, and building a companywide, cross-national data model to power one integrated reporting tool.
*Pecaso was acquired by Accenture in May 2006.

While companywide standardization was an important aspect of the project, it was also essential to create and retain country-specific key performance indicators and performance reports. Pecasos deep experience with global mySAP ERP HCM implementations played a key role in fulfilling that critical requirement. Finally, Pecaso helped the brewer evaluate the efficiency, cost reduction, and profit potential of shifting its recruitment activities from traditional channels and methods to an e-Recruitment environment. Based on Pecasos advice, the brewer has made plans to move to SAP e-Recruiting in eight countries across Europe and North America.

In the words of Kees Zandvliet, the companys Program and Project Manager, Pecaso enabled us to maximize our investment and gain efficiencies that we could not have envisaged. Our data error rates were cut in half, and we were able to provide more responsive employee service and increase overall effectiveness. Today the organization operates more effectively, managers are better informed, and employees are satisfied to a higher degree. All in all, we have a more employee-centric culture. By taking the best knowledge available within the organization and integrating it with cutting-edge SAP technology, the brewer has substantially improved the way it develops and measures the performance of its workforcetwo capabilities that will help it maintain its leadership position for years to come.

As part of a global network of more than 7,000 Human Performance professionals and more than 17,000 consultants skilled in SAP, Accenture Human Capital Management Solutions is uniquely capable of delivering global, complex, SAP HCMenabled HR transformation initiatives to help our clients achieve high performance.

About Accenture
Accenture is a global management consulting, technology services and outsourcing company. Committed to delivering innovation, Accenture collaborates with its clients to help them become high-performance businesses and governments. With deep industry and business process expertise, broad global resources and a proven track record, Accenture can mobilize the right people, skills, and technologies to help clients improve their performance. With approximately 140,000 people in 48 countries, the company generated net revenues of US$16.65 billion for the fiscal year ended Aug. 31, 2006. Its home page is www.accenture.com.

Results
Thanks to Pecasos extensive experience, the brewer has gained several tangible benefits from the project. For example, by implementing standardized, streamlined HR processes based on best practices, the company has reduced complexity while gaining efficiency and productivity. In addition, the company has improved its ability to collect and analyze data from across the organization, giving management a clearer picture of performance as well as the ability to make decisions based on facts, not hunches. This data is available to managers via both the Web and their desktops, and helps them to quickly answer questions related to staff structure, fluctuation, time management, compensation, performance management, and training and learning. And with efficient standardized processes and easyto-use self-service reports, managers can spend less time on administrative tasks and more time contributing to the brewers long-term business goals. In fact, the benefits extend beyond management to every level of the organization: The new system enables faster processing of HR inquiries by employees as well as an enhanced ability to recognize and address individual and collective development needs.

About Accenture Human Capital Management Solutions

Accenture Human Capital Management Solutions, part of Accentures Human Performance group, comprises deeply skilled professionals who specialize in SAP Human Capital Management (HCM) technology, strategy, and implementation. With approximately 600 SAP HCM experts globally, Accenture Human Capital Management Solutions is one of the largest and most experienced global providers of human capital management services and solutions. The organization provides deep expertise and delivers proven results in leveraging SAP HCM technology to drive higher levels of HR performance for clients. Completing the portfolio is a proprietary suite of software that increases functionality and productivity, improves quality, and reduces timelines for implementing and realizing value from the leading SAP HCM technology platform.

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