The global beverage giant looked successful from the outside. They had proper systems for consolidation, planning, and reporting. Both internal and external stakeholders got what they needed.
But beneath the surface, operational financial planning was a mess.
Different businesses picked their own tools. Different regions did the same. Each tool required manual data transfers. Daily batches came from the BW system. Then someone had to move that data by hand.
Manual data transfer meant constant errors. Time delays killed their ability to update. The data wasn’t always in the right format for planning. Monthly deadlines disrupted everything else.
Worse, global data was scattered across local warehouses. Data consistency became impossible. Governance was a nightmare. Security risks multiplied.
Every region thought they were being efficient. Collectively, they were creating chaos.
One U.S. business unit found a solution. They were using a cloud-based planning and analysis tool. It was flexible, easy to configure, and perfect for non-technical staff. Different businesses could use it. Different geographies could adopt it.
This looked like the global answer they needed.
But it had to meet two critical requirements. The tool needed easy access to SAP transactional data for plan-versus-actual comparisons. It needed direct loads from external distributor sources for early performance indicators.
The problem? The tool couldn’t integrate with their SAP systems. The promising global solution hit the integration wall.
The client turned to Pivot. They’d worked together before on integration architecture strategy. Previous projects had been successful. They knew Pivot could solve complex integration challenges.
Pivot’s consultants worked with the client team. They designed a solution for the immediate need. But they built something flexible and reusable for other businesses worldwide.
The solution used Web Services. External applications could request data refreshes on demand from backend systems. This addressed the immediate requirements and created a platform for future initiatives.
The “On Demand” environment changed everything. Users escaped the old batch-driven constraints. They got speedier updates after data corrections. All manual data loading disappeared. Users controlled their own data. Reports became more accurate. Closing periods got shorter.
Pivot used standard SAP PI and ABAP technology. The project delivered on time. It took just over 100 consultancy days across five months. After go-live, knowledge transfer sessions handed the solution to the support team.
The solution worked so well that the client rolled it out across remaining North American business units. They did it without Pivot assistance. The foundation was solid enough for independent expansion.
The global beverage leader escaped the manual data trap. Planning became responsive instead of reactive. Data consistency replaced chaos. Security risks disappeared.
For a company where market timing matters, having real-time data capabilities transformed how fast they could adapt to opportunities and threats.
The Project Leader’s enthusiastic endorsement says it all. Sometimes the best solutions combine technical excellence with practical business sense. That’s what turned potential disaster into competitive advantage.
