IT Direction from Operations for Large Energy Contractor

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Duration

May 2022 – August 2022

Client Size

Over $1B (Annual Revenue)

ERP Application

JD Edwards

Other Related Applications

• Oracle
• Textura
• PMWeb

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Problem

Management of this large energy company was frustrated at the level of IT spending that was occurring as the company was experiencing considerable growth. Further, a number of departments were not in a good position relative to their use of IT tools and solutions. The IT department was large and probably appropriate for the size of company they were becoming but it was not viewed as effective. IT management was frustrated because they were not getting adequate direction from senior management or operations.
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Unique Challenges

The company had just gone through a significant acquisition and was in the process of meeting reporting requirements and Sarbanes compliance. In addition, they had a large ERP move planned which was consuming considerable internal resources. Finally, the company was extremely busy with their biggest ever backlog and resources were stretched very thin.
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Approach

BCG conducted a variety or process-related workshops and interviews with most of the primary departments in the organization. In addition, BCG IT consultants briefed most of the IT leadership on matters of data, priorities, enterprise architecture, and related issues. Stand-alone research and development (R&D) was conducted on the current solution stack as well as planned replacements.

BCG took a hard look at the ERP replacement initiative as well. With all the data collected, BCG developed planning materials including observations and recommendations. BCG facilitated a planning workshop with the IT department and then the business unit managers to gain consensus on the overall plan and direction. This was followed closely by a presentation of the recommendations to the senior leadership team to review the agreed upon plan and develop organizational commitment.

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Resolution

BCG made many tactical recommendations which were all well received in terms of solutions, integrations, and process improvement. But the most significant change was directed at how IT engages with the business and gets their direction. This included a number of changes in IT governance and organization.
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Client Testimonial

From IT Director: “I was impressed by their overall knowledge of IT but was more impressed with their construction knowledge.”