Data is the lubricant of the digital transformation at SHV Energy
SHV Energy is faced with the challenge to give shape and content to the digital transformation worldwide. The group concluded that data management is a crucial factor in this. Together with Altares Dun & Bradstreet, SHV Energy started an extensive project to optimize master data management in global procurement.
SHV Energy
30M
customers worldwide
17.000
employees
25
active countries
We know that we can rely on the knowledge and expertise of Altares Dun & Bradstreet, which we have at our side as a strategic partner. I am very satisfied with the cooperation with Altares Dun & Bradstreet. They understand the data and the business. Together, we are going to take steps towards a sustainable future.”
1. The Challenge
Enormous transition
"Each business unit have their own procurement department. For example, we are working with many different ERP systems around the world, were unable to clean up data adequately and had not formulated policies and governance regarding master data.”
With all these different and widely distributed energy companies, SHV Energy meets the needs of more than 30 million customers on four continents. They use different forms of energy for hundreds of applications. SHV Energy continues to develop and has set strong ambitions. The company expects global energy consumption to double in the next 30 years. At the same time, it has set itself the goal of fully switching to sustainable energy by 2040. This means that SHV Energy will have to go through an enormous transition, supplying different products and tapping into new sustainable sources. This development does not stand alone, of course. The entire international energy market is changing very rapidly and it is in that force field that the original Dutch company will have to maintain and expand its leading position.
To meet the challenges outlined, SHV Energy started a digital transformation a few years ago. This digitalization was primarily used to enable the group to collaborate better with all the dispersed locations and to centralize activities. One of the first initiatives in this context was the establishment of a central Procurement team. Jagoda Leszczynska, Global Master Data Manager at SHV Energy, outlines the challenges. "Each business unit have their own procurement department. For example, we are working with many different ERP systems around the world, were unable to clean up data adequately and had not formulated policies and governance regarding master data. One of the consequences of this was that it was difficult to report on our various KPIs in a standardized manner and that decisions were largely made based on feelings rather than facts. In addition, it was difficult to identify which of our suppliers belong to the same group. In short, the technological infrastructure and our data management had to be set up in such a way that we would be able to gain more insight into our suppliers."
According to Leszczynska, it comes down to SHV Energy:
- Must be able to define a strategy for category management based on reliable data
- It must be able to proactively manage business-critical suppliers
- Gain more insight into the results of the various business units and the KPIs
- Identify the same suppliers within the various databases
2 The solution
Extra service with self-service
The Master Data Management project is supported by the solutions of Altares Dun & Bradstreet. The D-U-N-S number of Altares Dun & Bradstreet plays a central role as an essential part of the range of solutions in the field of Procurement. These solutions make it possible:
- Reduce costs during the procurement process
- Improve the performance of suppliers
- Avoiding or mitigating the consequences of possible supply interruptions
- Protect the reputation; non-performance of suppliers radiates out on the company’s own business
- Identify common suppliers across different databases
30M
customers worldwide
17.000
employees
25
active countries
These are exactly the reasons why SHV Energy chose Altares Dun & Bradstreet. "Using the D-U-N-S number, we can find out everything we need to know about the suppliers in question. After all, the number is unique and therefore points conclusively to one parent company, subsidiary, head office or branch. We started by mapping out the structure of these companies so that we could identify suppliers that are connected. We also enriched the profiles of these suppliers and supplemented them with data that we did not yet have.
At the same time, we removed duplicates and inactive entities of suppliers. This is how we started to clean up our database," says Leszczynska. "The next step – the API integration – was to link our existing Source to Contract procurement system to the Altares Dun & Bradstreet database. With this real-time connection we get automatic updates about changes in the profile and business structure of our suppliers. This link also makes it possible to use the D-U-N-S number in SHV Energy’s supplier onboarding process."
3. The result
Sustainable future
As a Master Data Management expert, Leszczynska is very satisfied with how SHV Energy now has access to accurate, complete, unique and up-to-date data based on which suppliers can be ‘scored’. "Thanks to the consistency and quality of data, we now have more insight into our supplier network and who our main suppliers are. We can act proactively on this; we are in control much more than ever before. At the same time, we now have the data available to enable buyers to negotiate better contracts. We now know much more accurately that several of our suppliers belong to the same group."
Leszczynska emphasizes that SHV Energy has made great strides with master data management in the procurement segment. The results speak for themselves:
Benefits
Leszczynska emphasizes that SHV Energy has made great strides with master data management in the procurement segment. The results speak for themselves:
- The risks have been greatly reduced. Business-critical suppliers can now be financially scored. This benefits business continuity.
- Category management gets an impulse now that SHV Energy has clarified the hierarchy between different suppliers. At the same time, reporting is now structurally based on standard KPI’s, making business intelligence more reliable.
- SHV Energy can carry out various process optimizations. Think, for example, of purchase to pay and sharing data across different IT systems. The supplier onboarding process also gets an impulse now that duplicates have disappeared from the database. It goes faster and without errors.
"I am very satisfied with the cooperation with Altares Dun & Bradstreet. They understand the data and the business. Together, we are going to take steps towards a sustainable future."
Sustainable future
As a Master Data Management expert, Leszczynska is very satisfied with how SHV Energy now has access to accurate, complete, unique and up-to-date data based on which suppliers can be ‘scored’. “Thanks to the consistency and quality of data, we now have more insight into our supplier network and who our main suppliers are. We can act proactively on this; we are in control much more than ever before. At the same time, we now have the data available to enable buyers to negotiate better contracts. We now know much more accurately that several of our suppliers belong to the same group."What other customers say
"Data is the backbone of our business. In essence, we cannot function without reliable and up-to-date data."
“Before engaging with a company, we always conduct a thorough analysis and request various supporting documents for identification and verification.”
"As a company with an international focus, it is important for us to have a stable solution available based on global data."
'Every new customer we want to check. It sleeps much better for everyone if you know that companies you are owed money from can actually pay it.'
"To make sure we are sourcing good, reliable dealers everywhere, we need the expertise of Altares Dun & Bradstreet"
"We can now act proactively when it comes to credit risk"
"We had another business information provider, but in testing we found that with their data we were only covering 45 percent of our customers"
"Doing business based on current, complete and accurate data"
"Only by automating can we make substantial gains"
"Improved customer insight and optimal service"
"'For Barco, it is important to support your strategy and decisions with market data"
"Altares Dun & Bradstreet's Marketing Insight solutions have provided ten times higher conversion from 'suspects' to 'prospects' in the Benelux"
