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Helios: centralized Management Information System

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Throughout the world, in the somewhat heterogeneous environment that is Philips Lighting, 8 different management information systems are currently in use. Part of our history though it may be, this situation is certainly awkward. Since 2004, therefore, we’ve been working hard on centralization. Jeroen Vermunt (35), business line manager MIS (Management Information Systems): “With project Helios, we aim to set up a single, worldwide management information system for the whole of Philips Lighting.”

A compelling argument for centralization is the need for information on the performance of Philips Lighting worldwide. Jeroen Vermunt: “In itself, there’s nothing new about this need for information, but until now data has had to be retrieved from many different systems. This takes up a great deal of time and is thus very expensive. The aim of Helios is to make this process more efficient and the data more accessible.

The basis for the new system was laid by bringing together sales and margin, the two Key Performance Indicators in all our branches throughout the world. That part of the system is now up and running. Jeroen Vermunt: “Helios is now developing into the SAP BW (Business Warehousing) system for the whole of Philips Lighting. The system will soon meet the information needs of not only the Product Division, but also those of the business units and the regions. We’re currently adding all kinds of extra information options such as all the data from the business unit Automotive, planning information, data for the ‘forecast’ process… Alongside major cost benefits, this also gives us the assurance that we’re all working with the same version of reality.”

Quality information
The system isn’t only going to offer more – the quality of the information will also be better. Jeroen Vermunt: “When calculating the margin, we’re now also adding specific per-customer costs. For example, if we have to spend a lot of time on a customer or if there are higher costs because of inefficient ordering, we can now see what’s happening. This information is crucial to increasing profitability per customer or deciding the amount of effort that should be invested in any specific customer. Increasing the quality of information in this way is a continuous process.” The shift from eight different modalities back to 1 centralized system means that a lot of people are having to say farewell to their ‘own’ system. Jeroen Vermunt admits that, for some, this is still a problem. “And that’s where it all comes down to an exercise in change management. We find ourselves continuously ‘selling’ Helios: explaining what Helios is to management and other teams, what it can do and why it’s such a positive development.” Before he joined Philips in 2003, Jeroen Vermunt had been working for ten years as a SAP consultant. Experience he can now put to excellent use in his present ‘missionary work’.

Less involvement with content
A return to his former independent way of working, however, is the last thing he wants. “As a consultant you’re always on the go and getting nowhere. I’d really had enough of always being ‘on the road’. But even more important to me is the fact that here I can develop myself on a much broader front. Here I can learn management skills for example – staffing of the department I’m responsible for has grown from 5 to 30 since I arrived. So I can now work much more on developing people and potential than I could before… setting up a team and expanding it. In the longer term, I want to be less occupied with content and more with organization and here I can pick up the experience I need to achieve this.” Already, Jeroen’s executive tasks mean that he has to be less concerned with content. “At Philips Lighting, business line managers can usually deal with the content side of things, but you can’t occupy yourself with all the details.
I really have to restrict myself to the essentials, my job now is to look at the big picture and see the interrelationships between all sorts of functions in the field of management information. If we make a development in system A, for example, will that work well with systems B and C, or will we discover after a year that we’ve actually been working to our own disadvantage?”

Pride
For Jeroen, working for a major concern like Philips has an added dimension. “A big company that clearly and manifestly manufactures advanced products… to me that’s something to be proud of. Software is much less tangible, lines of code on a screen… When I visit one of our factories and see all that goes on there, that adds a whole extra dimension for me.” Philips Lighting has a lot of employees who are strong on content and, to Jeroen, that has its disadvantages. “Sometimes lengthy discussions ensue before a decision is reached; everyone wants to have his say about the content and that sometimes slows things down.” On the other hand, Jeroen feels very much at home in the Philips team. “I’m in touch with my colleagues on a daily basis here, we form a close-knit team. As a consultant you often feel a bit of a loner, but here I really am part of the action. That’s a good feeling that gives balance in my life.”

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