scales with a collaborative Global Delivery Center (GDC)
Challenges
In the midst of a major business expansion, GAC faced significant challenges on multiple fronts, including – people, process, and technology.
Solution
GAC entered into a strategic partnership with coMakeIT to overcome its process, people, and technology constraints, and meet the demands of a fast-growing customer base.
Impact and Business Value
The strategic partnership with coMakeIT and the India GDC not only helped GAC to overcome capacity challenges but also yielded substantial long-lasting business benefits.
About GAC
GAC is a Netherlands-based provider of ERP solutions on Microsoft Dynamics NAV platform, with 400+ customers across Benelux and EU. GAC works with specialists to offer modular, customized solutions in the following fields:
- Production
- Wholesale
- Business services
- Day-care
- Social employment
“ coMakeIT is an ideal and strategic offshore partner. Their unique co-Innovation model enabled us to focus on building a high-performance team and delivering results, without having to worry about operational issues. coMakeIT gave us excellent support by handling the shared services in a professional manner, helping us to scale up quickly. Now, our team has evolved into a mature, collaborative Global Delivery Center (GDC), that is fully integrated with GAC”
–-Arjan Daniëls, Team leader Products, GAC
Challenges
Around 2011, GAC was in the midst of a rapid business expansion to new markets and geographies across Europe, but was constrained by lack of capacity to meet the needs of its fast-growing clientele. GAC also faced the following additional challenges:
- Scarcity of qualified and experienced Microsoft Dynamics professionals in The Netherlands
- Inability to execute their technology roadmap, due to lack of capacity and bandwidth
- Lack of expertise with agile processes such as Scrum for continuous product development
- Difficulty in handling client requests for customizations and upgrades
Solution
GAC entered into a strategic partnership with coMakeIT to overcome its process, people, and technology constraints. Over the past 6 years, GAC and coMakeIT targeted the following initiatives, which were the foundation for the success of the strategic partnership:
- Recruited and set up a high-performance team with advanced skills in MS Dynamics NAV
- Assisted in adopting a fully-integrated, agile process across the geographically distributed teams
- Setup a distributed software factory with the right people in right roles, using a unified process for seamless delivery
- Supported in gradually building the India team into a full-fledged GDC with mature capabilities, handling product enhancements, upgrades, and customization
- Positioned India GDC as a knowledge-center and software factory to support GAC’s global customer base
Impact and Business value
The strategic partnership with coMakeIT helped GAC achieve the following tangible benefits:
- Savings – Led to a saving of more than € 1 mn over the past 6 years
- Scaling – gradually scaled from a 2-member team to a 19-member GDC, at a pace that GAC is comfortable with
- Productivity – Cumulatively 50+ man-years of effort by the India GDC over the past 6 years – contributing towards continuous product enhancements, upgrades, and customizations
- Time – significantly enhanced pace of customizations and product enhancements