C5MI - People, Process & Technology Convergence (CHAIN)

People, Process & Technology Convergence PROJECT PARTNER

BUSINESS INTERVIEW

People, Process & Technology Convergence We talk to Angie Frederick, Partner & COO at C5MI, about her company’s end-to-end maturity proposition and goal of persistent growth.

5MI unleashes business value through the convergence of people, process, and technology. They have hired top talent that has managed supply chains, manufacturing facilities, and has great experience with using and 2

deploying SAP technology.

They are successful with their customers because they know what it takes to use the technology the right way.

The customer experience you will get with C5MI is based on their successes they had from using the solutions themselves.

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Angie Frederick, Partner & COO at C5MI, explains, “We have experience across the maturity curve journey to Industry 4.0. We offer expertise in enterprise resource planning (ERP), working predominantly with SAP. We implement SAP systems, as well as going into companies that have implemented SAP, but are not happy with how it was customised. We can help streamline their processes to make it much easier to use, as well as backout customisation that is not driving the value they need. In the ERP space, we also do work on the integration side, connecting the digital core in a way that allows for data convergence and more visibility.”

Angie Frederick, Partner & COO 4

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Part of the maturity curve journey includes visibility and adaptability.

This focus is primarily on C5MI’s service line they call Supply Chain Agility and Resiliency (SCAR). On the subject of SCAR, Angie says that where customers have a digital core in place, C5MI can assist in helping them best utilise the system. She continues, “How are your processes set up around using the system? How is the data set up to get the right results that you need? How easy is it to get the data to enable you to make decisions? All of this works 6

towards helping supply chains to be more agile and more resilient towards disruption. As the last few years have taught us, we were not ready for major disruptions. When Covid hit, it really drove a bigger challenge and more of a need to harness data for better insights.”

In a bid to tackle disruption, C5MI helps its customers create a digital plan for every part of the business, managing its materials from when they are received, through manufacturing, distribution, and ultimately to when they reach the

“The maturity curve model is different to that of C5MI’s competitors because it offers solutions at all points of the curve, from digital core through to autonomy”

customer. Angie explains, “We do all of this digitally, so that the customer is able to see it and measure it. We also offer adoption metrics, which measure the health of how the customer is utilising their system. Adaptability is about managing risk, as well as the ability to pivot quickly when faced with disruption.”

Angie considers Industry 4.0 to be the end game for the large majority of companies. However, not all of them will get there. She says, “This is about getting to the point

where organisations can predict issues and fix things before the situation arises. When the digital core systems are integrated with Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), cloud data analytics, and machine learning, you start to create a common operational picture (COP) that becomes the trusted single version of truth system. Once the transactional world is fully connected to the physical world, you can start to drive autonomous actions that take the human out of the loop to drive exponential productivity. Considering the condition of our global supply chains, the application of Industry 4.0 technology will be the only way we overcome these issues and unleash an incredible level of productivity that allows the world to overcome the inflationary pressure it is under.”

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All four of C5MI’s partners have done this work before and are bringing their experience to other companies. The maturity curve model is different to that of C5MI’s competitors because it offers solutions at all points of the curve, from digital core through to autonomy. Angie adds, “We can work in many different phases for one client, or maybe a client is good at one area and not in another. It does not always go in a

a return on their investment, helping them to use the system to take their business to the next level. This is where they will be able to automate some of their warehouse processes, see where they have issues, do their work more efficiently, and eliminate some manual tasks.”

Angie adds, “We are also working with clients where we are helping their supply base.

“C5MI is growing. By adding diversity of talent to the team, it will only take the company further. We will continue to build our teams and support their journeys to becoming the best version of themselves” maturity curve progression. Most companies do it out of sequence and that’s OK. We offer help in any one of these areas, assisting clients to utilise the systems to the best of their ability and get the value their company is seeking.”

C5MI is currently working with the government in implementing one of the largest SAP Extended Warehouse Management (EWM) implementations. Angie enthuses, “There are over a hundred different locations around the world that we are deploying for them. We are working with them to get 8

The supply base is constrained right now, struggling to keep up with demand. They don’t have the visibility they need and this keeps them from understanding where they need to prioritise, and fix some of the inefficiencies throughout their manufacturing facilities. The aim is to help them react faster and get in front of some of the demand that we are seeing today.”

Speaking of visibility, Angie thinks it is essential for enabling clients to be able to make sustainability commitments. She

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Start-to-finish profitability.

End-to-end sustainability.

That’s Supply Chain Economics.

SAP Digital Supply Chain Solutions give you the ability to design, plan, manufacture, deliver and operate a sustainable process. sap.com/supplychaineconomics

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“SAP continues to modify their solutions to benefit the customer. We believe strongly in the technology, and more importantly, how to use it for great value” says, “ESG is incredibly important to us at C5MI. Companies that make environmental, social, and governance concerns a priority will reap the benefit. Investors are looking at companies that have strong ESG positions as a positive to the company’s long-term success.

We can help them get there.”

Building an ecosystem of partners that share the same values is key for C5MI. Angie explains, “We believe in the mission and that is to get real value for our customers. It’s important for our partners to have this same mission. Our partnership with SAP is exactly that. SAP continues to modify their solutions to benefit the customer. We believe strongly in the technology, and more importantly, how to use it for great value.”

As mentioned, one such partner that C5MI works closely with is SAP. Angie says, “We have a strong relationship with SAP, having worked with them for many years in our previous roles, as well as playing

an important part in our C5MI journey. All the partners have used, deployed, and built upon SAP, so our relationship is about building on the great work they have already done. For example, we have built a couple of tools with SAP to help clients solve issues in material replenishment and asset management. Digital Pull Systems (DPS) and Digital Reliability Centered Maintenance (DRCM®) are products that C5MI built with SAP. We are very proud of these products and the value they have today with some of our current clients.”

Because technology is evolving so fast, it is hard to keep up, so the aim for C5MI is to try not to overwhelm its clients. Angie explains, “We focus first and foremost on what the client is trying to achieve for their business, and then we can talk technology.

It is easy to get enamoured by all the cool stuff out there, and as a result, not really hit the mark.

We therefore focus on people, 11

process, and then we bring in technology convergence. With the push for Industry 4.0, I believe it has got to serve the purpose of fixing a problem. The supply chain is struggling with disruption right now. Getting visibility to be able to manage its priorities for the materials it needs is, at times, the only direction a customer can focus on. For those clients, it gives them more traction to help them solve their challenges through focused efforts on their current systems – how to best use 12

them, see the right data, and drive improvements quickly. Once this can get under control and stable, it makes sense to add some focus on predictive capabilities and ultimately autonomous work. We focus on business problems first, and that always leads to the right solution for where the customer can unleash the most potential value.

Our solutions provide tangible results and are accretive, meaning the return on investment (ROI) is so fast that these solutions pay for themselves.”

On the people side, C5MI is passionate about building a strong team of individuals who have the ability to understand the business process needs. Angie explains, “The people we hire are the best in their area, be it supply chain planning, manufacturing, warehouse management, solution architecture etc. They understand the technology, so they can translate to both the technical and business process side, which is so important for our clients. If we go in and speak to a general manager of manufacturing about helping to drive improvements and get weighed down in the technical speak, we will lose them. They just want to know what it means to them and their role. Therefore, we have people who can translate the technology to put in processes that will drive results at the bottom line.

They really know how to deliver the value to the client and how it impacts the different roles at their company.”

C5MI’s client base spans several different industries, including the government, construction and mining, aerospace, and others.

Angie continues, “In the last five years, we have scaled up quickly, and we will continue to grow.

We will drive across our maturity model and get out there far and wide, delivering results for our

clients. We are aiming to continue to grow the footprint, building up our resource pool and driving employee experience, because we are passionate about inspiring people to want to work for us. Our focus is therefore on our culture and delivering on our commitments to our customers.”

Angie was brought in at the beginning of the year to complement the C5MI partner team in their efforts of scaling up.

She says, “I have known the other partners for many years, and they are a key reason I came to C5MI. I knew that they would be supportive

C5MI spends their time where the value is driven on the shop floor

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of what I would bring to the table, and we all bring strong diversity of talent to the company’s success. I am proud to be in this line of work, but also proud to be a role model as a female leader in this space as well. Recently, I have been accepted into the only network organisation that is specifically designed for the most powerful women executives, Chief. My goal as part of this network is to continue to grow as a leader and role model in the industry. I believe continuous learning and personal growth are important to bring value to C5MI and our employees that we are leading.”

Alongside Angie’s position as a female role model, she is also responsible for human resources, helping to support the next generation of leaders in the technology and supply chain space. She concludes, “C5MI is growing.

By adding diversity of talent to the team, it will only take the company further. We will continue to build our teams and support their journeys to becoming the best version of themselves.”

For further information on C5MI, visit www.c5mi.com 14

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www.c5mi.com

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