International
MSD’s success as one of the planet’s leading pharmaceutical multinationals is driven by a singular vision: to be a formidable force for good in the world by saving human and animal lives. With this aim in mind, the business embarked on Project Streamline, a multi-partner, enterprise-wide transformation programme designed to upgrade and standardise its procurement processes. Launched in 2018, it subsequently became one of the largest, most complex SAP Ariba-based procurement transformations ever implemented.
EY acted as MSD’s Implementation Partner from the start of this four-year programme, which covered 71 countries worldwide.
Global programmes of this magnitude are never for the faint-hearted. Not only did Project Streamline involve working across borders and time zones, but teams also had to deal with a mix of languages, cultures, functions, organisational structures and regulatory landscapes – among other challenges. To complicate matters, the Project Streamline team also had to contend with the COVID-19 pandemic, which placed particularly heavy demands on its communication capabilities.
These challenges only brought out the very best in the 100+-strong project team. Collaborating closely with the MSD teams throughout the process, we overcame these obstacles to deliver the best possible outcome in rolling out a fully integrated, globally standardised source-to-settle platform covering many thousands of and suppliers across the Globe.
Project Streamline also delivered above-target bottom-line savings ahead of plan, which MSD can now invest into realising its vision by researching and developing new health solutions, medicines, vaccines and biologic therapies for humans and animals.
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