“A common framework that unites…”

The^1st, directly linked to the situation I inherited, is to regain control of the legacy. For us, this means insourcing a certain number of Skills, documenting what already exists in order to regain control, and so on.

This naturally leads to a^2nd very important issue: that of federating the entire DSIT team around a new organization and, above all, a new culture, and getting all employees – those who have joined us recently and those who have been with us longer – on board with common objectives.

Inevitably, this leads to changes in operating methods; and for this to work, it’s not enough to decree it, you have to support it. Take, for example, the implementation of a new project governance system based on Scrum methodology: for it to be truly operational, it’s important to ensure that all the players take their rightful place; but that’s what happens in practice. Putting a label on someone isn’t enough to ensure that they’re 100% at ease in their new role!

I had had the opportunity to talk to Abraxio’s founders at a very early stage, and to share our views on the needs of a CIO and an IT department. Participating in the solution pilot a few months after I took up my new position at Galian was a natural extension of this.

In a very pragmatic way, I was able to integrate into a single solution a budget management system previously spread over several Excel files, and a Vendor database processed in a separate open source tool. Not to mention the Controlling department’s own tool, which tracked depreciation and fixed assets… All this was too scattered, and Abraxio enabled me to centralize everything and, above all, regain control. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg of what Abraxio contributes to.

From now on, the CIO must be a true business partner for the company. Abraxio contributes to this positioning, because the platform helps to reveal how the IT department creates value, how it can create even more, and to reassure us that it is being properly managed – particularly in budgetary terms.

Lots of things! I’ve been using Abraxio since the pilot phase, so my usage has intensified as the scope of the solution has grown.

First of all, I started by handling all the administrative tasks (managing Budgets and contracts), and grouping together a certain amount of information to which my whole team now has easy access without having to chase after information (service commitments, sales contacts).

The real focal point of my use is Budgets management, with all the functions for stopping, measuring variances and changes, comparing with historical data, and working on hypotheses. Not forgetting the invaluable reporting functions.

Project management and portfolio management are also included. And as the tool is simple, controlled and scalable, I’ve since associated my team and opened up the platform to management control. Each user has access to the platform according to his or her profile and needs.

Like many CIOs, I’ve noticed that I’m saving time, or at least time and energy, on tasks that are sometimes tedious but necessary. With Abraxio, this time is much better spent.

In very concrete terms, Abraxio gives me a better view of all my suppliers, their overall costs and the progress of their consumption. Abraxio automatically delivers this information to me, which is a real added value. It’s very useful in the negotiation phase, for example.

More generally, Abraxio enables me to manage my Budgets with much greater precision than before, and therefore to better control costs. And it goes even further: as visualization and Reporting are also far more advanced than in Excel, I get a better dialogue with the GM and management control.

I’d like to highlight a^4th benefit which I feel is important, and which ties in with the aforementioned issue of change management: Abraxio is interesting in that it provides a structure, a common framework for harmonizing and even standardizing a certain number of practices. In this way, the tool contributes to the professionalization of Teams, and thus supports change.

Abandoning Excel in favor of Abraxio not only saves time, but also adds value and improves the CIO’s image in the eyes of the CIO or management control, since it’s easy to demonstrate that you’re in control of your Budgets.