Challenges
- There is no in-house person with experience in building a system compatible with JD-NET, which is necessary for selling pharmaceuticals in Japan.
- It is difficult for global teams to understand Japanese business practices.
- Must correspond to Japanese business practices without affecting the global standard model.
Implemented Products/Solutions
Implementation Package for the Pharmaceutical Industry B-EN-Gp JD-NET Solution for SAP S/4HANA
Implementation Project Overview
Idorsia Pharmaceuticals, headquartered in Switzerland, chose Japan as the site for the world's first new drug sales. However, in order to start business in Japan, Idorsia needed a system that would accommodate Japan's unique business practices.
While the global team was building a system for standard processes, Business Engineering (B-EN-G)'s implementation package was used to cover Japan's unique requirements.
The system went live with a small number of employees, short timeframe, and low risk.
The sequence of operations in Japan is to import pharmaceuticals produced in other countries, receive orders from pharmaceutical wholesalers, pack them in warehouses, and ship them.
The division of roles between the global team and the Japanese side in building a system to support this is shown in the diagram.
(The red frame in the diagram is the Japanese side *From Idorsia Pharmaceuticals materials)
The JD-NET Solution applied this time is a package that extracts the parts related to JD-NET from the SAP implementation template "B-EN-Gp" for the pharmaceutical industry. Above all, what was important for this project was to be able to meet Japanese requirements while also meeting global standards. JD-NET Solution is an introduction package that covers this point as well.
Collaboration with B-EN-G began in April 2021. As the global team built a standard process system, they incorporated a system that covered Japan's unique requirements. After a fit-and-gap analysis, they accelerated the movement toward realization from around June, and went live in April 2022.
The core system using JD-NET Solution + SAP S/4HANA, which has started production, is operating smoothly and there have been no problems to date. The reports that users use on a daily basis are also popular.
Implementation Points
- Adoption of the JD-NET compatible part of "B-EN-Gp" with a good track record of operation
- Appointment of B-EN-G, who have extensive experience supporting SAP system implementation, and can be trusted to provide explanations to global teams.
- The Japanese team always works with the global team to lead the project.
*We spoke in detail to Mr. Shugo Kagaku, General Manager and Implementation Project Manager of the Information Services Division, and Mr. Tetsuya Yagi, Implementation Project Leader, regarding the key points of collaboration between the Japanese team and the global team.
Details are provided in the case study leaflet.
*Please note that organization names, positions, numerical data, etc. in the article are based on the time of the interview and may have changed by current viewing.
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