This case study explores how ECS, a leading provider of integrated supply chain logistics and intermodal transport solutions accelerated their digital transformation journey with Dragonboat. At the core of ECS’s operation is Dominiek Leenknecht, the CIO who leads both IT teams and oversees product development. To accelerate the transformation, Dominiek needs to ensure teams are always aligned with the right priorities and initiate the most impactful new programs. Dominiek set up an outcome focused IT portfolio management governance process and needed the right tool to enable this new process and new way to work. After extensive evaluation, Dragonboat has emerged as a clear winner and has proven to be a key element of the organization’s transformation success.
“Visibility was key. I needed more than Excel. I needed one central view so our teams and management where all product owners can update their information properly. When that view is there, you can make the steps to set up your processes for successful transformation.”
Challenges
Despite ECS’s commendable success over recent years, marked by the initiation of numerous projects and effective inter-project coordination, resource allocation posed an ongoing challenge due to insufficient alignment and transparency.
Reflecting on his early days at ECS, Dominiek shares:
"When I first joined ECS, I was introduced to a hard-working, dedicated IT team, but they had too many spinning plates. There were a lot of projects going on and it was difficult to get an understanding of what people were working on and if they were the right priorities. I wasn’t able to answer management questions about what was being worked on and the available resources, so I had to look around to find a pragmatic, no nonsense approach to do project portfolio management.”
Here are the key challenges faced:
- Lack of effective planning and alignment between teams and management
- Lack of clarity on what IT team was working on and how resources are allocated
- Lack of a central source of truth for prioritization
- Independent teams working hard on siloed projects, leading to scalability and integration issues
Dominiek expressed the desire for a more consolidated, overarching view of ongoing projects, saying:
"If there was a way for me to get an integrated overview of all projects in a central place, it would greatly enhance discussions with the rest of the management team. It would empower us to ask the critical questions: What is our primary focus? Is this project still relevant? What should we shift our attention to next?"
Objectives
To overcome these obstacles, ECS had a clear vision:
- Successful digital transformation to replace legacy software systems
- Implement effective IT project portfolio management
- Increase visibility for team tasks and business priorities
“We needed a solution for better alignment between all parties; teams and management. I noticed a lot of people working long days, but it wasn’t always clear what they were working on. Everything was a priority and if it was not visible for me, I could only assume the rest of the organization did not have visibility to what we were working on and why.”
Choosing The Right Platform: The Decision-Making Process
Tool Evaluation
ECS evaluated 10 tools (including Microsoft Projects, Productboard, Aha, Craft, and Click up, ProductPlan), but did not have the time to set up complex project management tools.
Choosing Dragonboat
ECS chose Dragonboat to:
- Implement a standardized framework for IT teams
- Have a structured planning and prioritization process that fosters collaboration between teams and management
- Plan with multiple time horizons and effectively translate long-term plans into actionable short-term goals
- Enable visibility and automate progress tracking for projects and dependencies to keep stakeholders well informed
‘We chose Dragonboat because we could get started quickly and in a simple way. It was very intuitive. We started in a simple way, but know that Dragonboat has a vision and strategy where we can leverage their more advanced capabilities in a couple months, but we’re not blocked from getting up and running quickly.”
Results
Since rolling out Dragonboat, ECS has noticed significant improvements:
- Successfully streamlined projects by approximately 80%, reducing the workload from 165 projects to 35 prioritized projects.
- ECS started in Q4 2022 with this new Dragonboat approach – since then 38 projects were properly defined, got a definition of done and were finished properly.
- Significantly improved organizational visibility, granting access to 75 stakeholders and enabling flexible priority adjustments as required.
- Achieved a notable increase in on-time project deliveries, ensuring greater efficiency and meeting deadlines effectively.
- Higher efficiency and correct focus during monthly Project Portfolio Meetings
- More time spent on preparation of projects (project charter, scope, approval, governance, etc) leading to projects completed on time
“Visibility has improved greatly. Stakeholders around the company have access to what ICT is working on. I can say, check Dragonboat to take a look at what we are working on. This leads to trust in the company.”
Dragonboat has accelerated ECS’s digital transformation; streamlining processes, and enhancing planning and prioritization.
This newfound clarity has led to improved efficiency, trust, and a stronger understanding of shifting priorities within the organization. As Dominiek succinctly puts it, “Dragonboat helps us make the right choices now.”
ECS is a leading provider of integrated supply chain logistics and intermodal transport solutions. Founded in 1995, the family owned company with headquarters in Zeebrugge, Belgium spreads its activities over more than 35 European countries, specializing in transport and logistics between the UK and Ireland, and the European mainland.
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Transportation, Logistics, Supply Chain and Storage
Implement effective IT portfolio management and increase visibility for team tasks and business priorities
