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Lars Hornung and Wiek de Winter are part of the team that has developed a joint product offering for the Business Areas Pharma and Supply Chain. Here they explain how it came about. And why the entrepreneurial spirit of all employees plays a crucial role in the development of integrated E2E solutions.
It's one of those meetings where everyone quickly realizes that this won't be an afternoon like any other.
In October 2022, six colleagues from the Business Areas Pharma and Supply Chain met in Lüneburg, Germany, to jointly solve a clearly defined software problem: How can we optimize the interface that links the MES (Manufacturing Execution System) and WMS (Warehouse Management System) control systems even more seamlessly? This was the occasion in the beginning. But the scope quickly widens. The teams analyze and compare jointly. Followed by the creation of a common understanding and joint inspiration. Everybody quickly agrees on how compatible Werum PAS-X MES and STEPLogic Warehouse - the name of the two Körber software products - are. And at the end of the day, a new idea is born: Why not just connect MES and WMS even better, but also offer them perfectly coordinated from a single source? Two involved creators from the team: Wiek de Winter and Lars Hornung.
"It was clear to all of us: this is what we should offer our customers in an integrated way," explains Wiek de Winter, Director of Professional Services Consulting in the Körber Business Area Supply Chain. "In the era of building ecosystems and end-to-end solutions, this is a great joint business opportunity." Especially since the advantages are obvious: shortened implementation time by parallel introduction of an integrated solution. Lower complexity in procurement by one-stop-shop. Ongoing support from a single vendor. This is where an integrated ecosystem approach delivers significant benefits to customers. Was this a natural path? Not at all.
The fact that experts from different Business Areas jointly develop and market products and solutions
is one of the greatest challenges faced by fast-growing, highly diversified technology groups today. At Körber, the path over the past decade has been characterized by organic and inorganic growth. Since its founding in 1946 in a basement workshop in the Hamburg district of Bergedorf, the group has diversified early on and, especially since 2012, has continued to develop non-organically at a rapid pace - in other words, by acquiring new companies and competencies. "For a long time, Körber consisted of dozens of brands operating more or less independently of each other," reports Lars Hornung, Senior Principal Software in the Körber Business Area Pharma. "With their own identity, culture and internal processes." Only since 2020, all the companies positioned themselves on the market under the common Körber brand. "Since then, the proportion of cross-Business Area collaboration in particular has also been increasing Now it is a lot easier to build a consistent joint product offering together," says Lars Hornung.
A special entrepreneurial culture including maximum creative freedom for employees plays a key role at Körber. "This spirit is reflected in the Group's purpose as being the home for entrepreneurs," adds Wiek de Winter. This positioning is now more important than ever for overarching business success and the development of integrated end-to-end solutions along the entire customer value chain: "Companies increasingly expect us to offer a one-stop shop, which means a central point of contact for various challenges."
"It’s fantastic that we made great progress during our constant synchronization of our teams and Business Areas." The Business Areas Supply Chain and Digital play a driving role here, as they operate across industries and connect the various systems. A decisive point also for Lars Hornung: "Anyone who offers end-to-end solutions must exemplify them internally."
For the joint product offering for PAS-X MES and STEPLogic Warehouse, the process design has already been completed, and the first pilot customer project is to start shortly. The joint anticipation of market entry is already high. "Thinking outside the box is not only fun, it pays off," says Wiek de Winter. "Today more than ever, as building and managing ecosystem economies is the topic of today." And Lars Hornung adds, "With our portfolio and our mindset, we at Körber are virtually predestined to play a decisive role in shaping the industrial era of co-creation and E2E solutions."
Insights shows the entire spectrum of Körber, what we do and how we do it: We give our view of exciting developments and trends, as well as innovations and technologies. We also highlight personalities who drive Körber forward every day with their entrepreneurial spirit and new ideas - always to the benefit of our customers. In this section, you’ll find inspiring content concerning our topic Tech.
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