From Fragmented to Digital-First Operations

Client Overview

Our client is a prominent engineering firm that designs, constructs and manages complex infrastructure projects, including buildings, transport networks, road systems, and rail. With a legacy of delivering high-quality projects, it faced the need to transition to a digital-first operating model to remain competitive amidst rapid technological advancements. 

Challenge

Operating in a highly regulated industry, the client struggled with fragmented workflows and inconsistent standards compliance across ISO9001 (Quality Management), ISO14001 (Environmental Management), and ISO45001 (Occupational Health and Safety Management). They required a strategy to integrate digital capabilities and automate compliance with these standards, ensuring seamless alignment between project execution and strategic business objectives.

Solution

Anthosa Consulting engaged with the client to guide them through our Digital Transformation Strategy Accelerator, a specialised program designed to embed digital capabilities swiftly and effectively. This accelerator closed the strategy execution gap by 40%. This is the time taken to develop the strategy and kick-start the execution.

It enabled the rapid deployment of new digital operating models and the implementation of redesigned digitalised services that augment AI for enhanced productivity and experience.

The program was divided into five stages following Anthosa’s Transformation 2.0™ methodology:

1. SHAPE: In consultation with the executives and the board, defined the digital transformation objectives and a clear vision aligned with strategic business goals.
2. DISCOVER: Conducted a detailed assessment of existing services, compliance requirements, and digital capabilities. Collaborated with a selection of multidisciplinary leaders from the client’s team to reshape the vision and objectives. Co-designed the strategy, working with this team to define the initiatives, identify objectives for each initiative, and align on prioritisation. Identified owners from the client’s team for each initiative. Defined a draft digital operating model to experiment and iterate during the jumpstart phase.
3. JUMPSTART: Launched a pilot for the digital operating model in a selected service area, integrating AI and data analytics for real-time compliance monitoring.
4. SCALE: Expanded digital operating model across other service areas, refining the model based on feedback from the jumpstart phase.
5. EMBED: Rolled out the digital operating model across other areas. Created a sustainable, data-driven governance model, ensuring continuous adaptation and innovation.

Our NousFlow.io platform was rolled out to provide a data-driven foundation for driving transformation during the Embed phase. It enabled the client to collaborate with multiple internal and external stakeholders, who worked together to continually innovate and transform services.

Results and Benefits

Through this strategy accelerator, the client achieved:

• Increased Agility: The streamlined digital operating model enabled faster decision-making, with real-time data insights supporting project teams across locations.
• Delivery Efficiency and Outcome Alignment: Using the NousFlow.io platform enabled the efficient delivery of outcomes by realising the strategic outcomes.
• Enhanced Compliance: Automated monitoring and reporting for ISO9001, ISO14001, and ISO45001 standards, reducing the time and resources dedicated to compliance and minimising risk exposure.
• Cost Optimisation: By reducing manual activities and aligning operations with strategic objectives, the client achieved significant savings, enabling them to invest in further innovation.
• Long-Term Sustainability: Embedded capabilities for continuous improvement and adaptability to future digital advancements, creating a foundation for ongoing transformation.

This case demonstrates how Anthosa’s strategic approach helped a traditional engineering firm embrace digital transformation, making technology and innovation core to their operations and future growth.

“It was incredible how Anthosa navigated the complexity across our business units to digitalise processes, standardising the ones that didn’t offer us a unique differentiation and tailoring and optimising processes specific to business units that did provide us with a competitive edge.

They developed a strong vision, aligned our leaders, engaged our teams in the strategy execution, and started small. However, once they found a formula that worked for our business, they scaled rapidly to transform over 500 complex processes within an unbelievably short time frame.”
– Julian, Head of Strategy