Migros Industrie
How the biggest detail business company in Switzerland in the Migros Industrie reduced the hypercare phases immensely by a pinpoint quality assurance, optimized test and defect processes, improved the communication between test experts and created maximum transparency through real-time reporting during an ongoing S/4 HANA Greenfield implementation together with msg Test & Quality Management.
Customer
The Migros group is the biggest detail business company of Switzerland with its headquarter located in Zürich. The alliance consisting of ten regional cooperatives with 2.3m members, 50 subsidiaries and foundations generated an annual turnover of approximately 30.1bn CHF in 2022. Nearly 97,700 people are employed at the company. Migros Industry – the “factory” behind Migros – produces 77% of its sold goods itself at 201 production sites. The 20,000 food and non-food products are being sold in 664 supermarkets, 255 specialist retailers and 227 restaurants and generated a revenue of 5.8bn CHF in 2022.
Challenges
For the newly developed industry business process box ONE Smart Solution, Migros intends to migrate more than 1000 processes from SAP R/3 to S/4HANA during continuing operation. 20 manufacturing companies and up to 600 test experts in eleven complex SAP systems are involved. In order to ensure a frictionless operation of the manufacturing companies after the go live, Migros rebuilt the business unit IT Migros Industrie.
The systems of the first pilot operation have already been migrated. For the further migration process, the project ONE ascertained rooms for improvement in test efficiency, test management and equipment with test tools. By the migration process, quality assurance of the project ONE was expected to be elevated to a higher level. Hence, Migros assigned a wide range of tasks to msg:
In close coordination with Migros Test Management, msg was supposed to optimize the test and test management processes as quickly as possible. Migros intended to display and direct the test management with one single tool. Furthermore, Migros wished for the introduction of test automation to reduce the high manual effort of executing regression tests. The sum of those measures should establish the business unit IT Migros Industrie as innovation enabler within Migros Industrie.
Solution
msg Test & Quality offers a wide portfolio of testing services. In collaboration with the teams from the four services Test Consulting, Test Management, Test Automation and Test Services, they hit the ground running during the ongoing migration project.
According to the well-proven approach of msg Test & Quality Management “rethink – transform – manage”, Test Consulting analyzed the existing test processes and test concepts. Based on the requirements of the project ONE, Test Management evaluated a choice of test tools using the msg test tool benchmark. In the meantime, the Test Automation team drafted the test automation strategy.
As a second step, Test Consulting derived a recommended course of action to optimize existing test and test management processes by using msg best practices. In close coordination with Migros, the consultants prioritized and planned their implementation. Additionally, specialists from Test Management created a partially automated test and defect reporting. Simultaneously, they planned, monitored and directed the test activities of all test levels. Test Automation carried out a proof of concept including a ROI Analysis. Testing Services staffed the nearshore headquarter test management office (TMO) with German-speaking msg experts. They took care of the defect management and supported Migros’ test management at administrative tasks.
In close coordination with Migros, Test Management implemented the previously planned recommended courses of action of Test Consulting. Simultaneously, the msg experts supported project ONE at introduction and customizing of the test management tool OpenText ALM Octane. They designed, created and conducted remote training for 600 test experts, supported by TMO. In order to solve unsettled questions concerning ALM Octane, consultation hours have been conducted by consultants of Test Management. Test Automation team realized its concept in a pilot project using agile methods.
Test Automation introduced test automation in multiple specialized departments. Test data will be created automatedly in the future, regression test cases will be automated, maintained and executed automatedly. Test Consulting created a specific ONE test guideline as well as a new, future-proof test concept. Because of all that, Project ONE is well-positioned in the future.
Facts & Figures
About 13,000 test cases executed manually
More than 600 testers in five industry sectors, 12 departments, 201 manufacturing sites
Approximately 2,500 requirements fulfilled
Benefit
msg Test & Quality Management was able to elevate the quality assurance in the Migros project ONE Smart Solution successfully to a new level and proved to be a real enabler for the transformation process. Migros benefits from the following achievements:
Quality increase
Migros has improved and expanded its entire software quality assurance in ONE. Through an optimized test concept and the introduction of quality gates, test efficiency improved drastically. Training of test specialists and the improved cooperation of the teams have a positive impact on the test success as well. Test specialists were able to increase their flaw detection rate more than threefold. The Migros project ONE could lower the duration of hypercare phases after release delivery from two weeks at the start to 24 hours at the end.
Higher transparency and efficiency
The newly introduced test management tool OpenText ALM Octane is being actively used by more than a hundred employees. The test, defect and requirement administration, test planning as well as manual and automated test are executed now as a standardized process in a much more efficient way. Due to real-time reporting, the current software quality level is now clearly evident at any time.
Optimized test and defect processes
Test coverage for new functions has been raised by more than 13%. Defect resolution times have been reduced by 38%.
Relief
Thus far, 150 test cases from eight subprojects have been automated and relieved the test specialists noticeably. Automation of 200 further test cases is in progress.
Cost efficiency
Costs of supporting activities in test management have been reduced by 60% through outsourcing to msg-Nearshoring.
Innovation leadership
ONE test and test management processes are transferred profitably to other sectors of Migros. Test management of the business unit IT Migros Industrie gains importance Migros-wide.
Customer/Sector
Migros/detail business, food industry
Initial situation
- Continuous S/4 HANA Greenfield implementation of more than 1,000 company processes for all 201 manufacturing sites from eleven SAP R/3 systems to S/4HANA within the scope of newly developed Migros Industrie business process box ONE Smart Solution
- Elevated efficiency and quality of the test management processes to the new requirement level of Migros’ project ONE
Task
- More efficient design of the test and test management processes as well as of the reporting
- More transparent display of the software quality status
- Increased software quality
- Application of one universal test management software
- Upgrading of testing skills of test specialists
- Introduction and expansion of test automation
Solution (since 2020 to date)
msg consultants optimized the existing test, test management and error management processes and created a new future-proof ONE test concept. Additionally, they planned, directed, monitored and reported all test activities of all test levels as well as defects. Test Automation has been established in multiple departments. A German-speaking team in the nearshore test management office supported the MIGROS test management. OpenText ALM Octane became the test management standard. The testing and Octane skills of the test specialists have been extended by remote training.
Benefits
- Successful increase in quality with sustainable shortening of hypercare phases
- Higher transparency by real-time overview over the current quality standard of the software
- Optimized test and defect processes with a 13% higher test coverage and 38% lower defect resolution times
- Noticeable relief of test experts through test automation in 8 subprojects
- 60% cost reduction for administrative tasks in test management through outsourcing to msg nearshoring
- Innovation enabler through transferring of ONE test and test management processes to other Migros departments