Proximus Group uses IBM Targetprocess to transparently align work to strategy
To remain a leader in the continuously evolving telecom industry, Proximus Group—a provider of digital services, communication and ICT solutions in the Benelux region—needed to change its operating model to function like a leaner, digital-native organization.
Changing the way the DevOps teams worked was fundamental to this shift. “We used a traditional waterfall methodology,” says Annelies Geusens, Strategy Manager in the Project Management Office at Proximus. “We had a few islands of teams using Agile methodology. But the time came when we needed a bigger Agile framework.”
To address this challenge, Proximus began a large-scale transition to Agile in 2020. At the time, the teams used a combination of existing tools and spreadsheets for project and portfolio management. However, they soon realized that the tools they were using would not support their move to a scaled Agile framework.
“We were struggling with our toolset,” Geusens says. “We had Planview, combined with a 20-year-old in-house-developed tool and a lot of Excel files. People were doing all their work at their own side, and it was very difficult to align all those different Excel files. There were always data quality issues. It took a lot of manual effort, which was time-consuming and inefficient.”
Given the shortcomings of their existing toolset, the Proximus team began looking for a better portfolio management product. “We were searching for a tool that could give us an end-to-end view of our strategy, enable the breakdown of work into user stories, and support our transition to a scaled Agile framework,” Geusens says.
It was during this time that the Proximus team discovered IBM® Targetprocess (link resides outside of ibm.com), which organizations use to connect teams, products, and portfolios to business objectives and scale Agile across the business. An IBM Targetprocess demo, alongside an evaluation of different tools on the market, convinced the team that IBM Targetprocess was the best option.
According to Geusens, “It was the visualization and the flexibility that stood out. It’s so intuitive. We didn’t have that same feeling about the other tools we evaluated.”
Proximus launched IBM Targetprocess and started the transition to the company’s new operating model in January 2022.
Geusens explains that the implementation of IBM Targetprocess came at the perfect time—as Proximus was pushing to scale Agile inside the company—offering teams a new start for portfolio management. The company has since onboarded more than 3,000 users, and the teams have been pleased with the solution’s ease of use and other benefits.
“With Targetprocess, the end-to-end view is completely transparent. You know how each user story contributes to strategic priorities. And in the other direction, for each strategic priority, you have the full view of all the user stories that are going on. You can see the progress, you can document dependencies, and you can see where the roadblocks are,” Geusens says.
Now, project managers have a better view of work, according to Geusens. Increased visibility informs the management team and helps them make faster decisions. This heightened perspective was nearly impossible in the past, as it would require consulting around 10 different Excel files and 10 Jira issues from different teams, and then pulling in information from Planview. “We had to collect a lot of information from different tools and combine it. And it was very difficult. But with Targetprocess, the data is in one place and getting information is almost automatic,” she says.
With everyone in the company’s DevOps practice using IBM Targetprocess, the teams work harmoniously together in pursuit of the most important Proximus initiatives. And that is helping the company scale Agile across the organization. “Instead of having all these different, organically grown Agile processes that were difficult to align, we have been able to implement a uniform way of working,” Geusens says.
In the beginning of its Agile journey, Proximus implemented Jira for issue tracking and Agile project management, and many of the early Agile teams adopted the tool. In the short term, the company plans to integrate Jira with IBM Targetprocess so that teams can use both tools to consolidate and track all information in one place. But Geusens anticipates that, eventually, everyone will move entirely to IBM Targetprocess.
“The structure from the strategy up until the features will be managed in Targetprocess,” she says. “The lowest level of the user stories can be done in Jira, and we will make a link between the two. But our ambition is that after three or four quarters, once the teams see all the possibilities, they will move entirely to Targetprocess.”
For Proximus, the Agile transformation continues, and the rollout of IBM Targetprocess is ongoing. Geusens mentions that feedback has been very positive. “It’s amazing,” she says. “Implementing a new tool requires change, and change is always hard. But people are very enthusiastic about using Targetprocess. We have never had that response for a tool before.”
Proximus (link resides outside of ibm.com) offers a wide variety of digital services and communications solutions, including mobile, website, internet, TV, and landline services for personal and business customers.
Headquartered in Brussels, Proximus Group operates in the Belgian and international markets, employing over 10,000 people.
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