DANONE began its digital transformation with Productive24 in 2019. Since then, over a dozen applications have been implemented across the group, supporting finance, sales, production, and quality control. How did the Productive24 platform reshape DANONE’s transformation and redefine IT’s role in the organization?
For CIOs in large enterprises, the digitalization and automation of business processes, particularly the development of modern IT applications, are critical to reducing operational costs and accelerating the rollout of solutions that meet evolving business needs. However, legacy systems – often outdated software – pose significant obstacles to organizational agility, stifling innovation, limiting operational efficiency, and hindering integration with contemporary digital ecosystems. Migrating away from legacy solutions is rarely a straightforward process. It requires careful consideration of the right technologies and strategies to minimize risks, particularly in areas critical to the business. Organizations have several options for modernization: the gradual implementation of hybrid technologies, the creation of dedicated migration teams, or outsourcing application development to specialized software providers. In this landscape, low-code platforms have emerged as a game-changer. These platforms enable rapid application development with minimal IT involvement, significantly easing integration and data migration challenges.
A prime example of successful digitization through low-code technology—implemented since 2019—was showcased at the CIO Trends 2024 conference. The case study was presented by Dariusz Radzimirski, Senior Business Solutions Manager for IT & Data at DANONE, and Paweł Więsek, Head of Business Development at Productive24.
A few years ago, DANONE faced several challenges common to large organizations operating within complex IT environments. These challenges included managing multiple distributed systems, a lack of centralized data, and outdated legacy technologies that failed to meet modern standards for flexibility and security. Many of the company’s core business processes relied on tools such as Lotus Notes, MS Access, and Excel spreadsheets, making data management cumbersome and prone to errors. The dispersion of data across customers, products, and pricing created challenges in synchronization and reliable analysis, leading to increased process execution times and additional costs. Furthermore, technological debt hindered the efficiency of interdepartmental collaboration and made it difficult to integrate seamlessly with critical systems like SAP.
Recognizing these challenges, DANONE launched an extensive digital transformation initiative aimed at centralizing data, optimizing business processes, and implementing modern solutions that align with the demands of today’s market. The company opted for a “Platform as a Service” (PaaS) approach, selecting the Productive24 platform as the core technology. An internal working group was formed to identify and standardize processes across departments and regions, ensuring consistency in data sources. Throughout this analysis, practical applications for the Productive24 platform were identified in each department, validating the decision to adopt this technology.
One of the major challenges for a global organization like DANONE was managing the dispersed data sources spread across multiple countries and departments. The company’s rapidly changing business requirements and the need for more consistent processes led to the formation of an internal working group tasked with identifying key processes operating in various markets. The objective was clear: to create a unified data source that would empower business departments with the tools needed to make informed, accurate decisions. In each of the identified areas, the Productive24 platform proved to be a perfect fit, validating the choice of this technology. Not only did the platform enable data centralization, but it also allowed for process standardization and provided the flexibility to tailor tools to meet local needs.
Productive24 is a powerful low-code platform designed to build sophisticated IT applications for organizations of all sizes. With its suite of built-in tools, Productive24 fully automates the software development and modification processes. This includes the creation of web applications, native mobile apps (iOS, Android), Windows applications, and the automatic generation of REST APIs for all configuration objects. Each business object created on the platform is seamlessly integrated into a multi-level authorization system, ensuring alignment with the company’s organizational structure and providing dedicated tools for handling personal data securely. Additionally, Productive24’s automation extends to version control and configuration management (GitOps), making software development and modifications more efficient and streamlined.
One of the key principles behind DANONE’s new approach to delivering IT business solutions was to move away from the traditional model of working with external IT vendors. Instead of developing isolated solutions through third-party software houses, the company aimed to establish a unified digital ecosystem—an environment capable of supporting its most critical business processes. The implementation of the Productive24 low-code platform began with the migration of existing solutions from IBM Lotus Notes databases. Over time, this ecosystem has evolved significantly. Today, Productive24 powers more than a dozen integrated applications supporting vital functions across DANONE Group companies’ finance, sales, and quality control departments.
During the implementation, special emphasis was placed on security. For a global organization like DANONE, complying with strict internal regulations and group-wide security standards was a top priority. Productive24 fully met these requirements, thanks to its advanced access management system, which ensures precise control over user access and data protection across the entire platform.
The Productive24 platform was seamlessly integrated with DANONE’s central ERP system, SAP—ensuring data consistency and real-time availability across the organization. As the primary source of master data on customers, products, and pricing, SAP plays a critical role in enabling core business processes. By integrating with SAP, Productive24 has empowered DANONE to develop modern, efficient tools that support a wide range of operational areas across the company.
The 12 Productive24 applications implemented within the DANONE Group span a wide range of business areas, including:
An integration module developed to deliver comprehensive Master Data management, while supporting and automating DANONE’s business processes within SAP.
A budget management application that facilitates planning, cost monitoring, and performance analysis to support critical processes within the sales departments.
An information workflow management application that serves as a centralized hub for storing and cataloging organizational knowledge, including improvement initiatives and technical documentation.
Support for quality control processes across various departments, including mapping the packaging testing workflow and managing complaint resolution processes.
An application designed for third-party partners, including public institutions, that streamlines and automates the process of requesting free editions of promotional products.
Trade promotions management – one of the DANONE’s core business processe, entirely handled by Productive24 (the platform is SSoT about DANONE promotions in the CEE region).
One notable example of Productive24’s implementation at DANONE is the development of the Promotool application—a solution that manages the entire promotions process from start to finish. Promotool replaced previously fragmented solutions like Excel spreadsheets and Access databases, consolidating them into a single, centralized data source while standardizing promotional processes across the CEE region. The implementation was carefully planned and executed to allow for rapid testing and scaling. During the Proof of Concept phase, the application was built in just one month. Following the success of the pilot, the solution was rolled out to additional countries. Full implementation across four countries was completed in approximately 4-5 months, with the system running in production throughout the entire process.
The implementation of Productive24 at DANONE has delivered tangible results, particularly in data management consistency, security, business process automation, and the rapid delivery of applications. The platform’s flexibility enabled quick adaptation to evolving business needs, while transferring business expertise to the vendor significantly reduced costs and shortened project timelines by minimizing the need for additional IT resources. A key aspect of the implementation was the enhancement of data security—especially critical given that one of the solutions shared with thousands of external partners. This focus on security was of paramount importance. The partnership with Productive24, built on mutual understanding and a deep knowledge of the FMCG sector, played a crucial role in the successful project delivery and optimization of DANONE’s operating costs.Transforming IT’s role within the organization
The implementation of Productive24 has not only improved the efficiency of business processes but also transformed the role of the IT department at DANONE. Traditionally viewed as a technical support unit responsible for system development and maintenance, IT’s role has evolved. Through the implementation of Productive24-based projects, the IT department has become a strategic business partner, actively collaborating in the creation and deployment of innovative systems that support the company’s key business processes.
The implementation of Productive24 within the DANONE group is a strong testament to the fact that the right low-code technology is far more than just a tool for building simple applications—low-code can be a pivotal asset in the digital transformation journey. With Productive24, DANONE has not only streamlined its processes but also gained a robust platform for developing complex, scalable IT systems. The platform’s key advantages—rapid application deployment, flexibility, data centralization, and process automation—make it a critical component of IT strategies for organizations seeking to stay competitive.
What sets Productive24 apart is its data-centric approach, which provides a distinct advantage over traditional, process-centric low-code platforms. By prioritizing data as a central element of enterprise systems, Productive24 facilitates data organization and centralization, laying the groundwork for advanced analytics and integration with AI-based solutions like RAG models. This approach not only simplifies data management but also enables organizations like DANONE to implement innovative AI-driven solutions that adapt to evolving market demands and support sustainable business growth.
The decision to implement a low-code platform at DANONE marked a significant step toward modernizing data and process management. Through collaboration with Productive24, the company successfully rolled out a comprehensive project that greatly enhanced the efficiency of key organizational areas. Data centralization, process automation, and tool flexibility are just a few of the benefits that have driven new levels of operational performance. This transformation not only addresses DANONE’s current needs but also provides a strong foundation for future growth and the scaling of solutions.
If you’d like to learn more about the capabilities of the Productive24 platform, feel free to contact us and discover how we support organizations in FMCG and other industries!
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