MASkargo: Integrated Information Management Platform Solutions

Accenture helped MASkargo achieve high performance through an integrated information management platform.

The platform is designed to:

• Deliver better customer experience.
• Improve freight handling.
• Streamline reporting and enhance data transparency.

MASkargo is the air freight unit of national carrier Malaysia Airlines (MAS) and is one of the company's main profit centers. From its hub at the leading-edge Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA), MASkargo services more than 80 international destinations. MASkargo's performance has improved significantly in recent years. Annual revenues are soon expected to pass the 3 billion ringgit (US$840 million) mark, and profitability is increasing, as well.

"Our integrated, business-driven enterprise data warehouse is a key factor in our efforts to drive improved performance from our entire organization, and dramatically enhance our customer experience."—Mohd Yunus Idris, general manager, business development and sales, MASkargo

MASkargo understood that increasing competition in the global airfreight market made it vital to hone operations and dramatically enhance customer experience. Supply chain best practice would be to give customers secure access to track their shipments at every stage of the journey. This type of access would require an entirely new information management architecture. Information and data would need to flow seamlessly from the booking of cargo to final delivery.

MASkargo's vision of an integrated enterprise data warehouse promised to improve internal efficiencies and deliver greater value to its customers. The new system, i-kargo, would need to automate a vast collection of manual processes and bring together data from numerous divisions.

Our goal was to provide a single platform—linking multiple operations systems—to deliver an integrated and consistent view of information. This information ranged across sales—including bookings, customer information and distribution—to operations and finance.

Our approach consisted of three major releases:

• Release One enabled the delivery of consistent and accurate data to the MASkargo network revenue management solution on all shipments.
  
  
• Release Two transformed the reporting and data analysis capabilities of the sales and operations groups, doing away with more than 200 manual reporting processes. Online reports and historical data were made available through the intranet for the first time.
  
  
• Release Three focused on finance. Accenture enhanced finance’s ability to provide accurate management reports on a more timely basis.

Accenture created a joint team structure with MASkargo to drive the project, gaining support from key stakeholders within the organization to help ensure a smooth transition and effective change management. Accenture also conducted classroom training and created reference materials for MASkargo's ongoing use.

Accenture helped MASkargo move from a disconnected system full of manual processes to an integrated, business-driven enterprise data warehouse. User-defined reports with customized content and formats now track cargo from booking to delivery.

Before i-kargo, the operations staff generated a large number of manual reports, a procedure that was time consuming and prone to errors. Now, automated reporting is used daily to track performance, identify areas of improvement and detect irregularities in day-to-day operations. For the first time, operations can pinpoint bottlenecks throughout the entire cargo lifecycle.

Accenture has also helped MASkargo to transform the way financial reports are generated. These reports were produced manually, then distributed as paper printouts. With i-kargo, reports are now distributed electronically and the integrity of information is strictly enforced.

The new system delivers a single source of data, distributing it with full transparency. Operations, sales and finance users have endorsed this system as the single source of truth for all their work. Customers receive better service and staff can shift focus from compiling reports to using automated analysis in pursuit of high performance.

"Working with Accenture has assisted MASkargo in its journey to achieve both short- and long-term goals by using information management as a strategic enabler aimed at delivering high business performance sustainably."—Raymond Kong, senior manager, i-kargo Project Management Office

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