Overview
Technology Strategy and Implementation Support
Oliver Wyman CAVOK partners with clients from digital and IT strategy to selection, implementation, and optimization of MRO, flight ops, content, and records management technology solutions & systems that drive improved operations and innovation.
Transformation starts with an understanding of the business vision and goals to define the right digital and IT strategy. Whether the focus is on supporting business growth and diversification, increasing efficiency, demonstrating compliance, or others, there are questions such as: what is the right technology fit and function? how will the new solution align with existing and future needs and platforms? how will mobility, machine learning, and artificial intelligence (AI) be leveraged? There is no one simple answer. Today’s systems must be modular and flexible with enough functionality to support operational changes, along with ample development and innovation to meet industry trends. Businesses must maximize their use of technology; it is an essential enabler for safety and cost-sensitive businesses.
Our collaborative approach in building strong client buy-in and ownership has achieved not only expected immediate benefits but longer-term sustainability. We utilize our extensive toolset to assist with program management and assurance, organizational change management, systems integration, and data migration. In addition, working with our digital team at Oliver Wyman we can assist with buy vs. build decisions, the application of next-generation analytics, data science, and architecture design. Working with many clients across the industries we serve: airlines, aviation and aerospace manufacturers, rail, rotor, UAS / UAV (unmanned aircraft systems / unmanned aerial vehicles), and maritime, allows us to leverage best practices and provide new ideas and approaches.
Our Oliver Wyman CAVOK team members have worked in positions from the executive level to the shop floor in maintenance, repair and overhaul, engineering, supply chain, safety, flight and ground operations, and information technology. This provides our clients with unique expertise to help achieve accelerated impactful, practical, and sustainable business goals through IT solutions.
I don’t believe that we would have been able to make good process and technology choices for the future, create a strategy and cohesive plan, truly understand tradeoffs in our decisions, or have gotten the traction and direction to be where we are today, if not for the work this team did.Director – Technology & Business Strategy , Major US airline
Case Studies
A leading network airline with domestic and international operations sought to harmonize and upgrade its MRO IT systems for its mainline and regional fleets. The goals were to (1) source evaluate and select a new integrated system, (2) develop and implement optimal industry-standard business processes for regional and international operations, and (3) implement the new system with strong governance to drive sustainability and improvements.
Oliver Wyman CAVOK leveraged its proven and collaborative approach and tools to (1) manage the RFP process from requirements to developing the business case and supporting contract negotiations, (2) define the solution from future processes and system architecture, program and organizational change management, to data migration, cleansing, and implementation strategy, (3) execute the solution from data migration, to testing, and cut-over planning, and (4) Go-Live and sustain from KPIs and metrics for the new solution to governance and documenting lessons learned.
The results included: (1) a 20% reduction from the initial bids in the total cost of the solution, including vendor support, (2) optimized and harmonized processes supported by technology automation, (3) consolidated and aligned organizational structure, and (4) a governance process driving continuous improvement and influential relationship with the vendor for product innovation.
The implementation of optimized processes, consolidated organizational structure, and analytics improved productivity providing EBIT IMPROVEMENT of $10M-$20M. In addition, the following was achieved: (1) consolidated inventory planning and deployment, (2) improved production planning and control, and (3) reduced delays, cancellations, and AOG events.
A large North American commercial airline faced performance challenges due to its outdated and highly manual approach to technical content management. Oliver Wyman/Oliver Wyman CAVOK was engaged to support the design of a modern centralized content management solution to manage Maintenance Programs, Engineering Documents, Manuals, and Work Instructions in a format that could be utilized across systems for analytics and compliance reporting.
We captured business and functional requirements, developed the business case, and led the vendor evaluation and contract negotiations to identify the optimal content management solutions. To obtain buy-in and ownership, we implemented an organizational change management plan and established working groups across impacted business groups, IT, and leadership, to define, build, and implement the end state processes. The data migration strategy included current state assessment, data quality reviews, data retention, and decommission options.
The results included a defined state-of-the-art end-state content management solution and a two-year implementation plan to support Go-Live.
The content management solution rationalized business-critical processes by 50% and unlocked operational efficiency gains of ~$70M over 10 years.
Offerings
IT Strategy Assessment
In the highly competitive and safety-sensitive industries we serve, having a clear, holistic IT strategy that can support the longer-term business goals is critical. Without it, organizations can find themselves utilizing existing technologies that hinder progress or implementing siloed solutions that are both costly and ineffective. We perform an objective IT evaluation applying our industry experience to provide recommendations that are both practical and impactful.
- Strategy and competitive review
- Functional and technology assessment
- Strategic options evaluation
- Roadmap development
Buy vs. Build
There are times when the decision to buy a solution, isn’t very straight forward, especially when differentiating capabilities from competitors is important. In addition to our seven-step methodology, we partner with our Oliver Wyman Digital team, to drive to the right decision.
1. Defining levers of buy vs build
2. Evaluating the drivers of each lever
3. Understanding business and technical requirements
4. Validating, prioritizing, and weighting drivers and requirements
5. Identifying shortlist of appropriate vendors
6. Preforming gap/fit analysis
7. Providing recommendation based on analysis
Oliver Wyman Insights: Buy vs. Build
https://www.oliverwyman.com/our-expertise/insights/2017/mar/buy-vs-build.html
Solution Selection
When a decision is made to buy, we assist our clients in choosing the right solution to fit their operations. Our system-agnostic approach helps define business requirements that leverage the best of what technology has to offer along with proven business processes to maximize efficiency.
- Requirements definition, including Request for Proposal (RFP) development
- System evaluation, including vendor demonstration management
- System selection, including business case development and negotiation/contract support
- Organizational change management, including vision statement and communications
- Program management, including program structure, tools and dashboards
Implementation and Sustainment
Once a solution is chosen, our proven collaborative approach and suite of differentiated tools & processes deliver impact that is both practical and sustainable.
- Solution definition, including process documentation, system architecture analysis, data migration, cleansing, and implementation strategy
- Solution execution, including cutover plan, data migration, testing, gap, and integration support
- Go-Live/sustainment, including cut-over, solution KPIs and metrics, solution refinement roadmap
- Organizational change management, including change readiness and stakeholder assessments, communication and network implementation, training and organizational alignment
- Program management, including program structure, tools and dashboards, governance, business case refinement, updated manuals and regulatory acceptance, documented lessons learned
Data Science and Engineering
Partnering with our Oliver Wyman Digital team, we help clients apply next-generation analytics and data science to transform into a data-driven organization.
Our latest expertise and thinking on data and analytics:
https://www.oliverwyman.com/our-expertise/capabilities/digital/data-science-and-engineering.html
System Focus Areas
Oliver Wyman CAVOK has significant depth and experience across all aspects of asset management. We understand the challenges companies face delivering industry-leading operational performance with cost-effectiveness while maintaining regulatory compliance.
Maintenance Repair Overhaul – MRO
Oliver Wyman CAVOK has worked extensively across the Maintenance Repair and Overhaul (MRO) industry with airlines and suppliers. We are familiar with key elements of a maintenance and engineering system for high-value assets, such as but not limited to airframe, engines, and components: configuration management, maintenance programs, scheduling and planning, maintenance execution, technical records, and material/supply chain management. Some examples of the systems we are familiar with are AMOS, Maintenix, RAMCO, Rusada, SCEPTRE, TRAX, Ultramain, etc.
Flight Operations
Oliver Wyman CAVOK has depth and experience working with flight operational support functions and systems, including fuel dashboards, Weather and NOTAMs, navigational charts, crewing and rostering, flight planning and dispatch, operational management and planning, performance data analysis, and weight and balance. Some examples of systems we are familiar with are ARINCDirect FOS, Jeppesen, NAVBLUE, Sabre, SkyPlan, etc.
Safety, Security & Quality
Delivering a safe, secure, and compliant operation is key to any company. The importance of integrated systems reducing operational risk is something we take very seriously. Oliver Wyman CAVOK understands the regulations across Europe and the Americas and we have successfully supported most US airline mergers since 2008 to obtain a Single Operating Certificate (SOC).
Document and Content Management
Oliver Wyman CAVOK has worked with a significant number of clients implementing document and content management systems. We understand the evolving technology, the suppliers, and the importance of delivering timely, easily accessible documentation, in multiple formats, to maintain production efficiency and regulatory compliance. We work across the entire lifecycle: content ingestion, analysis, creation, publishing / releasing, and delivery. Some examples of systems we are familiar with are: Adobe FrameMaker, Aerosoft Systems DigiDoc, Airbus Adoc/AirNav/JobCard, Bluestream Xdoc, Boeing Toolbox, Boeing Spectrum, Comply365, Flatirons CORENA, IDMR InForm, Oxygen XML Editor, PTC Arbortext Suite, etc.
Records Management
Within the safety-sensitive industries, we serve, the ability to quickly provide accurate records for key assets is critical. Robust records management provides regulatory compliance traceability, reduces costs associated with performing unnecessary modifications due to the inability to locate records, and provides the data necessary for operational improvements. We at Oliver Wyman CAVOK are familiar with both these requirements and the systems available to the industry. Some examples of systems we are familiar with are Boeing Stream, FLYdocs, GE AirVault.
Other Focus Areas
At Oliver Wyman CAVOK we have built a vast catalog of intellectual capital from the many years of collaborating with software providers and airline, aviation and aerospace manufacturers, rail, and rotor clients on software transformations.
In addition to the focus areas mentioned, we are familiar with the requirements and solutions that assist with inventory planning and allocation, base maintenance planning, production control, including electronic task cards and logbooks.