CASE STUDY
Coming from a Digital Transformation and ERP implementation background, I knew the first priority wasn’ t technology, but process. Vendors often talk about“ best practice”, but in many cases that’ s simply a way of masking missing functionality. We wanted technology that supported our business rather than forcing us to change it.
Back in 2012, we implemented one of our first cloud sourcing and supply chain platforms, then IBM Emptoris, now SAP Ariba. That project established a blueprint that shaped everything that followed. Operating across 16 African countries meant dealing with different regulations, varying levels of connectivity and unique business processes. Rather than optimise for product features, we focused on process compliance, simplicity and ease of adoption. With high staff turnover in many markets, the platform had to be intuitive and easy to train.
MTN had also grown through acquisitions, leaving us with multiple back-office systems. Replacing every ERP wasn’ t practical, so we focused on creating a single operating model that could sit across them.
Even before Oracle Fusion Cloud, we already operated as a global sourcing and supply chain organisation. Around 2018 and 2019, when we evaluated Oracle, we were clear that if the functionality didn’ t meet our requirements, we wouldn’ t compromise.
Oracle’ s response impressed us. Rather than insisting we adapt our processes, they invited us to their headquarters to explain our endto-end business operations. Instead of trying to build everything, we focused on the critical functionality, and Oracle delivered it.
One of our guiding principles was to minimise customisation. We followed a group-led, locally compliant model. The global blueprint remained consistent while local regulatory requirements were accommodated where necessary. Once agreed, every market followed the same standard.
Once that foundation was in place, how did you continue evolving the platform to improve visibility, supplier collaboration and business outcomes across the organisation?
With Oracle Cloud licences already in place, we expanded beyond sourcing by implementing Oracle Transportation Management. It was one of our first cloud deployments in 2019 and delivered immediate value by embedding local trade compliance across multiple countries.
We then rolled out sourcing, supplier and contract management, followed by demand forecasting. Even before migrating our core ERP, we were already building an ecosystem of cloud applications around it.
The next challenge was analytics. Standard reporting wasn’ t giving us the visibility we needed, so we invested heavily in Oracle Analytics Cloud. As our analytics matured, we realised we were continually building custom business intelligence, which led us to implement what is now the Fusion AI Data Intelligence Platform( FAIDP). Today, it underpins our finance, procurement and supply chain decision-making.
What makes our journey different is that we never approached it as an African organisation trying to replicate someone else’ s model. We understood our own operational realities and designed accordingly.
I often ask people what MTN actually manufactures. The answer is airtime and data. We don’ t manufacture physical products, so our business depends entirely on global suppliers across China, Europe, the United States and elsewhere. That makes trade management one of our most critical capabilities, particularly given the complexity of customs regulations and duty structures across Africa.
To manage that complexity, we created a single data foundation and invited our largest suppliers into what became our control tower. The more visibility suppliers shared, the more efficiently we could manage lead times, compliance and documentation. Procurement teams naturally directed more business towards suppliers that consistently performed well, creating a virtuous cycle of transparency and operational improvement.
Eventually, that platform evolved into what we call the Nerve Centre, which formed the basis of our Oracle Customer Excellence Award submission. Rather than focusing on technology, we demonstrated measurable business outcomes, including improved efficiency, faster execution, stronger compliance and better data quality.
We also made a conscious decision to build internal capability. While we continue to use Oracle Consulting Services for specialised configuration work, our own teams lead training and adoption because local trainers understand the realities of each market and build far www. intelligentcio. com
INTELLIGENT CIO AFRICA
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