Stark improved project management with a tailored solution, focusing on process consistency, transparency, and efficiency in collaboration with Solu Digital.
Stark Suomi Oy is Finland’s leading supplier of building materials, serving customers nationwide with a comprehensive product and service offering. The company’s customer base consists of construction professionals and private customers who value high-quality products and services.
With over 150 years of experience, Stark Suomi employs approximately 1,000 people across Finland in a nationwide network of 27 stores, distribution centers, and an online store. Stark’s goal is to be a fair and reliable partner that supports its customers’ needs in various stages of construction and renovation with passion and uncompromising professional pride.
More transparent and consistent project management
Stark had a clear goal to improve project management and ensure process consistency. The company aimed to eliminate manual work steps and focus on what was essential – team management and strategic project management.
“Our goal was to develop collaboration between different functions and projects by increasing transparency in project management,” says Camilla Saari, Stark’s Senior Business Development Analyst.
Camilla has played a key role in implementing the solution. She was responsible for developing a project tool that met Stark’s needs while working in the organization’s PMO team before her current job responsibilities.
“We put the foundations of our project management model in order, meaning we thought about the project management processes and built framework structures for them, starting from meeting practices. This project management tool was one big thing that supported all of that.”
Camilla’s expertise was crucial when Stark defined its needs and cooperation model with Solu Digital. She has been actively involved in various phases of the project, ensuring that the solution meets Stark’s expectations and that project managers receive the necessary support in implementing the tool.
Project management system tailored to Stark’s processes
Solu Digital offered Stark the opportunity to build a project management solution tailored to Stark’s business processes.
”We liked that Solu offered the opportunity to build a system around our project management processes instead of having to modify the processes according to a ready-made package.”
Camilla Saari
Senior Business Development Analyst, Stark Suomi Oy
The system was built by combining various Microsoft tools, such as Microsoft Project for the Web, Teams, SharePoint, and Power BI reporting.
Stark utilizes Microsoft Teams in its daily work, and the project tool is accessed both through Teams and via a browser. The flexible approach to using the tool ensures that users can choose the most suitable environment for project management and communication. Integrating the tool into Teams has been a crucial part of Stark’s strategy for utilizing the tool.
“Because we wanted to ensure the smoothest possible implementation of the project tool, we decided to utilize platforms that employees were already familiar with. When the solution is built on a familiar environment, it lowers the learning curve and supports change management much better than introducing a completely separate tool,” Camilla says.
Practical benefits and strategic impacts of the project tool
The project tool has brought Stark significant benefits in project management. Specifically, the tool allows project managers to focus on team management and strategic planning, while providing clear structures for the necessary documentation. Additionally, the tool facilitates the harmonization of project management processes, making project management more efficient and transparent.
“The tool guides and supports project managers well in their project management, right from the project planning and definition phase to the closing phase and measuring results. The built solution consolidates all project-related information – including plans in terms of schedule and resources, task lists, status updates, and budget monitoring – into a single system. System-driven project information collection and maintenance ensures uniform operating methods in project management.”
In addition to this, the solution not only gathers information together, but also helps project managers to visualize the whole more clearly.
”The tool enables a structure that makes things concrete for the project manager and clarifies the whole, allowing their own idea of the project to become clearer at the same time.”
Camilla Saari
Senior Business Development Analyst, Stark Suomi Oy
Strategically the tool has made it easier to manage Stark’s development project portfolio and prioritize projects for development.
The best aspects of the collaboration
Camilla describes the collaboration with Solu Digital as smooth and flexible: “Solu has supported us well in customizing the solutions and shared their expertise. We feel that we get all the possible and necessary support so that we can function effectively as the main users of the system.”
She also emphasizes Solu Digital’s clear and understandable communication style, which has made the collaboration easier.
“It’s not a given with every software vendor that you can understand and speak common language, as it can get very technical at times,” Camilla explains.
During the collaboration, Solu Digital’s ability to understand Stark’s business needs and spar with them on solutions has also been highlighted. Camilla states that the partnership has been genuinely conversational and flexible.
Stark has been pleased with the flexibility and expertise offered by Solu Digital.
”I would recommend Solu Digital to others because of their flexibility and solution-focused approach. The way we work together has been delightful.”
Camilla Saari
Senior Business Development Analyst, Stark Suomi Oy
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