TNT APAC Application Rationalism Team — It's a template for success.

For FedEx, integration starts with an evaluation of systems, applications, and infrastructure. Team members leverage processes from both FedEx and the new business unit to increase efficiency and foster a culture of continuous improvement.

With the acquisition of TNT, FedEx faced a potentially long integration period for a couple of reasons:

- Each country had its own applications that often served similar purposes.
- Much of the software lacked the robust tools, access, and processing to ensure current, accurate data.
- Outdated, end-of-line hardware meant software maintenance and support was difficult on several mission-critical applications.

A cyber attack in 2017 highlighted the risks of the complex and outdated application landscape at TNT. During the crisis-recovery process, the TNT APAC Application Rationalism Team realized that instead of recovering the old application systems, they could prepare for the future state after full FedEx integration using the principles of Quality Driven Management (QDM).

A simple framework for complex problems

Using the ABLE process, the team developed a simple, standardized approach and applied it to an initial pilot in Malaysia. They eventually used the same approach to integrate the TNT and FedEx application systems throughout the APAC region.

ASSESS: A VOC translation chart determined how to proceed and which measurements could be used to track their progress. An initial application inventory revealed how many applications were currently in use.

BUILD: A fishbone diagram and the Five Whys revealed that a lack of communication led to complex, duplicated application systems.

For the Malaysia pilot, the team created a template used to evaluate each application. A comprehensive data collection plan captured how each application was being used and by whom, when each application was developed, who had ownership, and whether FedEx already had an application that could accomplish the same task.

LAUNCH: Once they had a template, the team quickly applied the same methods in three simple steps for the 12 other countries in the APAC region:

Step 1: Identify the key stakeholders. First, the team met with the operations director to identify the business owners for each application.

Step 2: Gather business intelligence. Gathering all the local and regional stakeholders, the team went through the template and discussed each application.

Step 3: Collect in-depth IT information. During this step, local IT teams aligned the country's plans for their applications with each regional IT team's plan.

EVALUATE: As they retire applications across the APAC region, they have already seen significant cost savings and plan to continue evaluating the remaining applications until full integration is achieved.

QAT Member Inspired by Quality Driven Management

During this project, many members of the Quality Action Team realized the value of QDM — and some became QDM certified. Each team member came to appreciate a different piece of the toolkit.

"QDM gives you a framework. It's a way to clarify your objectives, and it gives you tools to work through the process. Just remember: You don't have to use all the tools, but you need to be comfortable finding one that meets your need."
Sau-Pheng Cheong, Managing Director, IT, FedEx Express