Hogg Robinson Group Automates Supply Chain Workflow using SEQUENCE

Paul Saggar, Director Technology Product Development at Hogg Robinson Group:
"Hogg Robinson Group is an international corporate travel services provider. The corporate travel industry is complex. Globally there are thousands of suppliers and vendors, each with an array of different systems and platforms – legacy-based and web-enabled. It’s also significantly influenced by external factors such as technology progression or economic conditions.
For this reason flexibility is the key. Our worldwide network extends to over 100 countries and we have a diverse portfolio of clients on a global basis.

We have to be flexible enough to meet differing requirements and work with clients’ preferred suppliers and systems - whatever they may be, and across an exceptionally fragmented supply chain. We’re also expected to have the full picture worldwide and aggregate all inventory and content, from web-only air fares through to their own negotiated rates, add in additional detail such as security or risk information and then apply validation rules. That’s why SOA is essential for our business.

We considered buying something off-the-shelf that did everything we wanted but quickly realised that there was nothing suitable available, so instead decided to embark on the next step - a self build programme.
This threw up another issue: which technology would enable us to build the most flexible solution?
It needed to be scaleable and manageable on a global basis, handle large amounts of data and be capable of easily integrating automated processes and human workflow seamlessly.

Our scenario and case study modelling highlighted Microsoft’s BizTalk as the most suitable choice and we were able to build the HRG Universal Super Platform, or USP as we like to call it.
BizTalk’s total cost of ownership was lower than most of the other technologies we considered and, as it enabled us to incorporate business process orchestration with rules management and implementation, it was the most complete solution available.

As part of our Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) strategy we are using PNMsoft’s Sequence product, which is flexible and works well with BizTalk, we also integrated human and automated workflows. We started with the approval process for corporate travel itineraries and are now extending this into other areas of the supply chain.

We are proud of our USP. It is a truly integrated platform, able to handle millions of transactions, that allows us to replace multiple disparate systems worldwide. It can be broken down into plug and play blocks, each of which can work independently or in harmony. Our super platform has increased our speed to market, driven efficiencies and greatly enhanced our customer service. Most importantly we have a solution that meets our business and technical requirements and provides competitive advantage both now and into the future."

International corporate travel services company, Hogg Robinson Group (HRG), has been awarded the coveted Accommodation and Technology Innovation Awards for 2009. The award was received for HRG’s world class UK Hotel Service and HRG Universal Super Platform™, which is based on the SEQUENCE platform and Microsoft BizTalk Server.

For more details on PNMsoft's BPM & workflow software,
please contact us or call Paul Sheridan: +44 (0) 192-381-3420
www.pnmsoft.com

Additional reading:
Workflow software
Business value
PNMsoft BPM software
HRG website