- Launched mobile app, Comado, in 4 months
- Gained expertise to stabilize Oracle systems
When you think of Suntory, the 125-year-old global beverage manufacturer, the image of iconic brands such as Jim Beam, Maker’s Mark, Pepsi and its flagship beer may come to mind. Adding to Suntory’s growing empire is an expanding its portfolio of innovative health products and services. Comado, a revolutionary mobile app designed for members of Suntory Wellness, which helps consumers stay healthy while earning rewards, is a shining example of this shift.
The goal of the app was to promote healthy habits by rewarding users with points for purchases and activities like walking or other exercising. In addition, users could gain exclusive access to Suntory events and products, creating a complete health ecosystem under the Suntory banner.
“My team’s mission is to provide IT solutions to the Suntory Group. We aim to promote the growth of the entire group,” said Takuro Yamashita, Assistant Manager at Suntory System Technology, the IT department for Suntory Group. Among the many tasks he is charged with, he is also responsible for IT planning, development and operations for the wellness business – including creating the IT infrastructure for the Suntory Wellness-related applications. To get there, Suntory needed new development environments and expertise to stabilize its Oracle databases – all on a very aggressive timeline.
A fast and refreshing approach
“We were on a tight schedule, didn’t have documentation in place and we were working on the system requirements in real-time,” Yamashita recollected. Suntory was in a race against the clock, and their internal team was already stretched thin juggling several priority projects.
“We only had one test environment at the time. In order to support business growth, several strategic application development initiatives were launched, and expanding the development environments of existing systems for integration was essential to realize them. We decided to utilize Rimini Street’s advanced technical capabilities and support because we urgently needed them to ensure the success of these projects,” Yamashita explained. “Rimini Street’s proposal included an assessment of how they would approach our project using next-generation systems, and this showed how much they knew about us and our business.”
Already benefitting from the deep value and quality support experiences of Rimini Support™ for its Oracle Database, OT and Hyperion, they trusted Rimini Street to provide both the expert professional services, and the fast execution needed to launch the wellness app. “The advantage of engaging with Rimini Street on multiple services is that they have deep knowledge of our systems, and know how to maximize its potential,” Yamashita said. “With the great history of success on the support side of the relationship, we were confident they would be able to help us launch this strategic project without adding unnecessary cost or delay to the project – and Rimini Street delivered brilliantly.”
Yamashita engaged Rimini Consult™, Rimini Street’s professional services arm, to help build a stable, scalable platform for the app. “Most consulting firms tell you their timeframe. Rimini Street asked us for ours.” Yamashita said. The Rimini Consult team quickly installed additional development and QA servers creating three new development environments – all within a four-month window – while keeping Suntory’s Oracle systems stable and secure.
With Rimini Street’s help, the Comado app launched on time and without a hitch. Yamashita recounted, “The project had to be carried out under extremely difficult conditions, but they worked closely with us to ensure our needs were met at every step, enabling us to meet our launch deadline without compromising quality or requiring us to buy more products.”
Stirring innovation without limits
“Rimini Street’s consultants took the time to understand our situation, evaluate our systems and see things from our perspective – that’s what makes them different,” said Yamashita.
This hands-on approach wasn’t just refreshing for Suntory – it was crucial. Rimini Street’s Oracle experts provided much-needed bandwidth for Yamashita’s team, “We had already committed our IT team to priority projects and didn’t have the in-house bandwidth to start this important initiative. And we were requested by the board to launch this within four months, creating a difficult position for us,” Yamashita recalled. “So, we consulted with Rimini Street from the beginning, not just for their technical knowledge, but to help us with the talent resources needed to take this project to the finish line, on time. Thanks to Rimini Street, we had the breathing room to focus on what we needed to do for this very important project.”
From supporting the launch of the wellness app to managing Oracle databases for Suntory’s CRM and manufacturing systems, Rimini Street proved to be a strategic partner, not just a service provider. “We rely on Rimini Consult and Rimini Support because of the high level of services we receive and how accommodating they are to our unique business needs,” Yamashita noted.
One of the greatest values Rimini Street brought to Suntory was the ability to innovate without the limits imposed by vendor support and addressing staffing shortages, a combination that helped the organization achieve dramatic savings to invest in growth. According to Yamashita, “By switching from Oracle support to Rimini Street’s maintenance services, we can use the savings to move our mission-critical systems to cloud-native environments that can flexibly withstand changes in business.”
A toast to a successful partnership
For Suntory, the launch of Comado is part of their broader strategy in new ways to expand and strengthen customer engagement. And with Rimini Street’s support, they did it faster and more efficiently than they imagined. “As competition in the health food industry intensifies, we needed to expand our brand and provide a variety of health services beyond products, introducing new ways of interacting with consumers,” said Yamashita. Its strategic partnership with Rimini Street helps to put Suntory in a strong competitive advantage, leading the wellness industry with robust products and services.
With Rimini Street by their side, Suntory is serving more than beverages – they’re serving up a future where health, wellness and customer engagement flow as smoothly as their globally celebrated beverages. Yamashita praised the Rimini Street team, stating, “We value the fact that Rimini Street can work with us on projects to advance our business, not just as technical experts in Oracle, but as true partners to our business.”
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