Comarch ALTUM at the Auchan Group

February 2010. Comarch has completed an implementation of its integrated solution Comarch ALTUM at Auchan Telecom. The company, a subsidiary of the Auchan Group, is a virtual operator of mobile communication, offering services related to mobile telephony such as prepaid cards and mobile Internet with an online billing service. The Comarch ALTUM management system supports Auchan Telecom in this sales model and handles the process of procurement, distribution, delivery and returns of dematerialized products (i.e. phone credit recharge, downloading online games or music, and other services).                                                
The ERP system by Comarch has enabled the automation of internal processes thanks to the Business Process Management engine and allowed for better planning of purchases, sales and inventory levels with the Business Intelligence tool. In addition to being a complementary offer for the telecommunication industry, the open architecture of Comarch ALTUM guarantees full compatibility with Auchan’s software environment. These have been key factors in the final decision to choose the Comarch ALTUM management system.                                               
Comarch ALTUM’s challenge: Deal with 450 000 Auchan Telecom customers and 25 000 operations per day
Auchan Telecom is part of the Auchan Group - a company owning one of the largest retail chains in the world (over 1220 hyper and supermarkets, with a turnover of 39.5 bln EUR). Auchan Telecom, better known under the brand of A-Mobile, is a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) offering services connected with mobile telecommunication: pre-paid cards, mobile Internet or online invoicing. Within the MVNO sector, the company offers personalized novelties such as phone numbers or Internet access in a prepaid mode.

For 3 years, approximately 450 thousand customers have bought the Auchan Telecom pre-paid cards; additionally, the company manages the distribution of pre-paid cards of other operators within the sales network of the entire Auchan Group.

In this context, Auchan Telecom decided in 2009 to deploy the Comarch ALTUM software with the aim to ensure optimal system operation and flawless daily management of a large number of transactions, particularly those related to the purchase of recharge codes (telephone recharge cards, music recharge cards, online courses, etc..), and its distribution to intermediaries and to end-customers.                                                    
Each day the system handles over 25 000 operations. It also manages the billing process of intermediaries (over 10 000 outlets belonging to 7 retail chains and distribution networks) and partners of Auchan.

Comarch ALTUM: a complete solution, fully compatible with the IT infrastructure of Auchan Telecom
Comarch ALTUM supports the process of purchases, distribution, delivery and returns of dematerialized products. It also manages the verification process of vendor invoices, issuing invoices for customers and all aspects related to accounting.

Tasks that were originally performed manually, such as the creation of purchase orders, delivery of recharge codes and creation of contracts between suppliers and customers, have all been automated through the implementation of Comarch ALTUM. This solution has not only helped streamline Auchan Telecom’s business processes and thus limit costs, but also reduce the risk of errors during daily operations.

A process-oriented, flexible solution that is capable of meeting the specific needs of Auchan Telecom

“Thanks to the fully accessible API and the possibility to use the Comarch ALTUM workflow engine as a platform for integrating and automating business processes, it was possible to deliver a solution that completely fulfilled the demanding requirements of Auchan Telecom” says Mathieu Abt, Head of the Central Department at Auchan Telecom, Management of Information Systems at Auchan.

Using Comarch ALTUM’s built-in workflow engine allowed for the significant facilitation of Auchan Telecom's business processes and the automation of tasks, which until then had been performed manually. Tools for decision making support - known as Business Intelligence – include things such as predefined sets of reports, dashboards and alerts and allow for in-depth analysis of purchases, sales, turnover, stock levels and a lot more.

Generation of reports and access to information have become much easier with the use of a data warehouse and OLAP technology, delivering multidimensional analytical areas, both integrated as a standard in Comarch ALTUM. These tools make the decision-making process faster and more efficient.