Typical situations

A grown application landscape should become manageable again

Inventory, assessment by effort and benefit, prioritised roadmap. What gets replaced, what stays, what comes first. The result is a decision paper the management can work from directly.

From practice: assessment and migration of 20 databases at a specialist publisher, each measure decided on a cost-benefit basis. The template database developed there has since served as the blueprint for all further conversions in house.

The management wants indicators it can rely on

Selecting the right indicators, safeguarding data quality, and the route from scattered ERP reports to a single dashboard. Plus enabling the team so the evaluations are developed further in house.

From practice: data warehouse for a staffing services provider with 500 to 1,000 employees. 20 report objects from 30 branch offices now converge in one dashboard; reporting time fell by around 80 per cent.

An existing application needs to meet the e-invoicing obligation

Since January 2025 every company in Germany must be able to receive electronic invoices in business transactions, with the sending obligation following in stages. Assessment of whether retrofitting or replacement is more economical, then implementation. Independently of whether the original vendor follows suit.

From practice: an XRechnung tool for Access is in use, an ERP tool with integrated e-invoicing is in development.

AI should be adopted productively and securely

Microsoft 365 Copilot in everyday work and AI tooling in development, with a governance model, roles and data protection in place from the start. The aim is a first viable use case rather than a pilot that leads nowhere.

Basis: 16 specialist training sessions on Copilot Studio, agent architecture and AI governance in 2025 and 2026, certification as a data protection officer, and daily productive use of Claude and GitHub Copilot in current engagements.

Costing and controlling should become transparent

Building dependable hourly rates and overhead surcharges on the basis of full cost accounting, with tools the company then operates itself.

From practice: full absorption costing across around 400 cost centres in seven divisions at a municipal utility. The hourly rates have been maintained in house ever since.

Internal developers should work to shared standards

Design of durable structures together with coding guidelines and test concepts, so that quality is anchored in the organisation rather than in individuals. Including workshops and enabling the team to work independently.

From practice: coding guidelines including software architecture at Capgemini and DB Systel, build-up of test automation with Pester at a public-sector IT service provider.

IT responsibility should rest in experienced hands for a while

Interim CIO or interim managing director, including support for a successor stepping into the role. In mid-sized companies I take on full responsibility, in larger organisations responsibility for a function or a programme.