How Norma Group standardizes its global IT

You may be unfamiliar with the name, but Norma Group products are used wherever pipes are connected and liquids are conveyed, from water supply and irrigation systems in vehicles, trains and aircraft, to agricultural machinery and buildings. And with his almost 200 IT employees, Thomas Reitz, the company’s group CIO, sees himself primarily as a driver of innovation and transformation, and a promoter of what he calls real ​​digitalization.

It all starts with a sense of presence, both remote and local. Reitz has set up a global service model with hubs in three time zones that operate according to the follow-the-sun approach. This means local experts from all IT disciplines are available around the clock for user support. IT experts also sit in innovation circles and support digitization projects on site.

For such a transformative undertaking to succeed around the world, attitude is particularly important. “Be open and courageous,” he says. “Listen actively, and get to know different industries and cultures.” According to Reitz, the effects of technology on people must also always be top of mind. “Question the status quo and learn from the best while critically dealing with hype topics such as AI in order to make informed decisions,” he adds.

In harmony with that mindset are three guiding principles to drive digital transformation: Cloud First, based on a strategic partnership with Microsoft using Microsoft 365 and Dynamics 365, among others. Then there’s Standardization First to harmonize global business processes and create a leaner IT landscape. Central to this over the last two years has been the NEMo365 Program, which implements a globally valid process template and ERP system, and 33 of 42 locations have already been converted since 2022. And finally, Security First that revolves around an automation concept and dedicated SOC.

BPM as a driver of IT success

Making a significant contribution to Norma’s digital transformation, a BPM team was initiated in 2020 and its managers support all business areas to improve and harmonize the understanding of applications and processes, as well as data quality.

“Through close cooperation with our specialist departments, significant IT and digitalization successes were achieved,” says Reitz. While the BPM team reduced 1,600 legacy systems to 340, the IT team created a technological standard with, for instance, the migration of 300 servers holding over 700TB of data to Microsoft Azure. And the Lithia Springs production site in Georgia was converted to a serverless environment, which reduced costs and improved the company’s carbon footprint.

Furthermore, the introduction of cloud software such as BIC Process Designer and Adobe Commerce has optimized processes globally, in terms of the Cloud First balance sheet.

Norma’s IT security efforts and transformation projects are paying off as the company hasn’t recorded any damaging security incidents for 10 years. According to Reitz, this is mainly due to the SOC team, which, with the help of AI and automation, analyzes 10TB of security data every month. And IT security was increased by switching to single sign-on (SSO) for all relevant apps. Dashboards and a zero trust strategy also help control the security situation.

This is how stability of the IT infrastructure and IT security can be achieved from an economic perspective, says Reitz.

The human touch

In addition to his focus on digitalization and transformation, Reitz places just as much value on social skills, such as openness, honesty, respect, and trust. He sees it as his job, as a manager, to develop his team professionally, motivate them, and lead them to take responsibility.

He also emphasizes the challenge of maintaining humanity and motivation in a global, culturally diverse team and relies on respectful interaction on an equal footing. And naturally being critical of the status quo and emerging trends, he contrasts being a sparring partner and mentor, which is emblematic of his leadership style. The success of this approach is reflected in company loyalty, as there’s been minimal turnover for 10 years, he says.

“By implementing a cloud-based, globally valid process and application model, we’ve sustainably transformed the Norma Group, made it more profitable, and prepared it for modern technologies,” he says. “But I’d like to see more differentiation between advanced analytics, machine learning, and AI to better use and understand functions, areas of application, and potential.”