Industry
Distribution and logistics
Organisation Size
Enterprise; 75% of organisation in scope across 8 business units
Initiative
ERP Implementation, Operating Model Re-design
Services
End-to-end change management, Stakeholder engagement, Train-the-trainer, Resistance management
Scope
75% of the organisation
Platforms
D365
Key Result
Zero headcount loss; uninterrupted customer service at go-live
"The last thing we needed was to spend a fortune on new software and end up in exactly the same place. GoodShift Co. understood that from day one." Person, Role
Coventry Group Limited had run its ERP on the same Oracle platform for its entire operating life. The system had never been updated. As the business evolved, staff filled the gaps with workarounds: manual steps, spreadsheet bridges, and undocumented processes built on institutional knowledge that lived nowhere but in people's heads.
When the decision was made to move to Microsoft Dynamics 365, technical delivery commenced. Deep in the design phase, the business recognised that their people needed a different kind of attention. That's when they brought in GoodShift Co.
The Challenge
Approximately 75% of the organisation was in scope across customer-facing business units and internal functions including Finance and HR. The CEO mandated zero headcount loss as a result of the change. There was no margin for a failed go-live: customer interruptions, supplier payment disruption, or staff attrition were not something the business could absorb.
Three compounding problems made this harder. There were no documented process manuals; everything lived in habit and memory. Resistance was concentrated in specific pockets, including one high-performing business unit that felt it could operate outside the standard implementation. And in smaller branches, pulling staff for training removed up to half the team from daily operations.
How we worked
GoodShift Co. operated as an embedded part of the organisation rather than an external workstream. We sat with the people doing the work, understood their concerns, and built trust before asking for buy-in.
Resistors were identified early and engaged directly. What we found were genuine concerns and valid feedback, which was fed back to technical and leadership teams where appropriate. Communications were written in the language the organisation actually used. A train-the-trainer model addressed the capacity problem, with rollout staged by region to protect day-to-day operations.
The result
The organisation went live without interruption to customer service. Supplier payment continuity was maintained. The CEO's headcount retention mandate was met.
As a byproduct of the implementation, the organisation now has documented training materials and process manuals for the first time. Staff use the system the way it was designed to be used.
The legacy wasn't the software. It was the documented knowledge, the trained people, and the internal capability to keep going once the project ended.
This case study reflects qualitative outcomes as reported by project stakeholders. Specific commercial data has been withheld due to client confidentiality.
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Coventry Group Limited
Konnect ANZ
