The Grupo Pão de Açúcar (GPA) is one of the largest supermarket chains in Brazil and has invested in opening more stores of different formats, ranging from Pão de Açúcar supermarkets to convenience stores and gas stations, renovations, brand conversions, and more complex projects.

With the plan to open 300 stores by 2024, according to a report by Valor Econômico, the Group faced some challenges and needed to change processes for organization, planning, and structuring the engineering team.

During the 6th edition of Retail Expansion by Construct IN, the Head of Engineering of Grupo Pão de Açúcar, Carlos Eduardo Abe, shared the main challenges and processes for managing the brand's portfolio of projects.

In this blog, we will explore the pillars that GPA adopted to face these changes and achieve the established objectives.

Efficient processes

One of the first measures taken by GPA was to review and optimize its processes. After a long period without store openings, the company recognized the need to standardize and improve its operations.

Utilizing the Lean methodology, all procedures were re-evaluated, and all areas were involved in the expansion process. This made it possible to reduce time, review gaps, and the responsibility matrix of each area.

According to the Head of Engineering of Grupo Pão de Açúcar, Carlos Eduardo Abe, internal organization was essential to prepare the company for planned growth.

Long-term planning

The large number of stores mapped to be opened in three years required a long-term strategic plan. GPA understood that it could not expect immediate results and adopted a three-year plan.

This allowed the company to establish realistic goals, maintaining focus on sustainable development and the quality of the new stores.

Benchmarking and learning from the market

The Group recognized the importance of learning from the best practices in the market. Through benchmarking with other companies that were expanding their businesses, it was possible to exchange different experiences and bring new ideas to GPA's processes.

In addition to assisting in validating their own hypotheses and strategies, this initiative provided valuable insights that helped overcome internal challenges and supported some achievements necessary to structure the plan.

Internal and external partnerships

In a large organization like Grupo Pão de Açúcar, internal partnerships played a crucial role.

In the case of the engineering team, Carlos Eduardo Abe explains that it was necessary to gain the trust of other areas to ensure support in project execution. Having credibility helped build an ecosystem that truly generates results for the entire company.

The same applies to external partnerships with suppliers, which were fundamental for handling the large volume of projects and ensuring that everything was delivered on time.

According to the Head of Engineering, GPA alone does nothing. More than having suppliers, it was necessary to have market partners who would work together on the three-year plan.

Make or Buy Analysis

Another company practice is conducting continuous analyses to determine what should be done internally and what requires outsourcing services.

This analysis considers factors such as capacity, costs, and specialization. The company understood that there is no one-size-fits-all answer to this question and that the strategy can vary from project to project.

Risk management

To achieve the objectives in the acceleration plan, it was also necessary to carry out a risk analysis and manage them. Thus, measures were implemented to identify, mitigate, and closely monitor the risks involved in each project.

This involved decisions like accelerating certain stages of the process, even knowing this could increase risks. Effective management of these risks was essential to ensure deadlines were met.

Digitalization and technology

After gaining more control over the processes and where the company wants to go, it was possible to recognize the role of digitalization in projects and the importance of adopting technologies to optimize project management, ensure the quality of the stores, and facilitate internal communication.

The partnership with Construct IN, a project management and documentation platform through 360º images, was fundamental in this ramp-up, being one of the main innovation initiatives.

With the tool Visi by Construct IN being used strategically, Carlos has the main projects at his fingertips, connecting the engineering team, management, marketing, and various areas of the company.

Qualified and engaged team

Finally, GPA understood that its team played a fundamental role in executing the projects. The company adopted a more matrixed structure, focusing on specialized teams for different types of stores.

An important mindset change, aligned with all the company's values, promoted greater engagement among team members, encouraging them to deliver good stores and ensure success together.

In a scenario of changes, complex challenges, and ambitious goals, Grupo Pão de Açúcar demonstrated the importance of a solid strategic approach and the adoption of multiple pillars to face and overcome obstacles in managing its store projects.

The Retail Expansion by Construct IN event

The 6th edition of Retail Expansion by Construct IN took place on September 12 in São Paulo, bringing together various professionals and executives from the construction sector of retail and expanding companies.

In addition to the presentation from Grupo Pão de Açúcar, the event brought more innovations with the participation of Holmes, a process automation platform that has assisted engineering teams from expanding companies.

To stay updated on the upcoming editions of the Retail Expansion event, subscribe to the exclusive newsletter for the construction and expansion sector by clicking here.