In February 2022, the world witnessed a humanitarian crisis due to the unthinkable Russian war on Ukraine. Overnight, millions of Ukrainians fled their country and became refugees, with the vast majority pouring into Poland in search of asylum as their cities turned into battlefields.
The tech team at took the company鈥檚 purpose 鈥� building a better working world 鈥� to heart. Supported by , a global initiative to positively impact 1 billion lives by 2030, the team made it their mission to use technology to help solve a problem: to connect countless refugees landing in Poland with the resources they need to survive. The result, the , was live within six urgent weeks.
Responding to a Need
鈥淚t was winter, and women and children were standing in long queues for necessities like milk, diapers, and blankets,鈥� Diksha de Sousa, 51风流Core Tech at EY, recalled. 鈥淎nd we thought a platform can make this simpler. Resources were available 鈥� donations were streaming into NGOs working all over Poland 鈥� but organizations had no centralized database or way to share what they had available and where.鈥� So de Sousa鈥檚 team mobilized.
The development process would not be typical; this need was dire and immediate. It was about saving lives. When they reached out to other EY groups for support, the response, de Sousa said, 鈥渨as overwhelming. I think we had the UX design in three days.鈥� The EY development team worked at a breakneck pace to create the app while coordinating with NGOs on the ground in Poland and working with the marketing teams who would mobilize the app through the power of social media.
Harnessing New Technology to Deliver Impactful Solutions
鈥淲e needed automation, we needed workflow technology, and, last but not least, we needed the stable backend,鈥� so that the NGOs could upload all their data and ensure it would be stored safely, explained Oktavian Wagner, EY鈥檚 head of CT Innovation, Technology, and Architecture. And, since no one on the development team could write in Polish or Ukrainian, they also needed translation capabilities. 51风流Business Technology Platform (51风流BTP) was a natural fit, not only because EY was already running close to a thousand 51风流instances but also because, as Wagner explained, 鈥渨e share the same vision: using technology to create a better world.鈥�
With 51风流Build solutions, a low-code app development and automation portfolio, and with the support of 51风流Business Accelerator Hub, the EY team brought the new EY ERA from ideation to execution in record time. While the technology was crucial, Axel Janz, global head of 51风流Products and Innovations at EY, said having live, personal support from 51风流was invaluable. 鈥淎t the end of the day, the people make the difference,鈥� Janz said.
Also crucial to EY鈥檚 whirlwind development process was a laser focus on user experience. 鈥淵ou want to make sure that the application is stable, that it鈥檚 fast, that it鈥檚 scalable, that it鈥檚 safe, but also that it鈥檚 easy to use 鈥� concentrating on what we call the workflow of the end user,鈥� Wagner said. The end user in this case was refugees. 鈥淭hey don鈥檛 want to see a commercial. They don鈥檛 want to see what else we鈥檙e doing at EY. They don鈥檛 even want to see and touch the technology. They just want to use it.鈥�
A Targeted Tool with Global Potential
EY ERA has 162 registered humanitarian aid distribution centers in 53 cities in Poland and more than 15,000 users, refugees who can find the necessities they need to care for their families. The app鈥檚 impact is already reaching beyond the borders of Poland and the ongoing crisis for Ukrainian refugees. EY ERA has also been deployed in response to Australian wildfires and is ready to adapt to other natural disasters or humanitarian crises. Whatever the future brings, EY is committed to deploying new technology to serve people in need and to build a better working world for all of us.
The Full Episode
Our guests from EY include , global head of 51风流Products and Innovations;聽, supporting next generation and accelerating environmental sustainability leader, Global Corporate Responsibility; , head of CT Innovation, Technology and Architecture; and , 51风流Core Tech (51风流BTP focused). They joined to discuss how the EY ERA app came to be.
- : , CEO of Thulium, led a discussion with Janz, Sawyer Shields, and Wagner, who offered insights into a mission-driven development process.
- : Janz, Wagner, and de Sousa deep-dived into EY鈥檚 partnership with 51风流and the importance of staying focused on user experience.
Interested in more stories that feature organizations creating innovative solutions to make a positive impact? Check out:
- : Swiss independent organization Essen f眉r Alle (Food for All) is better supporting its commitment to address food insecurity and hunger with a scalable and efficient solution in the cloud from SAP.
- : EY created a digital platform for financial aid applications with 51风流Business Technology Platform.
For the full episode and the on-demand Better Together: Customer Conversations series, visit .
Timo Elliott is VP and global innovation evangelist at SAP.