Cemig reduced human error rates from 20% to 1.82% using Power Platform

Cemig – Companhia Energética de Minas Gerais, founded in 1952 by then-governor and future president Juscelino Kubitschek, operates in four segments of the electricity sector: generation, transmission, distribution (where it is the largest group in the country), and commercialization. It is present in 23 states and serves over 10 million customers. With more than five thousand employees, Cemig is also a player in the gas sector. Its shares are traded on the New York and São Paulo stock exchanges, with over 120 thousand investors in more than 40 countries.

The adoption of Microsoft Power Platform by Cemig marked a significant milestone in the company's digital transformation. Amid growing demands for innovation and process automation, and challenges posed by state management and the pandemic, Cemig found in Power Platform a powerful solution to enhance operational efficiency, train employees, and reduce costs.

Initial challenges and need for transformation

Amid the pandemic and the shift to remote work, Cemig urgently needed to adopt technologies that would ensure the continuity of operations. Microsoft Teams became essential for meetings and collaboration. However, the company still relied on traditional and inefficient methods for process automation, such as centralized development by the IT team, which resulted in slow delivery of solutions.

The scenario for Cemig's Process Office was challenging. The company needed a tool that would empower end users to develop internal solutions in an agile manner, but with proper governance. Previously, there was an exclusive dependence on IT to bring employees' ideas to life. At this point, Power Platform, with its low-code and no-code solutions, proved to be the ideal solution. According to Guilherme Rodrigo Vanucci de Moraes, IT manager at Cemig, "We came from a centralized structure where IT was responsible for developments. Now, employees themselves would be able to develop. It was a successful challenge of detachment and learning."The team's view is that the Power Platform has enabled a shift from Process Office to Process Office & Digital Transformation.

Power Platform and Citizen Developers

With the support of Microsoft and a solid strategy, Cemig began implementing the Power Platform, utilizing tools such as Microsoft Power Apps, Microsoft Power Automate, and Microsoft Power BI. The change was complex, requiring employees accustomed to centralized development to adopt a more active role in creating solutions. However, this shift proved to be very effective and empowering for end users, who began to bring their ideas to life and contribute autonomously to the company's success and the efficiency of various sectors.

To ensure the success of this transition and support digital transformation, the company launched the "Power Tribe" program. This initiative aims to empower users to develop their own applications, promoting the concept of "Citizen Developer." This approach encourages autonomy within the company and helps those unfamiliar with software development to propose innovative solutions for the company's daily operations. The term "tribe" refers to collective collaboration, while "Power" signifies energy, reflecting the name of the Microsoft solution.

The project, which began with a few members, now has over 600 participants, establishing itself as successful. This internal engagement was essential to increase the adoption of the platform and encourage innovation within the organization. Carlos Henrique da Silva Diniz, an IT Governance analyst at Cemig, stated, "When people recognized the tool's potential, they began migrating to this environment and used their ideas within Power Platform. The fact that it was low-code and no-code at other times facilitated this process."

Positive results and impacts

The digital transformation driven by Power Platform has yielded impressive results. Manual errors in processes, such as employee admissions, dropped from 20% to 1.82%. The onboarding time decreased from 15 days to just 21 minutes, benefiting both new hires and the HR team. Solange, an HR end-user, noted that automation has simplified activities, reduced labor effort, cut printing and scanning costs, and mitigated various work-related risks.

The transition to digital solutions reduced the use of physical resources, eliminated 11 printed forms, and decreased paper consumption. This change also facilitated document digitization efforts. A citizen developer and Electromechanical Maintenance Technician at CEMIG praised Power Tribe and low-code after attending the Case Show event by Cemig: "We support Cemig's process and digital transformation. This meeting allowed knowledge exchange and enriched our experience, thanks to the important engagement of the participants."

Increased efficiency and productivity

Using Power Automate, Cemig greatly improved productivity. Managing social program files now takes hours instead of over four days, and tasks that took two hours are finished in 30 minutes due to intelligent automation.

The solutions developed by "Citizen Developers" have enhanced the responsiveness of various business areas, granting them increased autonomy to implement improvements and resolve operational issues without relying exclusively on the IT team. This empowerment has alleviated bottlenecks and enabled Cemig to attain higher productivity levels across the organization. Leonardo Augusto Melo Barbosa, an IT Governance Analyst at Cemig, emphasizes: "This is not merely a project that we create and deliver. Our goal is to support, nurture, sustain, and advance this community. By aligning expectations and providing training, we aim to increase the commitment of citizen developers and assist them in creating innovative solutions."

Sustainability and cost reduction

The adoption of the Power Platform improved Cemig's operational efficiency and sustainability. The reduction in paper usage and the digitization of processes were identified as significant benefits of the implementation. The company's sustainability department has expressed interest in extending the use of the platform to other sectors to enhance ecological advantages.

Future Initiatives

The success of the Power Platform has created new opportunities for Cemig, which now intends to broaden its digital initiatives. The company is currently investigating the application of generative artificial intelligence through Microsoft Copilot, as well as the adoption of SharePoint Online as part of its digital transformation project. Additionally, internal hackathons are being planned to foster employee engagement and promote continuous innovation.

Adopting Microsoft Power Platform at Cemig was transformative. By overcoming challenges and rethinking solution development, the company has improved process transformation, increased efficiency and productivity, empowered employees, embraced sustainability, and initiated a new era of innovation.

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