Oct 17, 2025
3 min read
As a global test system, the company studies speed, design and reliability as technology
As tariffs change, supply chains remain unpredictable, and geopolitics disrupt global industries, companies are forced to move faster and keep their documents alive.
"Businesses are dealing with massive economic changes, [with] ever-changing complexities and uncertainties," says Dave Osborne, chief executive of Conga, a US-based provider of contract and revenue management software.
"Sometimes you only have weeks to decide which course to take," he continues."Effective planning is extremely difficult, especially if you don't have access to rich and accurate real-time data."
Across all industries, companies are finding that speed is now as important as strategy when it comes to technology adoption.
Difficult delivery dates, imposed by laws, technological reductions or market cycles, force organizations to re-contract and manage documents and comply with a faster pace.
Axa's race against time
For the shares of the French insurance group, the pressure to move to the Congolese product is real and time table.The company called "difficult day" is what Leo, the manager of the ASAX project, experienced.
The existing contract platform will be resolved by the end of the year.Transfer time Transfer time Transfer time - without interruption across Europe.
"By then we had to get going," he says."As with all projects, you start with clear objectives, but as you delve deeper, you always discover new things. The devil is in the details."
Meeting the deadline required a high level of restriction, especially to harmonize the different interpretations of GDP and risk management in different European countries.Axa's internal teams worked together with external stakeholders in a series of paper workshops that served as training and problem solving."Formality and transparency were key," said Leon.
At one point, discussions over data access delayed progress by two months.The dispute was resolved after the project team organized detailed penetration tests and disaster recovery demonstrations for auditors and lawyers.
"Security issues like that are common in any large enterprise project," León says, "but fixing them quickly prevented last-minute panic."
Leadership alignment is also critical."The only way to succeed under pressure is for everyone to commit at a high level," Lyon says.
Weekly progress reviews with CEO's, jobs and titles keep the work alive.When resource times arise, decisions are made quickly."Difficult deadlines require unity, from executives to delivery teams."
Accuracy of pressure in the science of Boston
A similar race against time was played at Boston Scientific, a US-based medical technology group.
The company, which treats more than 40 million patients each year, has replaced its decade-old pricing and quotation system, while also migrating its business software to SAP S/4HANA across its European operations.
Missing the June 25 launch date would delay the sweeping change by a year.
"We built it," said Diego Martín Colombo, who oversees revenue management at Boston Science.
Relying on transparency rather than strict hierarchies, the company conducts weekly joint reviews with technical partners and internal product teams.
Its CEO Tjerk Smalls advises on their culture of innovation.
"We're more focused on using standard features than not changing everything."He said."This discipline has helped us adopt schedules and best practices."
Hundreds of employees now manage complex pricing and contracting processes more efficiently with remarkably little noise from end users.
"AI is here to sit with employees, improve productivity, and increase value," Osbore said.
“Our vision for AI is based on what is possible today that is ethical and safe,” says Osborne.“It’s a tool that expands and empowers people.”
For AXA and Boston Scientific, the experience of meeting tight deadlines is less about technology than governance and culture.Regular communication, relentless prioritization and early engagement with security and compliance teams is key.
For companies facing challenges, the lesson depends on the tools at hand, but also the confidence, orientation, and courage to make difficult decisions quickly.
