Nissin Foods Holdings adopts Microsoft Power Apps for insourced low-code development, creates a much-requested app in a flash

Costs and lead times are huge problems for non-IT companies relying on outsourced development

There is no shortage of companies that want to promote digital transformation (DX) to streamline internal work and boost convenience for employees. To do so, they must move app development from external vendors to in-house because relying solely on outsourcing makes it difficult to swiftly meet user needs and deliver ongoing improvements. However, this shift has long been considered impossible for non-IT companies.

Nissin Foods Holdings is overturning this notion with Microsoft Power Platform and Microsoft Power Apps. As the holding company of the Nissin Foods Group, the company sets and promotes management strategies for the entire group, oversees management, and controls business. Under the corporate slogan of “Earth Food Creator,” the group contributes to the earth and society by pursuing various food possibilities that provide dream-inspiring, delicious tastes that gratify people everywhere.

“In-house system development was challenging because we're a manufacturing company, not an IT company; we had no choice but to outsource,” says Nissin Foods Holdings’ Toshihiro Narita, Chief Information Officer. However, outsourcing not only increases costs and lead times, but also makes it difficult to respond promptly when business requirements change. “If development is long and costly, we become hesitant to attempt new things. I’d always wanted to fix this situation, but felt it wasn’t realistic to have a lot of in-house engineers who could program.”

The company therefore focused on several low-code/no-code development tools that had appeared. Narita believed the tools would enable employees who had no programming experience to develop applications internally.

“I started examining tools around December 2019. We searched by having hands-on time with multiple tools while prioritizing comfort and ease of use. During this process, our general affairs department asked us to create a Microsoft Teams-connected tool that could quickly ascertain damage at each of our sites if disaster struck. I believed Power Platform would provide what we needed, so we officially adopted it in October 2020.”

Highly evaluating Microsoft's rich ecosystem and quick feature expansion

So why did Power Platform stand out from other low-code /no-code development tools? Narita explains the reasons below.

“Microsoft has a rich product and services ecosystem; most notably, Microsoft 365. We were already using Microsoft Teams and other Microsoft 365 functions, so the ability to seamlessly connect to these was a major advantage. The rapid cycles for expanding functionality and continuous addition of user-requested features were also highly impressive.”

The company soon began thinking about developing a mobile application using Power Platform as a part of voluntary departmental club activities. One of the ideas discussed was a smartphone app enabling users to search and view information on Nissin Foods products.

“Nissin Foods has many brands, like Cup Noodles, Chicken Ramen, and Donbei Udon. We have an enormous number of products, including variations in size and flavor,” explains Hiroaki Takeda, Assistant Manager of Nissin Foods Holdings’ IT Planning Division, which led development. JAN codes, allergen information, and package images are grouped in an internal database, enabling sales reps to find information with their Microsoft Surface devices. “However, for reps to perform searches while out and about, they had to tether their devices to their smartphones, which was inconvenient. As a result, sales reps frequently contacted internal personnel to check things when they received business inquiries on the move.”

Nissin Foods Holdings began developing the app in December 2020. Microsoft introduced the company to Avanade Japan, an enterprise with expert knowledge of Microsoft technology, to provide support for learning Power Platform and using it for development.

“We made an effort to respond quickly so that development proceeded rapidly,” says Takashi Shinohara, senior consultant in DevOps and agile coaching at Avanade Japan. When the project commenced, he met with Nissin Foods Holdings to discuss objectives, conducted an optimized two-hour hands-on session, and provided support in a Q&A format thereafter. “Nissin Foods Holdings already had numerous ideas, so we focused on quickly making them reality.”

The first prototype took only 20 hours to complete, including study sessions. When personnel from the Sales Strategy department saw the prototype, their response was, “we want it now!” More functions were added based on the opinions of sales staff. According to Shinohara, the additions took only around five hours.

“As a rep for Avanade, I’ve received sales inquiries from many customers; Nissin Foods Holdings’ project stands out as an exemplary success story,” says Shuhei Mitoma, manager of the Avanade Japan Sales Division. Many companies begin by asking “what can we do with this tool?” rather than “what are our goals?” so progress frequently stagnates after a hands-on period. “Nissin Foods Holdings knew what it wanted to achieve and needed to know how to achieve it. This meant it was able to go from hands-on learning to completing its first application in short order. This is what DX should be.”

From Nissin Foods Holdings’ perspective, the support of Avanade accelerated development. “Mr. Shinohara, our consultant, was extremely skilled. Whenever our in-house development stalled, he quickly resolved the problem via screen sharing,” explains Narita

Product information app loved by users, Power Platform-based insourcing set to expand

The figure below shows the configuration and some screens of Takeda’s product information app.

First, product information is batch uploaded from the company’s product database to Microsoft SharePoint Online at night. The application, which was created with Power Apps, can access that information, enabling users to search products, view lists, and check details. Other features include favorites lists for frequently requested information and barcode-based searches. Sales reps can also access packaging images to create fliers and immediately send search results to clients using the email icon at the top right of the screen.

“You can use Power Apps to develop applications in the same way as creating presentation materials in Microsoft PowerPoint,” says Takeda. By arranging and connecting pre-prepared objects on screen, you can freely create your intended application. “We implemented all the search and list display functions using only standard objects.”

In March 2021, the company staged a demo at the Sales Orientation conference, in which sales representatives from all over Japan participated via Microsoft Teams. The app officially launched the following month after being announced and released via the Nissin Foods Group’s SharePoint Online intranet.

“Our sales department personnel love the convenience of being able to quickly search from any location on their smartphones,” says Narita. More surprisingly, the head of the customer service office has also commented on how great it is. “Our customer service office often receives important product suggestions from clients. Sometimes, our workers visit the client to respond, but they had difficulty quickly checking product information on the go. Our new app enables them to respond quickly and correctly while on the move.”

To continue the success, the company is thinking about developing several other applications. Among these, Takeda notes an app for finding employee information by name, department, and phone number and which suggests related employees in the results. It also has Teams and email buttons for instant communication. A prototype is complete, and the app will release soon.

“Now that we’ve started using Power Platform, we’ll be able to do a lot more low-code development in-house,” says Narita. He wants to create more uniquely mobile applications that use advanced technologies such as AI-based image recognition, near-field communication, transcription and voice recognition, MR, and AR.

Narita concludes, “As these initiatives ramp up, the relationship between user companies and SIers will transform. Personnel from companies that embraced insourced development early will increasingly assist other user organizations. Teleworking during the coronavirus pandemic showed that we can use web conferencing to provide support to other companies without leaving our offices. We’ll epitomize the new era by continually bolstering our in-house app development initiatives.”