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How HOCHBAHN is shaping the future of mobility with a new planning process and the advantages of a low-code platform
Success Story
April 17, 2025
The Dataciders QuinScape developed by master plan tool based on the project and portfolio management platform cplace enables Hamburger Hochbahn AG for the first time to long-term strategy and operational core business for the first time.
The Hamburger Hochbahn AG
Hamburger HOCHBAHN AG is a transport company owned by the City of Hamburg and is managed according to private-sector principles. With over 6,000 qualified employees, it has been a pioneer in mobility for over 100 years. Today, HOCHBAHN moves around 1.2 million passengers per day on 116 bus and 4 subway lines and provides smart and sustainable mobility combined in the app hvv switch app for even more flexibility. HOCHBAHN is committed to making Hamburg a little greener every day and is setting the course today for the mobility transition of tomorrow: the company will be climate-neutral by 2030. With a completely emission-free vehicle fleet - without compromise.
The initial situation
HOCHBAHN is known for its excellent and reliable planning and execution of projects. The company wants to maintain this standard in a future of diverse ecological, social and political challenges.
In order to better coordinate the planning of large and long-term infrastructure projects within the company, an opportunity should be created to involve all areas of HOCHBAHN - in particular technology, operations and transport and service planning - in the planning process at an early stage.
In addition, the company previously lacked a digital solution for central data storage - a single source of truth - which, on the one hand, records sound and reliable project information in a central location and makes it transparently accessible to everyone and, on the other hand, should serve as a basis for long-term, strategic decisions.
The aim was to enable portfolio planning while taking all framework conditions into account. To this end, a master plan tool was to be created that takes these three requirements in particular into account:
- Basis for strategic decisions: The master plan is intended to determine the long-term, strategic direction of HOCHBAHN and help to make well-founded decisions, justify them and present them transparently.
- Ensuring responsiveness: Reliability and effectiveness in project management should be maintained or even increased in the future, for example with regard to the use of resources.
- Information hub: The adopted master plan provides a clear strategy that can be viewed by everyone and can also be used for planning operational projects.
The solution
The development of a master plan as HOCHBAHN's strategic direction for the next 10 to 25 years is based on two pillars: a new process for strategic planning and a digital tool to support this process. Tiba Managementberatung GmbH supported the development of the new planning process. Tiba Technologieberatung GmbH supported the selection of the tool. The cplace project and portfolio management platform was selected as the technological basis for the master plan tool, which was then tailored and adapted to the specific needs of HOCHBAHN by a team from Dataciders QuinScape GmbH.
The predefined user stories were gradually developed, tested and, where necessary, modified so that they optimally met all requirements.
The aim was to build a software-as-a-service solution in the cloud that combines individual process requirements with the advantages of a low-code platform and thus takes strategic planning to a new level.
The master plan tool combines HOCHBAHN's long-term strategy and operational business in one system for the first time
How does the master plan tool support the planning process?
- Central data storage: The master plan tool as a single source of truth makes all information transparently available to all employees, with maximum data protection thanks to a well thought-out role rights system.
- Maturity managementA profile with all the important attributes is created for each project. Each project goes through a workflow that develops from maturity level 1 to 4. If the maturity level is too low to be considered for portfolio planning, the tool issues a warning.
- Complexity and risk management at portfolio level: Here, the tool helps to identify complex interdependencies between projects in order to assess potential risks, for example when it comes to resource planning.
A central platform provides transparent project information and supports the management of complex dependencies
The success
The master plan tool enables HOCHBAHN to evaluate projects and programs in relation to each other for the first time. The projects are first categorized as MUST and CAN. CAN projects are then evaluated according to criteria such as dependency, maximized synergy effects, strategic orientation or feasibility and preselected using a key figure. The projects can then be prioritized and incorporated into one or more scenarios as the basis for the master plan.
In the scenario simulation, various scenarios or portfolios are created and, in line with the Hamburg as a plan for the mobility transition strategically evaluated. On this basis, one of the scenarios is selected as the master plan and presented as a portfolio in the the released as a portfolio in the platform. All other scenarios are then discarded and archived. archived.The master plan as the final released scenario finally its information into a dashboard called "Cockpit". This is then available to all colleagues involved in short and medium-term project planning. colleagues involved in short and medium-term project planning as a standardized source of information - true to the motto "maximum transparency = maximum synergy".
Accordingly, the platform as a single source of truth enables project managers to communicate more effectively when coordinating with each other. Overall enables the tool dt HOCHBAHNto harmonize short-, medium- and long-term planning and at the same time maintenance and strategy optimally optimally coordinated. The ability to simulate scenarios for changing political or social conditions independently of the adopted master plan keeps the system resilient and responsive, and supports the HOCHBAHN Management Board in making the best possible decisions.
Scenario simulations enable flexible planning and help the Management Board to make better decisions
"With the master plan tool based on cplace, whichistailored to our needs, we are able to combine strategy and core business for the first time and carry out portfolio planning while taking all framework conditions into account. The ability to simulate different scenarios helps us to make better and more informed decisions for major long-term projects."
Franziska Ortner
Advisor to the Chief Technology Officer at HOCHBAHN and project manager
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