When CPL Aromas needed a software partner with deep technical expertise to guide its transformation, it chose Sonata Software. Theirs is a relationship that’s been going strong for eight years and counting – since Alfred Muthunathan, CIO at CPL, joined the team. “He was looking to transform the IT landscape,” says Uttam Hazari, Head of UKI & Europe at Sonata Software. “But before he could embark on that journey, it was important to ensure that the foundation was stable first.”
The goal was very simple: to ensure CPL could continually strengthen its system performance and improve reliability across its global operations. “It was growing at a rapid pace,” says Hazari. “However, the systems and data weren’t well integrated. It was important for us to work collaboratively with CPL to not only analyse the processes, but also stabilise the systems and the applications, and allow the company to regain its confidence.”
This early engagement reflects Sonata’s Frontier Firm approach – combining deep engineering expertise with business-aligned transformation to create resilient digital foundations.
A transformational relationship
Alongside the ERP support, Sonata partnered with CPL Aromas to develop its first B2B customer portal, enabling users to securely access orders and shipment information, thereby improving transparency and reducing manual interactions. “The early successes formed the foundation for a long-term digital transformation partnership built on trust, responsiveness, and delivery excellence,” Hazari adds.
This momentum reflects Sonata’s broader approach to building long-term, value-driven digital partnerships.
“Sonata Software is committed to building strategic partnerships that help organisations accelerate their digital transformation journeys. Today, our clients are looking for initiatives that move faster, reduce risk, and deliver clear, measurable business impact. As a Microsoft Frontier Partner, we bring deep expertise in translating advanced Cloud and AI capabilities into tangible outcomes. Our expansion across the UK and Europe marks an exciting phase of growth for Sonata, and our transformation journey with CPL Aromas is a key pillar of that strategy. We are privileged to have CPL Aromas as both a valued customer and a trusted partner.” – Anthony Lange, Chief Revenue Officer at Sonata Software
What began as a simple collaboration has evolved into a multi-phase, enterprise-wide transformation journey over the past eight years. A couple of years in, Sonata’s role expanded. “As part of that, we helped CPL rebuild and transform their core infrastructure,” says Hazari. “We also helped to implement Azure Site Recovery, stabilise IMS operations, strengthen identity and endpoint security, and establish modern monitoring with Azure Sentinel. And this is just the beginning.”
From ERP to infrastructure management to full enterprise modernisation, Sonata has been with CPL every step of the way, including the end-to-end global migration from the legacy ERP platform to Microsoft Dynamics 365 across multiple legal entities. “As we speak, the engagement has matured into a data-driven, AI-first innovation spanning across Dynamics 365 and the customer engagement platform, RPA automation, and agentic development,” says Hazari.
AI-first
Developing an AI-first approach is at the core of CPL’s current and ongoing focus, and it’s an area where Sonata has played a major role. “Sonata has been working very closely with CPL Aromas in its AI-first evolution – not just technically, but strategically as well,” says Hazari.
One of the key contributions to this has been building a modern digital core through the Dynamics 365 ERP program, enabling real-time visibility, standardised processes, and scalable operations. “These things are a prerequisite for effective AI deployment,” says Hazari. “Without that, you can’t just bring in AI to do the magic. Data is the most important ingredient. If the data isn’t right, the AI won’t be either. Then came automation at scale through RPA initiatives, which reduced the manual workload and increased process efficiency.”
More recently, Sonata has been working with CPL to pioneer its agentic AI adoption. “One of the recently deployed agents is a custom planner agent, which is designed to automate one of CPL’s most complex manufacturing processes,” Hazari explains. “This represents a major leap towards AI-driven decision intelligence across operations. Together, these initiatives have established the technology, data, and automation foundation for CPL Aromas’ AI-first strategy.”
These capabilities exemplify how Frontier Firms operationalise AI – embedding intelligence into core processes to drive real-time, autonomous decision-making.
The four pillars
Sonata is now helping CPL deliver value across four strategic dimensions. These consist of:
- Operational resilience and security
- Standardisation of global processes and transparency
- Enterprise-wide data platform
- Agentic AI-driven decision-making
“Bringing these initiatives together is transforming CPL into a digitally agile and AI-ready enterprise,” says Hazari. “That’s the value we’ve been able to deliver.”
The goal is for this relationship to continue for many more years. Sonata will continue to contribute towards CPL’s incredible growth, and as this collaboration progresses, it will be centred on CPL’s AI-first operating model.
“Scaling agentic AI beyond the initial successes is very important,” says Hazari. “That’s across all business functions, whether it’s finance, quality control, demand forecasting, supply chain optimisation, and even customer engagement. The idea is to help CPL in democratising AI across business functions, to reach a state where they’re able to create their own workflows and generate their own agents.”
As well as this, it’s about continuous automation and expansion to further reduce manual effort wherever possible from current processes. “Lastly, we’re working on enhancing digital sustainability,” says Hazari. “This includes ensuring that systems remain scalable, secure, and ready for emerging AI technologies. Technology is changing; AI is changing very rapidly. It’s extremely important for Sonata, as the strategic partner, to make sure we’re able to keep CPL Aromas one step ahead in this journey.”