Food and Beverage
Japanese Subsidiary of a Leading Beverage Company
Worked with client management to develop a future state vision for the demand forecasting process. Identified organization, system and process changes needed to achieve desired vision. Solution included integrating i2 Demand Planner APS software with on-going SAP ERP project. Estimated that combined changes will improve forecast accuracy by 20%, and reduce production, transportation, and inventory carrying costs by over $25M annually.
Rapidly Growing Organic Meat and Poultry Producer
Led process to identify and select 3PL partner to provide cold storage warehousing and order fulfillment services for the CA market. Evaluated over 100 potential locations. Ultimately selected provider in the San Francisco Bay area. Evaluated carriers to provide TL / LTL transportation services.
Led SKU rationalization effort that reduced number of SKUs by 67% and increased company profitability. Determined that historic method for determining animal requirements was not providing accurate projections of animal needs. Developed spreadsheet-based supply-demand planning capability accurately linking supply with demand for the first time in company history. Developed time series forecasts in MS Excel that improved forecast accuracy. Then converted forecast to subprimal equivalents, and used to determine animal requirements and production schedule by week over the planning horizon. Determined that company supply-demand mix was extremely out of balance. Identified numerous instances where company would be either material or capacity constrained, and would need to secure alternate sources of supply or increase production capacity. Recommended that company look for ways to better promote whole animal utilization.
Helped client evaluate various ERP tools (Oracle NetSuite, JustFood) and select provider to implement chosen package. Defined detailed future state S&OP requirements, and evaluated various package capabilities (Blue Ridge, Kinaxis, Adexa, DemandCaster, JustFood) to meet these needs.
Leading US Producer and Marketer of Frozen and Shelf Stable Fruit Products
Served as Solution Architect during the Design Phase on an SAP Integrated Business Planning (IBP) implementation.
Leading US Food and Drug Retailer
Led effort to select next generation Warehouse Management System (WMS) for use at company’s 25+ DCs (average facility size exceeds 750K sq. ft.). Developed selection criteria and evaluated packages (Manhattan Associates, RedPrairie / Blue Yonder, Infor, and HighJump) versus 900+ factors in the areas of functionality, technology and risk. Estimated timing and resource requirements for package implementation, and presented findings / recommendations to executive management.
Multinational Food Ingredients Manufacturer
Assessed company’s demand / supply planning, transportation, order management, procurement and manufacturing operations. Identified process, organization and IT gaps versus leading practices. Confirmed need for demand / supply planning APS software tool, and developed short list of recommended vendors.
Manufacturer of Premium Chocolates
Worked with client for almost two years. Served as Interim Director of Logistics on two different occasions. Reduced Western Region transportation spend by $450K (16%) through use of pooling and alternate carriers. Managed transition to new Western Region 3PL provider, and resolved all start-up issues within 60 days of move. Developed / implemented vendor scorecard to track 3PL provider performance. Improved Eastern Region on-time delivery performance from < 60% to 90+%. Streamlined invoice audit / payment process.
Led RFP process to identify and select a 3PL partner to provide contract packaging, warehousing and TL / LTL transportation services for North America. Evaluated over 100 potential candidates. Ultimately selected an East Coast based 3PL provider with specialized expertise in confectionery packaging, warehousing and transportation.
Leading Canned Fruits & Vegetables Manufacturer and Distributor
Served as Director of Supply Chain Planning. Managed 21-person Department (including 7 direct reports) and $3.1M payroll. Accountable for customer service performance, demand forecasting, production planning and finished goods inventory management ($215M value) for entire division product line (2800 SKUs). Forecasted sales by SKU. Coordinated inventory replenishment activities among customer satisfaction, purchasing, plant operations, distribution centers and 3PL transportation providers. Directed movement of product from 12 internal production locations and 38 distributed manufacturers (12 offshore) to 8 DCs throughout the US.
Reduced finished goods by $33M (13%) while maintaining customer service performance. Improved SKU / DC forecast accuracy by 24%. Implemented Supply Chain Planner and Demand Fulfillment modules of i2 (now Blue Yonder) APS software, including surrounding processes and integration with JD Edwards (now Oracle) ERP software. Enhanced existing i2 (now Blue Yonder) Demand Planner implementation. Designed and implemented new allocation management process to facilitate cross-functional decision-making during periods of short supply. As a direct result, company is recognizing and deciding how to resolve short supply issues much earlier that in the past, resulting in improved customer satisfaction.
Dried Fruit and Juice Manufacturer
Led project team that evaluated performance of company’s primary third party logistics (3PL) provider. Project focused on evaluating provider’s effectiveness in the areas of order fulfillment, customer service, transportation management, warehousing, finished goods inventory management, invoicing and accounts receivable. Also performed network analysis to determine if reducing the number of DCs would lower total delivered costs. Established that remaining with current 3PL provider in existing network would result in lowest total costs, while bringing these activities in-house would increase logistics expenses by over $1.8M annually. Identified a variety of process, policy and systems improvements that are expected to yield approximately $1M in annual savings.
Major Pet Food Company
Conducted a direct shipment feasibility study for two major processing plants. Compared customer order patterns with plant production at the SKU level. Found that manufacturer could more than double direct shipments through more efficient use of existing setdown space.
Canned Seafood Division of Fortune 500 International Food Manufacturer
Served as Demand / Inventory Planning Manager. Accountable for finished goods inventory ($100M value), customer service performance, and forecast accuracy for entire company product line (1000 SKUs). Coordinated inventory replenishment activities among order management, plant operations, and 3PL warehousing and transportation providers. Directed movement of goods from six manufacturing facilities (two offshore) to ten distribution centers throughout the US and Canada. Forecasted sales at the SKU level. Managed two planning analysts.
Reduced finished goods inventory by $30M (23%) while improving customer service by implementing a time-series based sales forecasting system, instituting forecasting and production planning metrics, establishing / implementing policies to fully utilize integrated systems capabilities, improving inventory balance integrity, and consolidating DCs. Implemented Demand Forecasting, Inventory Planning, DRP and Deployment modules of American Software (now Logility) APS software.
Pet Food Subsidiary of a Multinational Food Producer
Served as Sales Forecasting Supervisor. Forecasted sales at SKU level of entire company product line (2500 SKUs). Forecasts were used to manage finished goods and raw materials inventories, plan production and forecast / monitor corporate financial performance. Position involved frequent contact with corporate executive staff and all functional areas of the organization.
Developed and implemented sales forecasting procedures and techniques for entire company product line. Improved sales forecasting accuracy by 10%, resulting in reduced inventories, improved customer service and more predictable financial performance.