A Robust Turnaround for an Industrial Manufacturer
The Project
A legacy, U.S.-based industrial manufacturer that had just emerged from Chapter 11 restructuring was challenged with re-launching itself in the market and growing sales post-bankruptcy.
The 125-year old entity utilized both direct sales people and agents, with a global customer base and operations in Europe, Asia, and South America.
Their Board and CEO retained Smart Ventures to assess the sales organization of three divisions and develop a sales strategy to facilitate profitable growth as part of the company’s re-launch.
Our Approach
Smart Ventures took a two-step approach as part of our bottom-up assessment: a deep-dive analysis based on available company and industry data, and a series of interviews with customers and employees.
The Smart Ventures team met with the sales, senior operations, finance, engineering, and leadership teams. They engaged in field customer calls with the sales team (both with direct staff and agents), and held "destination" planning and process mapping sessions. Throughout the process, Smart Ventures team members spent more than 15 days on the road with the company’s sales team and worked to develop a comprehensive understanding of their entire operations.
In parallel, the Smart Ventures team analyzed both industry and company-specific data, utilizing models developed specifically for the situation. They analyzed market segmentation, penetration, cost of sales, sales ROI, sales effectiveness, and supply chain. Smart Ventures also reviewed over 10 years of historical sales, industry statistics, and Company personnel to look for trends and opportunities.
Using the findings from the bottom-up assessment, Smart Ventures proposed and implemented the following changes:
- Reorganized the sales organization by geographic divisions
- Established a Global Account team
- Recruited new leadership for the sales and marketing areas and restructured the marketing team
- Rolled out a first-ever CRM system
- Refocused Sales KPIs
- Restructured sales compensation programs
- Created growth initiatives to target and cross-sell to new verticals
- Overhauled global shipping and freight program
Results
Over a 24-month period during SmartVentures' involvement, the Company increased monthly revenue exponentially and reduced annual direct transportation costs by $3 million. The Company was sold for a significant multiple of more than five times the original purchase price, with more than double the revenue and four times the earnings.
Window and Door Manufacturer Finds More than $1M in Savings
The Project
A private manufacturer of windows and doors reached out to Smart Ventures in hopes of identifying cost savings opportunities within their supply chain.
Our Approach
We compiled historical company data from all available sources including stakeholders, vendors, and the company ERP AP system, analyzing by modes, lanes, and vendors. In parallel, our team reviewed current market conditions and created competitive environments where savings potential could be maximized or new revenue streams could be identified.
Key changes that Smart Ventures implemented include:
- Increased maximum load capacity which resulted in a cost savings per load of 25%
- Re-negotiated rates with asset-based carriers and freight brokers (including bulk tankers and rail)
- Revised terms in sales contracts that speak to freight and return shipping costs to ensure customer account profitability
- Implemented a company-wide transportation routing system and created a process to monitor mode spend by lane and plant
- Identified new revenue streams associated with rail storage and bulk transfer capabilities
Results
Smart Ventures was able to identify more than $1.1 million in cost savings. The savings achieved were more than nine times greater than what the company paid in consulting fees.
A Successful Merger Leads to 3x Growth to Bottom Line
The Project
After the merger of two health care transportation service providers, Smart Ventures was tasked with evaluating and optimizing processes within the newly formed organization.
Our Approach
We accomplished this by immersing ourselves inside the organization and becoming a trusted advisor to the leadership team. We evaluated and helped to reinforce their core strengths, in addition to solving for market facing and operational weaknesses.
We helped their team with the following areas:
- Sales & Marketing
- Call Taking Capabilities
- CRM and ERP Platform functionality
- Insurance and Market based Pricing
The company’s sales and marketing function, while driving some success, was lacking in planning, structure and accountability. We addressed this by establishing a sales process, sales goals, target accounts and sales training on how to deal with different buying types. We refocused the team on retail markets as well as the lucrative insurance market.
In tandem, we worked with the team on installing a CRM (Salesforce) to maximize productivity, accountability and customer service. Salesforce became the central location for relevant customer information for all stakeholders, and ultimately helped drive both operational and margin improvement.
To maximize call taking efficiency, we helped to upgrade their phone services, drafted policy and procedures for new roles, and aligned operations to optimized workflows. We transformed their scattered operators into a well functioning call center.
Lastly, we worked to understand market pricing in their industry and created pricing schedules that enabled their team to provide consistent, analysis backed prices to customers.
Results:
The results of the project were transformational to the business. The company saw a tripling of the EBITDA in the first 36 month after the project’s completion. By rethinking the management of their call center, Smart Ventures helped the company come to be seen as the market leader.