Industry: Manufacturing & Distribution
Turnover: Approx. $75m
Ownership: Privately held
Project Trigger
The client, a market leader in its sector, was targeting ambitious growth from $75M to $150M within 3–5 years. However, operational inefficiencies were creating significant challenges:
- New Product Development (NPD) lacked structure, with ad hoc launches causing delays and unclear ROI.
- Category Management processes were inconsistent, limiting pricing optimisation and SKU rationalisation.
- Sales & Operations Planning (S&OP) was non-existent, resulting in inventory misalignment, poor forecast accuracy, and reactive decision-making.
To address these gaps, the client partnered with Active Directions to design and implement an integrated operational improvement program.
Approach
Active Directions followed a phased “Observe, Perform, Validate” methodology, ensuring capability transfer and process adoption. The program focused on three integrated streams:
1. New Product Development (NPD)
- Designed a stage-gate process to govern product innovation from ideation through launch.
- Built an NPD decision tree and business case templates including financial impact criteria.
- Established governance roles (Gate Keepers & Gate Heroes) and review cadence.
2. Category Management
- Delivered a repeatable category review framework, starting with the Machines Category.
- Developed standard templates for data analysis and reporting to support SKU rationalisation.
- Enabled data-driven decision-making for portfolio optimisation and revenue targets.
3. Sales & Operations Planning (S&OP)
- Created cross-functional S&OP teams linking Sales, Finance, Procurement, and Operations.
- Designed a single S&OP model integrating demand forecasts and supply planning.
- Instituted bi-weekly sessions and scenario analysis to align financial and operational outcomes.
We designed and developed these new processes and worked with the internal teams to transition the process, meetings and reporting into ‘business as usual’. Active Directions attended the key meetings until the new ways of working were embedded.
Challenges Addressed
- Fragmented data and limited reporting capabilities.
- Role resource gaps, dual-hatting leading to competing priorities.
- Initial resistance to governance and process standardisation.
Outcomes
- Structured Innovation: NPD pipeline formalised with stage-gate rigor reducing time-to-market.
- Category Optimisation: Machines Category plan delivered with 3-year targets, SKU rationalisation, and margin improvement metrics.
- Operational Integration: S&OP model in place, improving forecast accuracy and working capital utilisation.
- Cross-Functional Alignment: Governance rhythms embedded for sustained collaboration.
- Value Impact: Estimated procurement and inventory optimisation savings of 8–12%.
Starter Questions for Management
- How confident are you that your current product development processes can deliver the speed and ROI your growth strategy demands?
- Are your category management practices providing clear, data-backed decisions to maximise margin and reduce complexity?
- Is your S&OP model delivering effective alignment between sales forecasts, operational capabilities, and financial expectations?
- If an investor asked for evidence of structured, scalable operational capability, could you demonstrate maturity across NPD, Category Management, and S&OP?
Contact Active Directions to explore how aligned planning, structured governance, and disciplined execution across NPD, Category Management, and S&OP can strengthen performance and support your next phase of growth.