Del Monte Foods Bets On Business Intelligence
As part of a broad effort to drive greater operational efficiencies across the company, Del Monte Foods recently announced that it is standardizing on enterprise business intelligence (EBI) software from Cognos Inc. The first major EBI project, to be launched in May, will involve the company's sales, marketing and finance departments.
The San Francisco-based food company, maker of nearly 3,500 products and 33 brands including Contadina, StarKist, Nature's Goodness, College Inn and Kibbles 'n Bits, will use Cognos EBI software for data analysis, visualization of key performance metrics and business and production reporting, says Andy Wojewodka, director of Business Systems and Decision Support, Del Monte Foods.
Who It Affects
Data from the EBI software will be made available to company analysts, supervisors, managers and senior-level executives, Wojewodka says. Executives will use interactive dashboards included with the system to examine relevant corporate information and identify factors that affect performance. They will then make any necessary changes in corporate processes based on that information.
The move to EBI follows a series of corporate mergers that have brought various product lines and brands under one organization, and in effect have created a new Del Monte Foods entity, says Wojewodka.
"This is an opportunistic time to invest in EBI," he says. "This will give us a chance to identify and leverage our best practices, to find out the best way to do things based on lessons learned within different departments. We're trying to set guiding principals such as eliminating redundancies, improving efficiencies and driving to one version of the truth."
Del Monte Foods selected Cognos to help lead its Enterprise Business Intelligence Strategy (EBIS). Among key selling points was the Cognos system's ease-of-use, which allows staffers, managers and executives with varying levels of technical skill to take advantage of the application.
Beyond Technology
But the decision went well beyond the technology's capabilities. "There are lots of vendors with different pieces of the BI and data analysis puzzle," Wojewodka says. "We were of the mindset that it takes more than technology to leverage information. You need not only the software but a methodology of how you address BI. And in order to gain the most value out of BI, we need to have a strong partnership with the vendor. Cognos wanted to partner with us and understand what our business needs are and how best to leverage the technology."
The effort will help Del Monte optimize its supply chain by improving demand forecasting, fulfillment tracking, and collaboration with customers and partners. EBI will provide trends analysis and reporting that should help cut costs, and enable timely and informed decision-making. By standardizing on one BI platform, Del Monte Foods can ensure data consistency and reporting within the enterprise.
Del Monte began exploring enterprise BI about two and a half years ago following the mergers, and signed a contract with Cognos in late 2004. The company will initially use the EBI software in its sales, marketing and finance departments to ensure a more effective use of trade funds for promotional programs with retailers to drive incremental consumption.
"We will be able to better manage and track how effectively and efficiently we are spending money on our promotions," Wojewodka says. Using the software, Del Monte Foods will perform analysis to understand how it can spend more effectively. The company will be able to track what it expects to spend on marketing programs and what it actually did spend against baseline targets. "Business intelligence will enable us to analyze whether a retailer is buying more products from us that were discounted by us, and how effectively volume has flowed through retail chains to the consumer," Wojewodka says. Del Monte Foods does not have an actual return on investment metrics for the EBI implementation, since the first launch is not scheduled until May. But the company expects to see payback in terms of increased sales and more effective use of its trade spending dollars.
Critical Component
Business intelligence is becoming especially critical for consumer goods companies, which need to develop a strong understanding of consumers' needs, preferences, spending habits and reactions to market changes. For Del Monte Foods, the deployment this spring is just the beginning. "We plan to leverage the experience we gain from the initial EBI project across all parts of the company," says Wojewodka. Supply chain management will most likely be the next area the company targets for improvements.