Representative Case Studies
- 1. Localization Initiative for National Department Store The leading department store chain in the US desired to find a way to leverage local insights to drive sales and profit in every store in order to drive improved comps and gain market share The solution consisted of 3 areas of focus: Field Empowerment: developed a process where the Field provides input into strategic merchandising decisions and results-driven recommendations to Central regarding assortment and product requests Planning Process: designed a planning process that integrates Central and Field bottoms-up sales plans and provides Buyers and Planners with localized guidance before market Tools and Reports: ensured Field members have access to appropriate tools and reports to support the new Field structure Touted by the Chairman and CEO as THE key initiative to turn performance around, enable it to steal market share in a tough economy, and drive future success Comp store sales were 410 basis points higher than their competitors’ average, even in an extremely tough retail and economic environment Projected 5% growth per year of comp store sales and 30% increase in sales per square foot over 3 years 13 of the top 15 stores following initial implementation were Localized stores. Historically many of these had been significantly underperforming stores. Client: Solution: Results: Case Study Cliff acted as PMO on the project to align the efforts of 3 individual work-streams. Due to his visibility into all areas of work, he was able to significantly contribute to each, assisting in process design, communication tool development and the outlining of key reports and metrics to implement the new process. Cliff was also instrumental in implementing the new initiative for the client’s West Coast operations.
- 2. Specialty Retailer PD Process Design and Implementation A billion dollar specialty apparel retailer had been experiencing negative comp store growth for over a year, and had an opportunity to execute an effective product development process and organization aimed at increasing sales KSA brought in experts across multiple functional areas to derive a truly integrated product development process aimed not only at increasing the efficiencies of PD activities, but also enhancing the operations of upstream and downstream activities as well. KSA defined in detail the new product development process in preparation for an October 2008 implementation. During this time, KSA also played an instrumental role in developing the technological components necessary to manage the new process. The process, tools and enhanced organizational roles were implemented across the entire brand with KSA consulting resources acting as interim product managers to ensure ongoing adherence to the process Reduced planned development workload by 24% by using Conceptual Assortment Plans Reduced use of non-strategic air freight from 70% to 28%, yielding savings of $12-$14 MM Improved calendar adherence by 30% Increased sample penetration at key product development milestones from less than 10% to greater than 65% Less than 6 months after full implementation in the primary brand, the client posted its first positive comp store sales in over 2 years Client: Solution: Results: Case Study Cliff managed the development of the tools needed to facilitate a best practice PD process. One executive referred to his creation as “PLM built in Excel”. Cliff also developed a workload analysis with the brand president that led to the reorganization of the entire brand. During implementation, Cliff remained as an interim-Product Manager to lead the development of new styles and ensure collaboration between functional areas.
- 3. Specialty Retailer Sourcing System Design and Implementation A multi-billion dollar specialty retailer with a global presence wanted to improve its product development (PD) and sourcing capabilities while building and maintaining visibility to data throughout the supply chain. The majority of the business was managed using manual spreadsheets, but was also supported by a number of non-integrated systems causing the company to experience high labor costs, long lead times, and stunted growth Designed a global, streamlined processes for handling business functions across PD, production, and sourcing Co-developed an integrated sourcing system; documented and communicated business requirements to the software vendor to facilitate the system design Facilitated the design and data mapping required for integration with existing systems Designed reporting tools to measure critical business metrics and key performance indicators Created a phased rollout approach that aligned with the business functions’ different calendars Increased global visibility to data, which reduced labor costs by eliminating redundant data entry Improved visibility to business performance and metrics Enabled growth by allowing the business to be more flexible to merchant requirements Increased labor efficiency, as evidenced by 4% increase in sourcing dollars per FTE Increased style adoption rate by 17% through more efficient collaboration during the design process Client: Solution: Results: Case Study Cliff completely redesigned the software testing process for the client when he joined the project in mid-stream which reduced workload and increased data integrity. He led the transition of the software testing process to a 3 rd party QA firm. Cliff also led the design and implementation of key security enhancements to the system. The system was later acquired by a major PLM vendor to enable further downstream synergies for potential clients.