Situation

• Increasing competition from new, non-traditional players
• Affordable Care Act creating structural change to reimbursement rates
• Population Health imperative raising expenses
• Budget constraints hampering innovation and growth

Motivation

Previous initiatives not enough

• Multiple efficiency efforts over previous 5 years had not generated sustainable improvements
• Margin headwinds required transformational approach

Improvements

• Implemented new Procure-to-Pay solution
• Refined user demand across multiple product categories
• Introduction of Lab Formulary to define/restrict available tests
• Standardization of major process across 3 hospitals to internal “best in class” standard

Outcome

• Fourfold increase in operating margin
• Creation of Innovation Unit tasked with maintaining focus on continuous improvement
• Greater organizational focus on accountability

Situation

• Rapid sales & share decline over prior 5 years in major product categories
• Increased competition & margin pressure
• Matrix org – U.S. vs global product lines
• Consistently missing sales and
  budget forecasts
• Dependence on subsidies from parent

Motivation

Prior top performer, seeking profitability

• High and mounting losses
• Need for better processes and execution and more constructive decision making and accountability with parent
• Need to right-size and rationalize
  product lines

Improvements

• Dramatically reduced SKUs
• Systematically reduced vendor spend on trade shows, sponsorships, shipping, travel, etc.
• Exited unprofitable business/market segments
• Improved forecasting and reduced need for outsourced product reconfigurations
• Found and enabled collection of >$3M/year in previously unbilled fees

Outcome

• Improved operating income by >$45M ($19M in first year)
• Achieved budget 1st time in 8 years
• Implemented 88 tactical cost reduction and margin ideas
• Eliminated fewer than 20 positions
• Improved processes, execution and accountability

Situation

• Privately owned
• Years of rapid growth tapering off
• Recent increase in regulation
• Move to more vertical integration
  and transition from founder to
  professional management
• Launched improvement program to move from aspirational budgets to actionable ideas

Motivation

• Declining returns to shareholders
• Rapid growth had limited focus/ ability to improve productivity
• Need to address skills and process gaps that developed with growth

Improvements

• Changed online vendors and
  web strategy
• Consolidated finance departments and simplified reporting with improved tools
• Streamlined customer call handling
• Improved marketing team coordination
• Delayered and increased spans of control
• Consolidated locations
• Eliminated servers/moved to cloud

Outcome

• $85 million increase in earnings delivered in one year
• Clear view of line manager talent with stars identified below them
• Improved ability to execute

Situation

• Industry leader
• Taken private by PE firm
• Significant price compression through government reimbursement cuts
• Difficult to grow EBIT in
  market conditions

Motivation

Top performer, looking to rebound

• Cost reductions to preserve margin
• Growth from new offerings
• Simplify core processes

Improvements

• Reduced service level FTEs by streamlining branch processes
• Cut low ROI technology projects
• Reduced procurement spend
  across 10+ categories
• Modified invoicing system to bill for additional, allowable revenue

Outcome

• Improved operating income by $40M+
• Implemented 100+ tactical cost reduction and margin ideas
• Reduced inventory spend
• Deepened continuous improvement culture
• Improved processes, execution and accountability

Situation

• Highly successful Medicare business
• Reimbursement compression
• Affordable Care Act and
  likely consolidation
• Relatively new CEO seeking
  cultural change
• “Productivity” a high priority
• Seeking best tools and processes

Motivation

A Top-5 Initiative to

• Generate significant savings
• Build internal capabilities to generate
  on-going improvements

Improvements

• Pushed “informational” calls to
  web and mobile
• Cut low ROI projects to fund strategic IT
• Reduced internal mail to cut mail expense by 3%
• Restructured broker commissions
• Realigned call center nursing support
• Renegotiated large procurement spends
• Eliminated operational redundancies
• Created central code review to reduce rework
• Improved management of
  associate productivity

Outcome

• Over $200 million in annual incremental operating income
• Significant portions of process and system incorporated into
  ongoing initiatives

Situation

• First mover in industry
• Public company
• Founders recently left company, transition difficult
• Significant revenue and net income decline

Motivation

Prior top performer, looking for cash

• Running low on cash
• Need to stem losses quickly
• Need to launch products that work

Improvements

• Consolidated and outsourced
  data centers
• Cut low ROI technology projects
• Focused sales organization on profitable accounts and improved pricing
• Reduced procurement spend across Top 30 spend categories

Outcome

• Improved operating income by $41M
• Implemented 218 tactical cost reduction and margin ideas
• Updated workforce to match changing business needs
• Revamped IT delivery and product organization

Situation

• Recently expanded into low-margin commodity products with
  additional facilities
• Rolled up independent distributors into a proprietary sales force
• Significant negative earnings trend
  to negative
• Running out of cash

Motivation

Urgent Need to

• Return to profitability
• Secure new financing

Improvements

• Identified fully loaded profitability of products, orders and channels
• Matched value to price (e.g., minimum order size without shipping fee)
• Shifted commodity products to
  on-line ordering
• Rationalized products
• Automated AP/AR processes
• Updated sales practices and incentives

Outcome

• 1,500 basis-point improvement to Operating Margins (from negative 10% to positive 5%)
• Upgraded processes and system
• Grew revenues
• Secured new bank financing
• Downscaled business lines with lower returns
• Unified pricing system to eliminate unprofitable discounting and generate more revenue

Situation

• Massive losses/growth in
  delinquent loans
• Significant litigation
• Under regulatory microscope
• 14 locations
• IT: green screen mixed with 4 web apps; 5+ seconds for reps to switch
  between systems

Motivation

Returned to profitable growth

• Desire to survive and prosper in
  industry consolidation
• New management team looking to shine
• Organization operated in silos

Improvements

• Consolidate into low cost locations
• Speed up IT system responsiveness
• Keep current systems but put behind a uniform interface
• Streamline call scripts
• Automate escrow and rate
  change notifications
• Pro-actively call customers to solve predicted issues and/or cross-sell other products

Outcome

• 50% reduction in costs with minor investment—productivity doubled
• Dramatically improved customer experience
• Line manager responsibility tripled to run all consumer call centers

Situation

• Highly seasonal business
• Limited local talent
• Expensive operating environment
• History of limited profitability
• Aging facilities
• Significant CapEx growth
• New COO

Motivation

• Desire for significant cultural change
• Need for maintenance capital
• “Don’t lose the magic”

Improvements

• New services driving margins + free
  social media
• Value adjustments to pricing and
  resort fees
• Food cost reduction that improved
  the menu
• Improvements to CapEx scoping
  and execution
• High return energy and
  efficiency upgrades
• Recruited large landscape services provider: higher skills at lower and
  semi-variable cost
• Streamlined HR and finance processes

Outcome

• Moved from loss position to positive
• Invested in growing visitor days
• Significantly improved facilities
• Upgraded talent