Exploring Strategies to Developing a Smart Enterprise With a Customer Centric & Data Driven Culture

Hello, everyone, and welcome to the scope supply chain virtual summit hosted on quartz network. My name is Britt Erler QN executive correspondent, thank you so much for joining us, I would like to welcome our executive speaker Johnny Ivanyi, head of distribution excellence at Bayer. Welcome, Johnny. Thank you bringing to have me here. Pleasure to have you here as well and really excited to dive into this conversation today. But before we kick off, if you wouldn’t mind giving the audience just a quick context about your current role and what all you do for your company.

Sure, thank you. I’m responsible in the buyer organization in crop science. For the global distribution, excellent team, we call center of excellence. Again, when we have all this tragedy of the company is specific for logistics and customer service. inside of my pocket, I have three main areas. One is the deployment, when they have we have technically all the project of the digital transformation of the company. The second one is the link comes in when we have the continuous improvement of the company we call excellence or lean or operation excellence. And the bar on is the inside is the matrix, how can I measure the success of the project of the continuous improvement of the company so so that same in general terms, what I’m doing right now, my background, I’m being 20 years plus on this supply chain organization, in different automotive business in, you know, oil and gas business, and now I hearing the age of business. That’s maybe Johnny,

Fantastic. And with that being said, It is no secret that logistics is a large component for driving business value and driving a company as a whole. In your experience, what are some of the areas of logistics, especially from the process that you have in place that are the most important to digitize first? And why?

Yeah, um, good question. We have four pillars on the company that was specific for distribution for logistics, like, how is going to be the target state of the company with planning there? We start with the sustainability piece. Okay. The second one is about the value of the customer experience, how can we improve the customer experience of the customer? The third one is more about how is going to be this transformation with departments, what kind of partner is going to be working with us? Okay. And the fourth one is more about the matrix, the inside? How can I measure this, I’m sure this transformation is focused on I will say starting with a data data integration. So this is the first point that I see as a company is the first like milestone for the company, then we are moving to get a standardized process and systems because we can today we have a fragmented situation on the company. And we would try to get just what we have in Europe, we are sitting in Italy, is the same system that we have in Brazil. So this is the kind of let’s your solution, or let’s see trends that we are looking at on distribution and logistics. Okay, so this is more or less, how is this but we want to go there is we split this roadmap of these experiences in three pockets. One is luck Foundation. The second one we call different shares, what is what what is the different from buyer from the market, what is the experience, and finally, is going to be touched very close to the customer experience that is going to be to be more agile, let’s see a specific solution for the customer. So this is more or less the trend that we have from now to 2025. So that’s the investment that we have.

Absolutely, and I think customer centered approaches are really becoming the wave of the future. And it’s so key in every organization. So talk to me a little bit more about that and how you really transform an organization to have this customer centric approach.

Yeah, we we say in the company that we want to be partnered of choice for the customers. So everything is related with customers. So we are in logistic and we are responsible for the last mile, the last experience with the customer, like we have in different companies or when you receive the product on the right time and the right product for the in the field correct. So for sure, there is no doubt that is very, very connecting with the customer experience but what we want to move for now to get from a standard service to my customer. To get this, let’s say differentiated service is going to be more flexible. We, as a company, we want to be flexible and see if I hear from your side, what kind of spirit Are you looking for, we try to provide us This, of course, based on on the standardization that we have on the company or based on what we can provide to you. But no doubt, we are very connected. And by the way, we have in the company, one of the metrics that we call NPS Net Promoter Score. That is just to check with the cost to measure how was your experience during the journey with us as a company to the different process that you have? Let’s see touchpoint inside of buyer.

And with that being said, especially for a large company such as yours, how do you ensure that this strategy, this approach is really aligned across all of your teams?

It’s a cool, it’s a cool question, because I think everything is related with people, right? So we need to focus on where we focus on we have a strong focus on the capabilities of the training of the team, we are focused on them on the solution, but on the same thing of the training, how can I get this training of the teeny fight change the way that we are working? Again, we are going to use another example is sun, South Asia, we are working for x and we are having a fragment and we are working on Excel files. And now we are going to move to this digital solution. I need to train my my team. And the second point. The second point is how can I introduce the mindset of digital mindset of the team. Because we are having a now with the convenience clear that we as a company, and I think the entire wars work is moving to the digital world. If I don’t training, I don’t have the capabilities, I don’t have this mindset, it’s going to be quite difficult to get and get the right connection with your customer. And even with a product. So that’s the way that I see.

I completely agree with you. And I think as you mentioned, those companies are really moving towards a technology centered approach. But there’s also a lot of areas a country specifically that don’t have as much access to a digital space or to the technology to advance their company. How do you still succeed in this environment?

Yeah, good point is changing. You know, we used to have a lot of region that when you said that, the maturity of this trains of digital solution, they are not so strong for any reason. But I think it’s clear that this changing because the New World, we are opening a new door with this situation of COVID-19 how the customer, even the providers, they’re going to have a different experience, right. But I again, from my opinion, my experience, we had to go by a step, if we have a really specific plan we have at that we don’t have, we don’t need to get the solution. We try at least to get a standard process and no system, but at least the process. So we cannot implement any process or any, any solution from Digital solution, at least, we try to maintain the same standardization of process. Because the market on this situation, it’s not a mass, it’s a desire. So we as a company, we need to work very close with the market and the region. Okay, even though we are a global company.

Yeah, for a lot of companies, the transformation to make the entire company digital is not always an easy process, you run into a lot of challenges along the way and your experiences, what are some of the major challenges that you face? And how do you overcome them?

Yeah, I would say there are three or four elements on this pocket one is fun funding, right? If you’re having your think that you want to get information you need to get this funding of the company. The second one I will find is maturity. How is the maturity when I say maturity is about the data information on your let’s see footprint of customers in the region to get and connected with this roadmap solution, right. And the third one that for me, it’s as important as when you see the capabilities that you have with a team how you want to work together the team, the founding under resource to get done to change the game on on this on this specific maybe regions or country. But the most important I will say this is a journey we need to be clear that we cannot just in overnight to change your operation or the way to approach your customer or team. So I think that from my perspective that we need to be clear that is going to be alone. Germany, and you have an additional element that is the change management that is working together. And what this because if you have any change in your process in your system, you need to reinforce what how is this this change and the real value on the organization? So, yeah,

I completely agree. And as you mentioned, there’s a lot of companies that are just beginning this journey, and need to realize that it will take time, mistakes will be made, but you learn from them. And that’s how you grow. But if they’re just kickstarting this, bringing it to the table to the top leaders in their organization, what advice do you have for them to get started?

You know, first, you need to start with your assessment to understand how is the field that you are walking, I will always say you cannot fly if you don’t work, or you can run wrong. So, first, you need to understand, and that’s what I recommend to start with assessment. And to understand how is going to be this medicine or this new, let’s see approach. By again, I’m focused by region by country, because it’s totally different than whether I’m going to work with us folks, for sure, is going to be quite different for the folks that are sitting in Italy, on the south east of Asia for any reason. So that’s what I say. You need to understand very well when you are walking. And the third one is the needs. What is the reason the needs of the region? That was your question? So do we really need to get digital solution across the globe? Maybe No, we have a couple of regions that it’s not an it’s but so do you need to understand very well, what are these these needs? And then is the final point is put your roadmap? How is going to be is this digital transformation in your roadmap, put the milestone and say, how is it How are the checkpoints that you’re going to have to measure if you are in the right path. And again, maybe you cannot change the target stage, but you can change the house. Because we are in a very volatile war that is changing every day. Last year, we didn’t talk about COVID, right, thinking about the beginning of the quarter one, and now we are talking about COVID-19 in every corner replays. So that’s what I see that we need to be one additional elements agile, and flexible as a company. And even as an individual, as a professional, I will say that you as a person, as a professional need to be very flexible for the new work. So that’s maybe in a couple of words, what how I see this journey that is gonna be a marathon By the way, it’s not gonna be a sprint,

of course, it’s going to be different for every organization. And I think the key you mentioned is the willingness to adapt and to learn, because our culture right now is changing every single day, especially with what we saw last year and going into this year. And based on also what you’ve seen in the logistics industry as a whole. What are some of the other trends that you foresee coming up end of this year? Top of next?

Yeah, first is ecosystem, we cannot work in a fragmented logistic when I say ecosystem is how you’re connected with customer, how you’re connecting with planning, how you’re connecting with the manufacturing, how we are connected with your end customer, because maybe you have a couple of chains or a couple of let’s see blocks in your customer. This is one and then is coming the trends when I say the trainees iorp and three RPA is there how we can be more out to when you see an opportunity for automated process, how you can implement intelligent artificial machine learning. So it’s about how you can put in place and sometimes Let’s call the machine working and that is a process and system that you are going to have the same process as it in a couple of times. So I think from again on logistic, no, no doubts about IoT, by the way, how you can get a track and trace on real time of your truck if you are delivered a couple of products to your customer. The company want to understand what is my product on real time. So this is the new word again, I will say IoT, machine learning, no doubt about it intelligent artificial. This is some something that is coming on. Finally they RPA This is coming clear on the market today. And to get a clear visibility, even of your costs and experience of customers.

Definitely, and I think these are trends that we see not just even in the logistics industry, but a lot of other departments across the board. It’s really becoming widespread. And any other final pieces of advice that you have for leaders that maybe are in a similar role as yours, that are trying to make it through this time. It really helped their team and their company succeed.

Yay, good first. It’s again, you need to be on from different perspective, when I say open is, looks what is outside of the market even that I’m we are working in the age of business, that is agriculture. And we have a couple of discussion with different folks in different industries to see what is the trend is over there. Sometime we don’t need to invent the will, is there is just maybe the question how you can adapt this trend to your market or to do intersect is the first point. The second one again, I’m coming back to my foundation, what is the foundation that you have as a company and truly believe you have a strong foundation you can be you can get a sustainable long term. Let’s see, roadmap, if you don’t have a strong foundation, you can you can move but you are not going to be sustainable. Okay. And the third one, no doubts about of customer experience, every place on every corner of the company need to be clear, what is the customer experience, even yearning, the backstage? What are the trends, but at the same time, what is the kind of opportunities of needs that the cost and are looking for as a company? A maybe I can add something more. It’s about people. It’s people capability, how we can train, maintain the team with the right skill for this digital war. No doubts about this mindset I call digital mindset. So it’s very, very critical right now. And I see this is going to be part of the journey for everybody.

Yes, I think it is, as well. And I think really, you hit the nail on the head when you said it is at the end of the day. All of these strategies, all of these customer centric approaches, they all come back to the people. And if you don’t have the right people behind you, you won’t be able to push those ideas forward. So antastic advice. Thank you so much, Johnny. It’s been an absolute pleasure. And I’m really excited to see how our audience uses all of this to help move their companies through this very difficult, ever changing time that we’re experiencing. So thank you so much for being here. Thank you to everyone who tuned in. If you have any further questions for Johnny, there will be a discussion forum underneath this presentation. Please be safe everyone be healthy and enjoy the rest of the summit. Thank you