Insights from The Lab

Digitization

Category: Digitization


Auto Parts—Tire Manufacturing: Standardization and Digital Automation Increase Production, Slash Downtime, and Reduce Avoidable Waste

Project Background The company, a top-3 global tire manufacturer, was battling low-cost competitors who were overtaking the low-price end of the North American tire after-market. At the high-price end, effective marketing operations, high-quality product, and strong brand recognition kept these new entrants at bay. Even so, high-end customers pushed for lower pricing. Industry margins were …

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Information Services: Standardization and Automation Enable Effective Margin Management: Customers, Products, Services

Situation For decades, this company called itself an “information provider,” serving the global pharmaceuticals industry. After several major acquisitions broadened its market footprint across the entire healthcare sector, steady growth far exceeded original expectations. It rebranded itself as a “research and advisory firm,” delivering standard “products” as well as customized “management consulting” services. Management and …

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Global Shared Services: Design and implementation of a standardization road map for global shared-services operations

Situation The new COO of this retailer’s Global Shared Services (GSS) Center had spent nearly her entire career in similar global-scale shared-services centers. Five years prior, she was recruited by a colleague who had earlier joined the retailer from a large defense contractor’s shared-services organization where they had both worked. Her career move paid off …

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Pharmaceuticals: Process Discovery & Standardization Enable Deep Digitization

Standardization Helped Meet Customer Expectations & Ease Competitive Pressure Changes in the healthcare industry demanded improved capabilities from pharmaceuticals companies. Customers wanted flexible ordering options, shorter cycle times, new packaging, increased service support—and lower prices. The company’s new ERP upgrades promised to enable this new flexibility, increase productivity, and deliver sustainable cost reduction. But it …

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