Case Studies
Business intelligence and sales reporting that's as agile as your business and sales.
One executive's custom dashboard proves too useful to be kept from the sales force.
Business intelligence and sales reporting that's as agile as your business and sales.
Highlights...
- “Above-and-beyond” capabilities delivered on time
- Responsive project management made the best of each situation
- Flexible platform lays the groundwork for next enhancements
- “No-waste” investment delivers valuable intelligence during each phase
A large life sciences sales organization needed various channels of their workforce to better collaborate and work together more closely. Each channel had been operating under its own independent system, generating a variety of (uncoordinated) reports that aimed to achieve a common goal, but were nearly impossible to efficiently combine and analyze.
What’s more, the parent company wanted to facilitate the communication of strategy and tactics across the various channels and divisions of their business.
To help unite and align the organizations, the client asked XL Group to create a common, fully integrated sales reporting platform for the entire company, and then conduct company-wide training to ensure the maximum value was reaped from the investment.
XL Group collaborated with a training vendor and created a comprehensive plan for the initiative.
Creative problem-solving keeps accelerated training schedule intact:
Early in the project, the client requested the ability to train a group of managers on the system (still in development at this point) even though their internal processes were not yet able to supply required data to demonstrate the reporting solution. XL Group proposed and executed a workaround that utilized older data feeds to create sample reports that allowed the training to proceed as requested.
As the deadline for a national sales meeting approached, the client’s internal IT group was still working hard to have “live data” ready for the new reporting platform. XL Group arranged to have our consultants on site, so that the “just-in-time” data feeds were able to be demonstrated at the meeting. During the four-day event, the XL Group refreshed the data, delivered all files, and even replaced the files on CDs in time for use in the workshops at the meeting. With a timely bonus of being updated with the latest month of sales data, which was not in the original scope. (These files were even updated with the latest month of sales data, which was not in the original scope of the project.)
The original deliverable of the reports was completed, as requested, using Excel workbooks; however, going forward, XL Group advised integrating them into a web application that would provide for the automatic update of all monthly data as well as the preservation and input of field intelligence. XL Group worked closely with the client’s assigned Task Force to determine the specifications and functionality for the web application that would facilitate the established cross-channel collaboration. Report printouts and exports were also made available from the SFA website with permission-based access.
One exec's custom dashboard proves too useful to be kept from the sales force.
Highlights...
- Single view of key data revealed which marketing programs were working best
- Easy-to-read reporting helped senior leaders get the whole picture-fast
- Dashboard elements could be exported to use in PowerPoint and other programs
- 60-day design-to-deployment timetable satisfied busy client’s objectives
A Sales VP for a long-term client approached XL Group and expressed his desire to have management level reporting served up to him in an easier-to-read format and on a regular basis.
XL Group proposed and designed a dashboard application that summarized key sales metrics at a high level and was automatically updated on a monthly basis for senior management to review and monitor. Data feeds from the client’s Sales XLerator platform were used to populate the report, which aggregated and analyzed data from approximately 250 field personnel located throughout the US.
New capabilities in a flexible format:
The new executive dashboard provided reports on Sales Performance, Source of Business, and Efforts and Results. The dashboard also featured a printable package, showing key performance indicators down to the territory level, that was distributed for use by reps in the field. Each section of that package was developed as a series of charts and/or tables that could be opened in a logical sequence, as either a “build” or “drill-down” for different aspects of the business.
In addition, each chart or table could be easily cut and pasted into offline files such as PowerPoint presentations. As development was underway, the benefits of distributing this intelligence and analysis to a wider audience in the organization became clear, and it was decided that the dashboard would be made available at all sales levels in addition to the national view. The dashboard was adapted so that regional managers and individual reps were able to view the metrics (as permitted by their privilege-based access level).
The project was completed and deployed within 60 days and has become the monthly starting point for analysis throughout numerous levels of the company.
