Raul Dominguez, a Wendy’s franchise owner in south Florida, was grappling with the escalating cost of energy. The need to manage energy use and operational expense was a pressing issue for Dominguez and other franchisees in the region. Quick-serve restaurants, especially those located in warm climates like South Florida, consume a significant amount of energy. These establishments face unique challenges, including high-temperature broilers and other cooking equipment that generate substantial heat, commercial-grade refrigeration for safe food storage, and robust HVAC systems to ensure a comfortable customer experience. Dominguez, along with several other Wendy’s franchise owners participating in a regional council, volunteered to test various energy management strategies to address energy consumption, manual system overrides, and equipment monitoring.

African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), a supranational financial institution based in Egypt, was facing challenges in managing documents for its board meetings and investor interactions. The bank was grappling with the cumbersome process of printing large quantities of confidential documents, accommodating last-minute changes, and ensuring the secure disposal of these documents post-meetings. The process was not only time-consuming and costly but also posed significant security risks, especially when the board members had to travel with these documents for meetings abroad. The bank was in dire need of a secure and efficient solution that could streamline their document management and meeting preparations.

The American University in Cairo (AUC), a premier English language institution in higher education, was facing challenges in conducting council meetings due to the shift to remote meetings. The university was in search of a one-stop meeting solution that could help them collate documents conveniently and make them accessible across multiple devices. They were previously conducting paper-based meetings, which were not efficient in a remote working environment. The university had shortlisted several meeting solutions including Convene, Nasdaq, MeetingSense, and MeetingBooster. The decision was to be made based on functionality, cost, and responsiveness of the service providers.

Corporate Secretaries International Association (CSIA) is a global federation of governance bodies with members from five continents. The association conducts most of its meetings virtually due to the geographical dispersion of its members. Prior to the implementation of a board meeting tool, CSIA faced challenges in managing and distributing board packs to their directors. The traditional method of sending these packs via email was inefficient and unreliable, with emails often getting lost or ending up in spam folders. Additionally, the size limit on email attachments often resulted in the need to resend board packs. The association was in dire need of a solution that could streamline their meeting preparation and document approval processes, and facilitate efficient and effective virtual meetings.

The King Hussein Cancer Foundation (KHCF), a non-governmental organization dedicated to cancer care, education, and research, was in search of a user-friendly, customizable, and secure platform for handling their extensive confidential data. The foundation required a tool with a document vault where they could store all sensitive documents with high security yet fully accessible. The need for a secure platform was driven by the nature of their work, which involved handling confidential discussions and files, scientific research, and fundraising. The decision to find a new tool was made after several discussions among the Board of Trustees and other executives of the KHCF.

Onderstepoort Biological Products (OBP), a South Africa-based biopharmaceutical products provider, was facing challenges with its manual board pack processing. The company was struggling with the compilation and distribution of board packs across board and committee meetings. In 2020, the board of directors requested the legal and secretariat departments to find a solution to improve their meeting process and document management. The company, being a National Key Point, was also concerned about the risks of information breaches if they continued to operate manually. The search for a solution involved extensive consultation with the IT and Procurement Departments.

Grant Thornton, a global network active in 135 countries, supports approximately 27,000 companies annually on financial matters with a focus on sustainable development. However, the company faced a significant challenge in syncing and scaling its internal sustainability work. The collection of sustainability information from various internal units was previously done manually using Excel files. This process was time-consuming, and the continuous work and follow-up became challenging and hard to manage. The ability to collect, sort, and analyze data on a detailed level was an important factor when Grant Thornton evaluated different sustainability platforms to use.

Intrum, a leading credit management services company, was struggling with the manual and time-consuming process of managing its sustainability data. The company was using Excel sheets to collect and analyze social and environmental data from its local units. This process was not only labor-intensive but also made it difficult to keep track of the latest data updates and find relevant information for specific tasks. The company wanted to automate the most time-consuming parts of data collection, get a good overview of the data, and make it easy to compare the data historically and between local offices. It was also important for Intrum to enable its local offices to use sustainability data to inform decisions, track progress, and compare with other entities across the group.

Martin & Servera, a leading restaurant and wholesale specialist in Sweden, faced a significant challenge in managing its sustainability work due to the vast variety of products it sold and purchased globally. The company was committed to ensuring that its 1,000+ suppliers met its product sustainability requirements and expectations. However, manually collecting all the relevant information and working with real-time data and analysis became an overwhelming, person-dependent process. The company needed a solution that would allow suppliers to easily report information, follow up on their certificates, and provide an overview of the data. This led to a thorough investigation and needs analysis to find a suitable system for managing and monitoring suppliers.

Nudie Jeans, a globally recognized denim brand, was facing challenges in managing its sustainability data. The company was using an unoptimized method of manually gathering and managing sustainability data through email communication with suppliers and Excel files. This system was not suitable for long-term sustainability management for a company striving for excellence within sustainability. The main pain points included manual collection of data, scattered data points, short-term solutions for managing sustainability, and time-consuming processes. Nudie Jeans recognized a need for a tool that could simplify the process, make it more efficient, and consolidate all data in one place.

Oatly, a plant-based food brand founded in Sweden in 1994, has a core business model grounded in sustainable practices. As the company expanded its global presence, it faced the challenge of scaling its sustainability work in proportion to its growth. Prior to implementing a solution, Oatly manually collected and reported sustainability data using Excel sheets. This process was time-consuming and created a lot of administrative tasks for everyone involved in reporting the data. As Oatly continued to grow rapidly, these manual tasks were taking up too much time. The company needed a time-efficient solution that could scale with its growth, allowing it to continue producing high-quality sustainable products but in larger quantities. This meant finding a system that could digitalize data collection globally and simplify the quality control of the data, enabling Oatly to make data-driven sustainable decisions that were better for both the business and the planet.

Blessing Health, a major regional medical provider with over 160 locations across multiple buildings, was struggling with the complexity of managing their asset relationships. The facilities team had to navigate a large, intricate environment daily, keeping track of how HVAC, electrical, plumbing, and other systems interconnected at each location. This was crucial for quick response to maintenance needs, preventing unintentional impacts to connected assets, ensuring patient and staff safety, and keeping all facilities fully operational. The organization's portfolio included several older buildings, which added to the complexity. The team had to rely on wordy descriptions to explain asset relationships and locations, which was not efficient or effective. After a bitter cold snap caused four sprinkler heads to break in just three weeks, it became clear that immediate access to room-asset relationship information was critical. An attempt to integrate a mapping tool with their existing facility management software proved unsuccessful, as the two systems couldn't fully integrate, leading to dual work and reluctance to use the tools.

Advanced Atomization Technologies, a joint venture between GE Aviation and Parker Hannifin, was facing a significant challenge in managing their maintenance program. The company, which produces fuel nozzles for GE Aviation jet engines, was dealing with an overwhelming number of work orders, often exceeding 500 a month. The maintenance team was struggling to keep up, resulting in an average of 12 to 14 hours of overtime per week per technician. Despite this, the overall uptime remained at an average of 80%. The company had tried several different Computerized Maintenance Management System (CMMS) platforms over the years, but none provided the comprehensive solution they needed. The goal was to find a software that could minimize reactive work orders, eliminate overtime, and maximize asset uptime.

Asahi Kasei Plastics North America, a leading plastics compounder, was facing several challenges in managing preventive maintenance across its multiple facilities in Fowlerville, Michigan, and Athens, Alabama. The company had to manage around 2,000 assets, including extruders, feeders, hoppers, and plant support equipment. The plant support equipment was critical as it serviced multiple lines, and its downtime could halt multiple production lines. The company needed a Computerized Maintenance Management System (CMMS) that could seamlessly manage multiple plants on one system. Another challenge was customer audits. Asahi Kasei's customers needed assurance that equipment was being properly maintained and that critical spare parts were available in case of a failure. The company was looking for a more streamlined alternative to pencil and paper to manage preventive maintenance on their equipment.

Cerapedics, a global bone-graft technology company, was facing a significant challenge in managing their inventory of over 750 spare parts. The company needed a system that would allow for efficient and strategic spare parts management. The existing system was time-consuming and labor-intensive, with workers spending valuable time navigating the inventory to find the right part for the right equipment. The company recognized the need for part tagging, location tracking, and a central organizing system for the storeroom. The challenge was to develop a system that would not only streamline the process but also ensure that critical spares were readily available during maintenance emergencies.

Berlin Packaging, a global Hybrid Packaging Supplier, faced significant challenges in maintaining its high service level of 99% on-time delivery rate for warehouse customer shipments. The company had been relying on traditional less-than truckload (LTL) shipping services to fulfill its partial and LTL shipping needs. However, this method often resulted in unreliable transit and damaged freight, leading to substantial overhead costs at enterprise volumes. Additionally, the costs associated with LTL and partial shipments were becoming a problem. Berlin Packaging also had a desire to lower its carbon footprint, which was not being addressed by their existing shipping methods.

Greenshield Organic, a manufacturer of organic and sustainable cleaning products, was facing a significant challenge in meeting the stringent distribution center requirements of major retailers. The company, which was founded on the premise of providing safer alternatives to conventional cleaning products, had been successful in gaining shelf space with several major retailers due to the high demand for environmentally responsible products. However, being a supplier for nationally recognized chains posed many logistical challenges. Large retailers require consistent supply and operate logistics under a strict protocol, imposing hefty fines and additional charges if a supplier fails to meet delivery requirements. With hundreds of thousands of suppliers selling their products through these retailers, precision and efficiency in logistics became a necessity for Greenshield Organic to maintain its growth and reputation.

Titan Supply Group, a laminate-flooring importer based in the Pacific Northwest, was facing significant challenges with its less-than-truckload (LTL) shipments. The company, which imports its products from overseas and distributes them to flooring retailers across the United States, was grappling with the common LTL industry issues of damaged and lost freight. This was not only causing financial losses due to the need for restocking damaged goods and filing damage claims, but it was also damaging the company's reputation. The LTL industry's unreliable service, unexpected fees, and poor operating service at the dock were causing significant operational issues for Titan Supply. The company needed a solution that would eliminate these issues and allow it to maintain its stringent schedules and meet its customers' strict delivery requirements.

Allan Store Fixtures, a Dallas-based business selling large retail store equipment, faced significant challenges in managing freight costs. The owner, Mamoon Allan, recognized that having accurate and readily available freight costs was crucial to the success of his business. The large size of the equipment he dealt with meant that shipping could be expensive, and discrepancies in freight costs often delayed his ability to set prices for customers or even ruined his profit margin entirely. The process of gathering price quotes from various local carriers, especially when shipping multiple less-than-truckload (LTL) items, was time-consuming and complex. The lack of a streamlined process for managing freight costs was a significant challenge for Allan Store Fixtures.

Biozyme, a rapidly growing company, was facing a significant challenge in managing its shipping process. The company had only one person responsible for handling the shipping process, who was also tasked with customer service. This resulted in a time-consuming and inefficient process, as the individual had to navigate through multiple websites to obtain a single quote. This inefficiency was not only costly but also negatively impacted their customer service, as the time that could have been devoted to customer interaction was instead spent on managing the shipping process.

Jones Performance, a rapidly growing company over the last 25 years, was facing a significant challenge in streamlining their shipping process to keep pace with the increasing demand. The company's shipping operations were not scaling at the same rate as the company's growth, leading to inefficiencies and higher costs. The need to maintain their existing carrier relationships while keeping shipment costs low to stay competitive was a critical issue. The company was in dire need of a solution that could help them save time, money, and labor in their shipping operations.

National Specialty Alloys (NSA), a company dealing with 40 to 60 shipments per day, was facing a significant challenge in terms of time and cost management. The shipping coordinator, Jessie Contreras, identified that the process of handling these shipments was consuming more time than it should, leading to inefficiencies and increased costs. The challenge was to find a solution that could streamline the shipping process, save time, and reduce costs. The company needed a technology that could connect them with their carriers, provide up-to-date rates for comparison, and allow them to schedule their shipments directly.

Road Rescue, a Texas-based company that manufactures a pothole-repair product, was facing a significant challenge in its operations. The company's VP of Operations, Andrew Blades, was frustrated with the amount of time it took to create accurate quotes for customers. This was a critical aspect of the business, as their customers included city and state governments managing large-scale road repairs, big box-stores buying wholesale, and home improvement retailer sites. Any inaccuracies in the quotes could lead to unnecessarily high shipping costs, eating into the profit margins of the orders. Additionally, the labor costs were high due to the hours employees spent entering data.

The Music People!, a global distributor and manufacturer of professional audio equipment, faced a significant challenge in managing their shipping process. With a catalog of thousands of products from over a hundred brands, the company had to deliver to 73 countries worldwide. The complexity of shipping such a diverse range of products was compounded by customers' demands for fast, affordable shipping. The company relied on competitive quotes to secure the best shipping options for their vendors. However, as freight shipping costs increased and capacity decreased, providing affordable shipping became a significant problem. Until 2015, the company's manager, Jeremy Teele, and his team obtained quotes by manually searching through each carrier's website. To save time, Teele limited the number of carriers they used, which led to customer complaints about high shipping prices.

Vericom Global Solutions, a company with distribution centers in San Diego and Knoxville, was facing a significant challenge in managing its shipping process. The operations manager, Aaron Kelley, was responsible for approximately 2,000 shipments a month. The process of comparing shipping rates for every shipment was time-consuming and inefficient, as it involved visiting up to 10 different carriers' websites. This inefficiency was negatively impacting the company's bottom line. Kelley began searching for a solution to streamline the process. He explored various transportation management software options, but none seemed to offer any significant improvement in efficiency.

Marchesini Group, a large industrial enterprise that builds stand-alone packaging machines and complete production lines for the pharmaceutical and cosmetics industries, faced significant challenges in its customer service operations. With customers and machines located in dozens of countries, the company struggled with communication issues due to the limitations of existing technology. This often resulted in an inability to resolve issues quickly and accurately. The company's service team, made up of 300 technicians in Italy and 50 specialists worldwide, aimed to guarantee a rapid resolution to their customers: within 12 hours in Europe and North America, and 24 hours in the rest of the world. However, the geographical dispersion of their customers and the complexity of their machinery made this goal challenging to achieve.

Salvagnini, a world leader in the design of sheet metal working machine tools, was facing a challenge in providing efficient and cost-effective remote technical support to its thousands of customers worldwide. With a constantly growing fleet, the company needed to maintain its core value of proximity to the customer without negatively impacting resources. The company was looking for an agile tool that would connect its technicians with customers and colleagues worldwide, enabling timely action on a malfunction or failure even remotely. The company's service challenges included shifting to proactive from reactive maintenance, more effectively and cost-efficiently supporting customers worldwide, preventing and better addressing machine malfunction and failure, and enhancing customer relationships.

The dental field has been facing a significant challenge in providing consistent access to practical dental education courses. Traditional in-person courses are increasingly being replaced by remote training platforms due to their convenience and accessibility. However, the need for a new way of delivering skills and competencies and managing learning and training is evident. The challenge lies in bridging the educational gaps of new graduates and the continuing education needs of more seasoned professionals, dentists, and dental office assistants. The goal is to improve service by providing various levels of training, real-time training in augmented reality, and internationalizing the service.

A leading ecommerce company, known for its innovative use of technology to enhance the online and mobile shopping experience for its millions of customers, was looking for ways to affect the buying journey by providing transparency into the post-purchase experience. The company analyzed purchasing patterns on over 12 million products from more than 10,000 brands. The analysis revealed that consumers were gaining confidence in the quality of flat-packed products, but freight and handling charges were a significant deterrent to purchase. Additionally, while an increasing number of products were being reengineered to ship more efficiently, these products often required assembly at home by the consumer. Products requiring complex or intricate assemblies were daunting to consumers and could deter purchases. Returns were also costly to both the vendor and consumer.

A major national brand was grappling with high costs associated with assembly-related support calls and returns. The products that required complex assembly were responsible for 75% of total customer complaints. The support calls alone cost the company $750,000 annually. The brand was seeking a solution to reduce these costs and improve their star ratings and Net Promoter Score. They decided to test the adoption of BILT, a platform that provides 3D instructions for product assembly, on a product that was among the top in complaint call volume. The product was chosen due to its high call volume and because it represented the average assembly time for the category.