Collaborative Analytics

In continuation with my previous blog, which focused on a data level integration, I'll delve deeper into the process level integration capabilities of iCATalytics in this blog.

The Planning Templates is a key component of the iCATalytics TPO solution that helps to attain optimized planning maturity based on a ‘Pay for Performance’ model by allowing to plan across the DSMP activities in a unified manner. This enables the user to define goals for their retailer customers based on the latter’s past performance. The DSMP activities can be planned to help the retailer customers achieve the defined goals. Thus, the user creates the plan that encompasses the base business volumes as well incremental volumes generated by trade promotions. It is possible to have multiple plan scenarios for a specific combination value of planning dimensions (such as customer, product, time etc). Predictive models are used to arrive at metrics such as expected incremental volumes. The different plan scenarios are compared and the most optimum one is selected for execution.

Let us consider a Consumer Goods company that runs SAP CRM along with SAP Trade Promotion Management (SAP TPM). This solution has got a specific CRM Marketing Element called “Trade Promotion” to plan & track an event or trade promotion, that the CG company runs, along with information such as products planned, trade spends used and expected incremental volumes. In addition, an “Account Plan” object helps to plan for revenue, costs and contribution margins. This usually captures the non-promoted volumes, regular sales and discounts etc. The “Account Plan” has automatic links to related “Trade Promotions” and a consolidated view is available.

Having seen how the Planning Templates can be used to arrive at an optimized plan, it would result in true business benefit to have it integrated to SAP TPM. This is precisely what the Composite Application for Trade Promotions achieves. This composite is based on SAP NetWeaver platform and allows a user to browse, review and compare various plan scenarios from the Planning Templates. Moreover, there is an approval process to get a specific scenario approved. On approval, the base business plan and the event plans from the plan scenario are posted to SAP CRM system as “Account Plan” and “Trade Promotions”. This provides a seamless integration between the TPO system and the TPM system.

The whitepaper “Complement TPM systems with integrated TPO” discusses the benefits that an effective TPO system can bring to a TPM system.

Posted by Shaji Oonnoonny Thomas at 05:17 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Having suggested the potential value addition of having out-of-the-box integration between TPO and SAP solutions in my last blog, I thought it might be a good idea to share a sneak preview into some specific integration capabilities of iCATalytics. I plan to do this over the next few weeks with this being the first in the series.

The Demand Data Model (DDM) is an important component of the integrated data foundation on which the core functions of the iCATalytics TPO solution is based. Data from various sources such as enterprise (internal), syndicated sources (AC Nielson, IRI, etc), POS and loyality card systems are consolidated into the DDM. Needless to say, it would be very advantageous to have accelerators that would speed up this consolidation during the implementation of the TPO Solution. 

Assuming an organization runs on SAP solutions, then the enterprise / internal data would definitely be sourced from the SAP landscape. From a standardization point of view, we further assume that the organization already has an EDW that is based on SAP BI/BW solution. As we know, SAP BI/BW comes with a huge repository of pre-modeled standard Business Content (SAP BI Content) for various business processes. 

iCATalytics TPO solution will come with the following:

• A connector that is based on the Open Hub Services (OHS) provided by SAP BI/BW. This would be advantageous in case the customer is using an ETL tool that does not support OHS based extraction.

• Pre-identified SAP BI Content (InfoObjects, InfoCubes, etc) that are potential sources to the DDM.

• ETL logic that is based on a staging compatible with the identified SAP BI Content models.  

  To conclude, iCATalytics TPO will come with pre-built accelerators to speed up the integration of SAP BI based source data with the DDM.

   

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Unilever was recently in news for sacking Lowe, London, as the ad agency for its Peperami snack brand in favor of an inclusive strategy where the key lies in involving the consumers in the process of generating ad ideas. Although not a startlingly bold or original concept, it is interesting to see large CPG companies experiment with such emerging technologies and the new digital marketing mix.

The term ‘crowdsourcing’ coined by Jeff Howe’s June 2006 Wired Article “The Rise of Crowdsourcing” is now extended and being used by savvy marketers to describe the concept of ‘crowdsourcing’ as a means to connect their brands with customers right from its innovation stage. Crowdsourcing provides clients with a relatively inexpensive, yet abundant check on ideas and helps garner insights from community thinking that may have been missed.

Posted by Amrita Prasad at 05:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The goal of demand-driven programs to “sense the shelf as well as align supply chains in order to serve the shopper at the shelf with minimal latency” is becoming a reality with increasing number of retailers willing to share their data with CPG companies.

Historically retailers have been wary of sharing data and doubtful of the tangible benefits they could derive of such a partnership. CPG companies who have addressed the concerns of retailers have got compelling benefits and managed to change the common view that data sharing is a technology strategy.

CPG companies are increasingly playing a more crucial role and not shying away from discussing important and sensitive issues such as- handing data cleanliness, accuracy and security in the hands of CPG companies;  tangible returns of such a partnership either in form of payment for shared data or immediate, tangible and actionable insights tailored for the retailers; borrowing the expertise or support from CPG companies or third parties to implement the recommended business process change within the store and most importantly selecting the most profitable and trusted partner.

Collaboration that began as an exercise to improve out-of stock by participating trading partners is morphing into others areas as well and now viewed as a business strategy. Downstream data is now increasingly used for reducing cost, trade promotion planning and analysis, better forecasting and replenishment, reducing inventory, effective new product development and introduction and enhancing shopping experience.

Posted by Amrita Prasad at 04:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)