Strategy& provides a level of operations management expertise unique among consulting firms in Portugal. We combine our deep functional experience in operations with sector-specific insights to give our clients a solution that fits their context and strategic priorities seamlessly. We focus on making our clients improve operational efficiency in all parts of their business and help them build differentiating capabilities.
We advise our clients on a variety of topics covering supply chain strategy, planning, sourcing, manufacturing, and distribution. We have years of experience helping our clients navigate these areas in all major sectors including telecom, consumer, retail, energy, chemicals, utilities, engineered products and services, healthcare, and defense.
By linking your manufacturing strategies with your business strategy, we can focus on your differentiating core capabilities and drive your competitive advantage in the market. Here are some of the ways we can help:
It’s critical to build your supply base with a highly competitive cost, value and service profile – transforming supply management into a strategic enabler for your business. Here are some of the ways we support our clients:
By developing end-to-end supply chains that are tailored to your market needs, we can leverage the latest digital technologies and provide competitive advantage in terms of service level, cost and asset efficiency, and flexibility. Here are some of our focus areas:
We work with clients on their capital asset strategy, helping to execute mission-critical capital projects on time and on budget, while optimising asset performance to achieve cost and service objectives. Our services include:
We transform operations into competitive advantage by designing and executing strategic programmes, and focusing on process, behaviour changes, and digitisation. Here are some of the ways we support our clients:
We help clients to increase product value and reduce product cost operating both technical and commercial levers as well as in setting up their product value management organizations. Our services include:
Rising cost pressures. Protectionism. Disruptions. Sustainability considerations. All of these factors were affecting supply chains even before the global pandemic. But now, as the world changes at an unprecedented speed and on an unforeseen scale, more business leaders than ever are realizing the need to reimagine the way they’re operating.
Click here to find out how to manage daily risks and adapt to unforeseen disruptions.
One of the leading nonprofit health insurers in the US focused on customer service as a differentiator. It wanted to gain insights into current operational performance and develop customer-centric capabilities such as self-service and digital skills. Strategy& was hired to assess and address gaps in customer and member engagement.
Drawing on our experience in health insurance, proprietary market research databases, and best practices, we helped the client develop differentiated customer-centric capabilities. We identified quick wins, including outsourcing manual activities, automation with macros/scripts, and standardizing telework policies in call centers. We delivered a plan to improve workload management, centralize provider data, manage claims, and migrate to a prepayment policy. Additional recommendations included evaluating the current network distribution structure, timely issuance of ID cards, and reduction of SG&A expenses.
The project identified a $25 million investment resulting from engagement with service providers, flexible network design, personalized member service, and real-time enrollment to achieve the desired differentiating capabilities.
A global products company with $10 billion in revenue and a presence in more than 130 countries faced a highly complex industrial footprint that was misaligned with its key markets. The company was losing sales and profitability due to long lead times, high production costs, and low productivity in key operations.
Strategy& designed a global industrial footprint strategy based on clearly defined customer and market requirements. As a result, the team agreed to realign the operational footprint, reducing it from 23 to 15 units, by implementing a more balanced global structure closer to key customers and/or distribution centers.
The transformation reduced order fulfillment times, lowered production costs by up to 10%, and improved overall productivity and flexibility. These results led to a 5% increase in gross margin.
The securities services department of a global banking group faced challenges of low productivity, lack of process standardization, rising costs, fragmentation, and process duplication. In addition, its Center of Excellence (CoE) was based on an underdeveloped operating model. Strategy& was hired to accelerate execution and deliver benefits through process optimization, offshoring, and operating model redesign.
Strategy& developed an initial hypothesis based on a detailed analysis of the current state using quantitative and qualitative tools and conducted workshops to identify quick-win opportunities. We proposed a redesigned operating model for the CoEs and a detailed implementation plan to drive change.
The project identified potential annual savings of $10 million and recommended the allocation of Lean Champions to different locations. Opportunities to improve process efficiency were also identified, and a detailed framework for the future state of the CoE was provided, including team size, shift patterns, and responsibilities.
A global lighting company, with over $5 billion in revenue and a presence in more than 130 countries, faced severe market disruption resulting from the transition from traditional lighting to LED. To compete in this new market, the company sold its traditional business and focused on the technically more advanced and fast-moving LED segment. To enable this change, new business models had to be adopted. The procurement function had to undergo a significant transformation to evolve into strategic supply management that would effectively support the business.
Strategy& supported the client in identifying the new requirements arising from the changed business models and in developing procurement transformation programs based on 4-6 priority areas (e.g., SRM, supplier scouting, and innovation), including appropriate KPIs. In addition, we helped design a comprehensive change management concept and roadmap to ensure the involvement and commitment of the client's team.
The transformation delivered significantly improved service levels to the business units, based on nine key strategic supply management capabilities. In addition, the operating model was redesigned to enable the division of roles and responsibilities between corporate headquarters and the business units.
A leading oilfield services and equipment company was underperforming financially relative to its peers and had committed to improving its net margin in North America by 3%. Management believed it was possible to increase the efficiency of the more than $1 billion spent on equipment maintenance, but was unclear about where and how to achieve savings.
Strategy& helped the client identify inefficiencies in its maintenance operating model, moving from a highly reactive and fragmented operation to an integrated team using advanced techniques to perform maintenance when and where needed, based on data. The changes were significant, with the client reorganizing to eliminate functional barriers and create a maintenance process focused on customer performance.
The results were impressive – the maintenance transformation program was implemented in 80% of the top locations by revenue, resulting in a ~2% increase in net margin. It also generated a 20% reduction in maintenance costs, a 50% reduction in downtime for maintenance, and improved customer service.
