Making a Great Company a Great Business

•BackgroundBackgroundOur client is a world leader in the Entertainment industry as

the premier bulk release and distribution entity for motion picture feature, trailer and independent film studios.

With a 100 year old history of bulk release of the most prominent films, our customer is a household name in movie theatres around the world. Intense cost pressures along the supply chain, coupled with changes in Technology from traditional film to digital media were causing concern about the ability to keep a competitive pace with smaller, more nimble boutique labs. With the recent acquisition of a former competitive lab, the need to define the right balance between “art” (creative film processing) and “science” (manufacturing and distribution excellence) was the primary issue.

•SPG’s Consulting SPG’s Consulting AssignmentAssignment

The client asked SPG, Inc. to conduct an Operational Analysis that would address the following Objectives:

Determine the effectiveness of our overall management system and core business processes

Define opportunities for implementing operational and service improvements

Determine the readiness of the organization to design and implement needed changes

Define the Business Case to support the implementation

Develop an Approach and Timeline for implementing improvements

•SPG’s Operational Analysis SPG’s Operational Analysis FindingsFindings

Strengths not leveraged – Many issues were barriers Large financial gain potential, but dramatic change would

be required to get at it The day-to-day management of the business was reactive –

in terms of leadership, expectation setting, accountability, and follow-up

Roles & responsibilities were not well defined – this was a very informal organization and operation

Processes were inadequate which negatively impacted productivity and quality – firefighting was the norm – Processes were not consistently executed

People trusted data, not other people A System For Managing the business was not in place;

causing ineffective use of personnel, excessive overtime and film yield loss

They repeated the same mistakes every day – were not a learning organization

Lasting change could be made through the implementation of good management principles and tools which foster sustainability

They lacked a single cultural identity There was a high expectation for making significant

improvements in the entire operation

•Results and Quantitative Results and Quantitative BenefitsBenefits

SPG consultants partnered with client employees over a 32-week effort to complete the design and implementation. The focus was to deliver tangible benefits and the foundation for continued improvement. Accomplishments included:

• Enhanced operator / supervisory skills, tracking and eliminating root causes, improving lab cleanliness, raising awareness and establishing realistic goals that significantly Reduced Material Waste - which allowed for improved schedule, reduced re-runs, a more predictable process, and heightened customer satisfaction.

• A well-designed and implemented System for Managing that enabled:

- Responsive leadership and proactive planning - Clear roles and responsibilities with better

visibility and less confusion- Better matching of resources to business

requirements with more reasonable work hours

- Reduced cost of service with improved interfaces, faster response times and service levels agreements in place

- Improved Customer Service / Customer Relations

- A process that makes improvement a part of daily activities

• Sustainable results through improved Communication with a common language of management, heightened expectations, and a culture of performance improvement.

A few Highlighted accomplishments:

• 18% improvement in Labor Productivity• 3% improvement in process Film Yield• 35% reduction in frequency of Reprints• 10% increase in CCP and Developer Uptime

Making a GREAT Company a GREAT Business !!Schrudder Performance Group, LLC. Proprietary Information - 2101

•SPG – Project ApproachSPG – Project ApproachSPG recommended that our client structure this initiative using a “bottoms-UP” approach to the identification and achievement of benefits. Financial targets were set a $6M in Labor Productivity, and significant film Yield. An integrated approach was developed utilizing 6 core teams over a 32 calendar week timeframe. These teams were under the governance of an Executive Steering Committee, which was responsible for guiding the process, eliminating internal barriers and constraints, reviewing recommendations, and approving major implementation decisions.

Teams focused on communications and financial / Scorecard results measurement were established

Specific Teams working focused issues such as Organization design, Maintenance, Yield Management, Customer Service, Quality, Technical Control, Initiative Integration, and the design of a non-partisan System for Managing the business enterprise.