Yankee Candle

cgi-group.co.uk © 2013 CGI GROUP INC.

Oracle Financials and Supply Chain Transformation

ankee Candle has its international distribution centre at

Avonmouth near Bristol, England, with manufacturing in

the USA. CGI were engaged to add new functionality, and

to drive process and usage change, to get more value

from the Oracle R12 Financials and Supply Chain Management

deployment at the Avonmouth facility.

THE CHALLENGE

Yankee Candle had identified a number of areas right across their UK operation

where they saw opportunities to drive out cost, to increase control, and to

progress customer service improvements by:

Transforming business process to optimise accuracy and consistency, and

to increase efficiency through, for example, greater automation

Deriving greater value from their R12 EBS implementation by deploying

additional functionality from their existing EBS footprint

Embedding consistent and efficient EBS user activity and process context

through targeted user education and training

Focussing attention on identifying and resolving issues, and reducing

procedural effort, thereby reducing the need for workaround procedures

OUR ANSWER

CGI deployed an expert team of four Consultants, calling in additional technical

development effort as required to:

Identify and implement quick wins, to quickly show success, and to build

momentum and confidence in the transformation

Work with Yankee Candle management to plan, control and give visibility to

the transformation changes and their business owners, and to communicate

progress

Run workshops to define and agree new processes, and ensure executive

level sign-off for the new ways of working

Y

CASE STUDY

CONSUMER GOODS

Yankee Candle is one of the

world’s best known names in the

candle business. With over 150

fragrances, all manufactured in

U.S, the company provides the

world's largest and most

compelling selection of candle

and home fragrance scents.

“The CGI approach was

open and consultative,

bringing good ideas to

the table, not just

following a process or

doing exactly what we

asked of them with no

value add”

Andrew Sly – Yankee Candle

International IT manager.

Run training sessions and produce change documentation to embed new

processes and consistent system usage

Identify issues and manual activity in existing processes, and implement

fixes and mitigations to address them

Configure, test and demonstrate new R12 Financials and Supply Chain

functions in support of the new processes and fixes, and facilitate User

Acceptance Testing and the progression of changes to the live EBS

environment

Through training delivery and working together on specific improvements, the

CGI team has raised the understanding and capability of Yankee Candle’s

finance department, enabling them to manage the processes and exploit

standard EBS functionality more effectively. In addition, new capabilities such

as Fixed Assets, Direct Debits, Customer Dunning and iProcurement, as well as

automating Bank payments and COGS (Cost of Goods Sold) accounting have

been deployed, all of which took less than four months to complete.

On the supply chain side CGI have carried out an extensive range of workshops

to transform the end-to-end Order Management process. Based on this CGI

went on to configure and deploy an extensive ATP (available to promise)

function, as well as optimising the order capture functionality and introducing

automated order management controls for the business. This means that

Customer Care staff can focus less on the mechanics and procedures for

capturing and progressing orders, and more on managing customers and their

orders, driving up sales and improving order fill efficiency.

A SUCCESS STORY

CGI and Yankee Candle have worked together to achieve a low risk, no-

surprises transition to new ways of working, improving efficiency, control and

customer satisfaction. CGI’s approach has underpinned this transition with

increased functional coverage and automation in the Oracle EBS deployment,

aligned with the new processes.

KEY BENEFITS

RETAIL

Management have improved

control of the business, with

broader and more accurate

financial information

Sales staff have visibility of

accurate product availability

information, both current and

future, allowing them to:

manage customer

expectations

drive up customer

satisfaction

increase sales through cross

selling

Accurate product availability

information has enabled

improved fulfilment rates and

better control of warehouse work

Greater automation and controls

have been put in place, reducing

manual procedures, and

thereby:

Reducing cost

Reducing risk

Increasing process controls

and auditability

SOX compliance is easier due to

tighter controls and auditability

For more information, please contact us at:

T: +44 (0) 845 070 7765

E enquiry.uk@cgi.com

www.cgi-group.co.uk

About CGI

With over 68,000 professionals in 40 countries, CGI fosters local accountability for client success while bringing global delivery

capabilities to clients’ front doors. Founded in 1976, CGI applies a disciplined delivery approach that has achieved an indus try-

leading track record of on-time, on-budget projects. Our high-quality business consulting, systems integration and outsourcing

ser vices help clients leverage current investments while adopting new technology and business strategies that achieve top and

bott om line results. As a demonstration of our commitment, our average client satisfaction score for the past 10 years has

me asured consistently higher than 9 out of 10.

Code: 120 0813

WHY CGI?

CGI helps retail and consumer goods organisations adapt and remain

competitive through business and technology transformation. We build,

implement and manage complex retail systems critical to success in today’s

changing marketplace. Our comprehensive services and solutions transform

operations in areas such as analytics and business intelligence, mobile

commerce, store systems, CRM, merchandise systems, digital, supply chain

management, e-commerce, enterprise resource planning (in this case

specifically, Oracle EBS Financials and Supply Chain Management), and

concept-to-consumer collaboration.

We have a flexible, collaborative culture. Our innovative, practical solutions are

tailored to your needs. We’re both global and local, and we make sure that the

work gets done; on your premises, near shore, offshore - we really are that

flexible. We have the people, experience and knowledge you need to keep

growing and evolving for years to come.

“CGI brought a light touch and consultative approach to

work with Yankee Candle to vastly improve the efficiency

of both the supply chain and financial operation of the

business”

Andrew Sly – Yankee Candle International IT manager.