Case Study: Hershey | Wellspring

Background

As one of the most successful, enduring organizations in the consumer goods space, The Hershey Company is known for bringing moments of goodness to nearly 80 countries worldwide through its iconic brands and remarkable people. Hershey’s commitment to innovation is second to none. For over 125 years, the industry-leading snacks company has been committed to operating fairly, ethically, and sustainably.

Opportunity

Aligning priorities, processes, and product portfolio strategies is critical for continued success as consumer tastes change. Hershey knew it had to transform to meet consumer demands. They knew that the flow of critical information—between consumers, customers, and within the company—needed to be faster and more streamlined than ever before. They lacked a cohesive set of product portfolio data and prioritization. Their legacy ERP systems and processes were disconnected and inefficient, leading to undefined cross-functional project collaboration and decision-making best practices.

Hershey needed a solution that:

Embraced the change necessary to start thinking differently

Enabled growth to take place for the right projects and for the right consumers

Captured and communicated new product portfolio information for seamless sharing across the organization

WELLSPRING'S

Approach

Wellspring (formerly Sopheon) worked with Mondelēz to deploy Accolade software rapidly, focusing on driving adoption across the global enterprise. With Wellspring, Mondelēz built the initial Accolade implementation in just nine weeks, followed by four weeks of testing and validation.

Building on the idea of creating a "single source of truth", Mondelēz and Wellspring addressed an immediate need: retiring outmoded processes and disconnected software solutions, then merging those functions into Accolade.

Centralized Data

Revised phase gate documentation with the gate decisions made by viewing analytics directly inside Accolade, eliminating PowerPoint® from most presentations

Simplified Processes

Created a simple, consistent P&L process for all project types, for “apples-to-apples” comparison of risk period after opportunity

Improved Efficiency

Consolidated eight different phase gate meetings and 30 different project types to three meetings and eight project types for more efficient decision-making

Centralized Location

Brought cross-functional teams together in a single place for prioritization, workflow, and resource management

Better Allocation

Enabled better company-wide resource allocation and communication through Accolade

Results

Wellspring’s expertise within the Stage-Gate® and PPM space puts The Hershey Company in a better spot to become a snacking powerhouse. In 2022, Hershey won the Outstanding Corporate Innovator Award from The Product Development & Management Association (PDMA), a global association of innovation management professionals.

Also, with Accolade, The Hershey Company reports a 10 to 1 ROI on projects. They were able to provide a simple and consistent P&L process for all project types and consolidate eight different phase gate meetings and 30 different project types into three meetings and only eight project types for more efficient decision-making.

Bringing cross-functional teams together using a single place for prioritization, workflow, and resource management enables more moments of goodness for The Hershey Company and its customers.

“We have new ways of working, and better decisions have actually driven better financial planning, resulting in margin improvements, complexity reduction across the portfolio”

Jeff SchmitzSenior Director of US Commercial Operations

Hershey Creates More Moments of Goodness with Accolade®

Background

Opportunity

Approach

Results

Innovation Management