The merger between Danish manufacturing company Widex and Sivantos makes WS Audiology one of the world’s leading manufacturers of hearing aids. Leading up to the merger, Widex has focused on completing the Wave strategy, focusing on innovation, growth and profitability.
Innovation, growth and profitability
For Widex and project manager Stine Skulstad, it was important to link the project directly to the Wave strategy.
“We have a strategy, which we call Wave, which is based on three areas – innovation, growth and profitability. Its aim is to double our business in five years. To achieve that, we wanted to optimise the procurement department, in which we lacked direction and management, so that we could execute our strategy. And in that area, we felt that we could benefit from some tools and clear procedures for how we make decisions.”
The result
“The work supports the profitability aspect of our Wave strategy. It has become easier to manage our inventory and raise our level of service at the same time. We feel that we have become much more reliable. Since we started in January, we have seen an increase in reliability of delivery: we have gone from 50% to 90%. We have examined whether we can handle CC goods and dead items in a different way. And just by doing that, we have successfully reduced the inventory value by DKK 6 million since January.”
In six months, Widex has achieved the following results:
- Reliability of delivery increased by 40%
- Reduction in inventory levels of DKK 6 million.
- Policies and common language
- Whiteboard meetings every Friday
“It has also created much higher efficiency and increased motivation. The purchasers say that this focus has given them a much more efficient workday. They finally have a common language and an understanding of the products and how they should be handled. It has become much easier.”
Listen to Stine talk about the project below