Executive Summary
Customer Profile
Milligan Workshops, Inc. is located in Bowling Green, Ohio. For the past 25 years, they have provided high-quality, low-cost outsourced services such as assembly, inspection, and packaging. They have focused on providing these services to the manufacturing sector, primarily automotive manufacturers.
The Challenge
Sales were growing very quickly, but without direction, the company was faltering in quality, cash flow, and profit margin.
The Solution
Through the coaching provided by Six Disciplines, Milligan has now identified specific goals and created initiatives to reach their goals.
The Benefits
Management Team is more engaged with what happens in the company.
Team members are more motivated to achieve the goals that they have helped to define.
Milligan has met or exceed sales goals 7 out of 8 months.
Profitability improved by 159%, and increased from 2.28% of sales to 5.9% of sales.
Crew satisfaction is up 8% because of increased communication and feedback.
Customers benefit from quality rejections decreasing by 166%, from 1.33 per month to 0.5 per month.
Customer Satisfaction is up 9%.
- Management Team is more engaged with what happens in the company.
- Team members are more motivated to achieve the goals that they have helped to define.
- Milligan has met or exceed sales goals 7 out of 8 months.
- Profitability improved by 159%, and increased from 2.28% of sales to 5.9% of sales.
- Crew satisfaction is up 8% because of increased communication and feedback.
- Customers benefit from quality rejections decreasing by 166%, from 1.33 per month to 0.5 per month.
- Customer Satisfaction is up 9%.
The Result
Six Disciplines has helped Milligan Workshops, Inc. to set goals, create a plan to meet the goals, and measure the results. This focus has resulted in greater sales, improved profitability, increased employee satisfaction, decreased quality rejections, and improved customer satisfaction.
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Detailed Customer Profile
Milligan Workshops, Inc. is located in Bowling Green, Ohio. For the past 25 years, they have provided high-quality, low-cost outsourced services such as assembly, inspection, and packaging. Milligan’s 27 employees have focused on providing these services to the manufacturing sector, primarily automotive manufacturers. Milligan has been using Six Disciplines for 15 months.
The Problem
Without a dedicated sales force, no sales philosophy, and no sales best practices – Milligan Workshops, Inc. was still growing sales quickly. New records were being set each year since 2004, with 2009 sales up 19% over the previous year. Milligan was operating like a high speed train running at top speed, but not exactly understanding where they were going or where they wanted to go but they were getting “there” quickly.
However, they experienced a continuing cash flow problem and profits were too thin. Their quality record was suffering, as shown by a growing number of customer rejections; frequently caused by small yet important oversights.
The Solution
The road to the solution began with the coaching process from Six Disciplines. Milligan’s coach began asking questions and helping the company to provide the answers to these questions. Through this process, Milligan’s Leadership Team now has specific goals for growing sales and profitability, in addition to improving cash flow. Importantly, the company has identified how to measure progress against each goal and has implemented initiatives to reach those goals Through this question-and-answer format, Milligan has also identified the largest cause of their quality rejections and therefore strengthened their processes in order to decrease rejection occurrences.
The Benefits
Everyone is the organization has benefitted by implementing the Six Disciplines process. Employee surveys highlighted the lack of a feeling of company cohesiveness. Now the Management Team knows what happens in the business and is encouraged to play a part in what happens day-to-day. The Team is more motivated to achieve the goals that they have helped to define. Milligan has met or exceeded sales goals seven out of eight months with improved profitability up 159% and increased sales from 2.28% to 5.9%. The crew now feels included as the communication from leadership to employees has improved through monthly crew meetings, updates on progress against goals and updates on customer satisfaction. Crew satisfaction is up 8%.
Milligan customers have also benefitted by way of improved quality. This has resulted in far fewer quality rejections. Rejections have decreased 166%, from 1.33 per month to 0.5 per month. This has increased customer satisfaction with a higher quality product going out the door. Customer Satisfaction is up 9%.
What Milligan Workshops, Inc. has to say about Six Disciplines:
My experience has been nothing but positive! It wasn’t always easy but always rewarding at the end.
We’ve been with Six Disciplines only a little over 1 year and if they’d promised me the results I listed above I would not have been convinced and probably would NOT have signed on! Our results have far exceeded my expectations!
Now I (as well as the entire Team) know where that high speed train is headed, why it’s going there and the route it will take to make that station! Life is good!
I plan to remain a Six Disciplines client for as long as there are little tidbits of knowledge, insight and experience left to glean out of our coach and Six Disciplines’ philosophy and processes.
