Improving Team Communication in C-Store Operations with a Shared Collaboration Platform
Clarkston Consulting recently transformed team communication in c-store operations for a client – resulting in a centralized calendar. Read a synopsis of the project below or download the full case study.
Download the Team Communication in C-Store Case Study Here
This client offers retail, convenience, and food and beverage goods across the U.S. and Canada. These service offerings originally operated as independent lines of business, which the client has been working to integrate through various internal initiatives. A key focus of these efforts has been identifying opportunities for commercial and operations teams to work together across the organization, coordinating with and servicing all lines of business. Clarkston was brought in to facilitate the execution of these internal initiatives.
A key issue that Clarkston observed during this process was the lack of singular sources of information between centralized planning teams and distributed field operators. Without a clear and shared source of information, local teams had to rely on cumbersome amounts of emails and multiple planning calendars to access information, making it difficult to plan and execute.
Clarkston understood that the client needed a centralized calendar that could directly connect all corporate planning teams with field operators. Clarkston worked with client leadership to identify Airtable, a cloud-based data management and visualization tool, as the best platform for the job.
Airtable was selected for its ability to seamlessly consolidate information from independent sources and transform data into highly customizable and user-friendly visualizations. Clarkston designed and developed Airtable processes for the client’s commercial and operations teams, successfully transitioning from their previous spreadsheet tools into Airtable. Clarkston then used this centralized data as an input to create a calendar for field operators, providing a single source of truth. This reduced the confusion and inefficiency created by multiple planning calendars and laborious email communications.
Ultimately, the client was able to centralize the schedules of 10 planning teams into a single calendar. For commercial and operations planning teams, the calendar made it easier to communicate their plans with local operators. For field teams, the calendar consolidated the critical information they needed to run their locations. Lastly, the Airtable infrastructure of this calendar serves as a template for the client to further integrate teams and communicate across the organization.
