Solution:  End-to-end seasonal development calendar and processes were created to clearly outline order of operations, role/responsibilities of each team, dependencies with master company calendar, and lead-times for each product category.  Teams were encouraged to pressure test assumptions each season to make sure adjustments were made as needed to accommodate needs specific to David Yurman’s business.

Result:  More than a 20% increase in productivity with no incremental resource spend, and a 95% on time delivery rate was achieved after one year.

Solution:  Cross functional team was pulled together to figure out methods for shortening timeline without reduction to quality or increase in cost.   Materials, trims, color palettes, and prints were chosen for a mix and match strategy allowing items to be pulled off the shelf and sent straight to manufacturing.  Fit blocks were created for the most popular styles and sizes, and partnerships were established with overseas suppliers and factories to hold a certain % of manufacturing space each monthly.  Calendars were reviewed and set for regular forecasting and development planning to ensure materials were used and factories functioning at full capacity.

Result:  Process was created to take development to market down to 90 days, a 70% improvement to baseline.  Material waste was reduced resulting in higher margins, costs were maintained, and ability to introduce fast fashion and drive incremental sales each season was created.

Solution:  Small operations team was interviewed and led to reimagine, redesign, and implement a new inventory process and office layout.  Goal was to re-organize/document existing inventory and create a process for new receipts, fulfillment and on-going maintenance in order to fulfill orders faster and reduce inventory shortages.  Added benefit was and office layout more conducive to creative brainstorm and collaboration.

Results:  Office was re-designed with existing resources, minimal cost,  to map out into 4 quadrants based on business functionality. This allowed for a better flow of communication and maintained organized space for each of the business functions.  Racking was installed to leverage vertical space for inventory and allow for a more organized layout with clear labeling and access for the teams. Inventory processes were put into place to manage counts through Shopify, ensuring re-orders were done in a timely manner and out of stocks were reduced to drive sales and create a better overall customer experience.

Solution: Temporary/freelance work staff was replaced by a few critical part time hires who could work with more autonomy and free up time for the owner to focus on sales generation.   Job requisitions were created and interviews conducted with a clear view of the skills needed to support day to day business functions, type of work required, and target audience of employees who would most benefit from a part time schedule/working remotely.   Dedicated accounting support was put into place, P&L’s, Balance Sheets, and a separate business account and payment structure were created to give the business owner a clear understanding of cashflow and business growth as well as reduce workload associated with invoicing, receipts, and tax management.

Results: Owner now has fulltime project management support, a clear understanding of financial health of her business, and time to focus her energy on generating new business.   She added two major accounts to the portfolio in less than 3 months and reduced her need to work 7 days a week to just maintain the existing business.

Solution: New Manager of Operations was hired from internal talent.  Production schedules were vetted against peak need for the business and adjusted accordingly.   New hours tracking system was put into place and audited through the Controller’s office.   Sales and Event calendars were put in place to do more frontend planning for material sourcing as well as labor needs.   Warehouse was re-organized and inventory management system was put into place to reduce over ordering.

Result: COG’s were reduced by 7% in the first year and overtime hours were significantly reduced resulting in a 25% overall reduction of manufacturing expenses.   Full time staff was given the ability to work more regular hours and part time staffing needs to mitigate last minute planning was reduced by 30% leading to greater overall productivity during normal business hours without any increase in headcount costs.

Solution: Managed outreach, documentation, and procurement of donated goods and services for two major fundraising events which raise more than $1M+ annually for the organization.  Participated day of event to help with set up/breakdown, schedule, and directing participants. Helped set infrastructure for newly hired Event Manager.

Results: Both fundraisers, Whitestone Gala & Rocking Manhattan, events were successfully executed and raised more than the expected donations estimates.  New vendors and donors were procured for future years.

Solution:  Internal and external assessments were conducted and new longer term Board of Directors was put into place.  Terms were increased from 1 year to 3 years and committee heads were asked to serve for 2 years in their posts and charged with mentoring an existing committee member to take over the chair position upon their exit.   All committees and processes were reviewed, revised as needed, and standard operating procedures for each were written out and digitally stored for easy access. Membership contribution were more deliberately recognized, access to information granted, and options for having opinions heard put into place.   Catch phrases to promote a spirit of collaboration were threaded throughout regular engagement points with members. Production for annual events and shows was removed as a Board responsiblity and passed on to new committees allowing the Board to focus on annual operations and long term planning. A Budgetary Oversight Committee was put into place to help create realistic annual production budgets, audit spending, and look for areas of cost reduction.  Investments were made in PR and Marketing to generate new audience and create brand recognition.

Results:  Within one-year organization went from -$80K deficit to an estimated $35K profit.   Continuity in governance was established leading to more consistency of work year over year and reduction in strain on resources.