Caterpillar - Unifying a Global Dealer network

Objective:

During BrandActive’s first meeting with Caterpillar, it became clear that this brand-centric organization had audacious goals – convert more than 200 independent dealerships around the globe to a new, unified visual system for all corporate identity marks, service fleets, building signage, uniforms, and stationery. That meant thousands of locations worldwide, across cultural, geographic and language boundaries. A co-operative funding program was established which added to the intensity of the deadline, over all complexity and need for control. Solution Initially, our role was to advise Caterpillar’s in house team and validate their progress. After a quick assessment, we determined that the usual approach of distributing artwork to dealers to implement would not achieve the project goals. Dealers had competing priorities and an eye toward the bottom line. We used best practices of project management for defining scope, reporting status, controlling change and managing issues. In addition, we created an automated system for tracking activities and reporting progress among team members and to senior management and helped transfer data to a centralized source. Finally, we helped the team overcome communication barriers and local nuances that typically arise from global projects. Together with Caterpillar’s internal staff, BrandActive helped overcome obstacles, and got the job done.

We:

• developed a robust reporting capability that demonstrated the true state of the project
• improved methods of collecting data from suppliers and Caterpillar sources
• worked with authorized suppliers to develop a revised plan that took production capacities into account
• engaged with Caterpillar suppliers to improve performance and resolve unanticipated issues such as bankruptcies and quality problems in the chemical base of decal adhesives
• wrote the communications to dealers and suppliers explaining how issues would be resolved
• helped revise the co-op program rules to satisfy financial and brand-related needs and expedited the auditing and approval of dealer coop submissions
• created project resource estimates and budgets and established priorities for all worldwide marketing entities
• monitored dealer progress

Results:

At the conclusion of our work, more than 70 percent of Caterpillar dealer facilities had been converted to the new visual system. Caterpillar now has tools and procedures to determine the scope of future brand efforts for dealers. Communication streams are open between dealers, suppliers, marketing areas and the brand management team.