Macpek – How Self-Service Reporting Empowers Users and Focuses Valuable IT Resources

Based in Quebec, Macpek is the region’s go-to resource for heavy truck parts for transport and excavation companies, as well as municipalities for more than 40 years. In addition to serving the trucking industry, they have a second division that sells wheels for light-duty vehicles.

As a successful second-generation family run business, they are also built on a foundation of dedicated, long-term employees. Steven Wark, Macpek’s IT Director, started with the team in 1994. Initially hired to help launch the company’s seventh store, he has been involved in almost every aspect of the company including shipping, receiving, inventory, delivery, and a stint as an outside sales rep. In 2015, Steven settled into the IT department with a unique perspective on the business and the distribution industry. He currently oversees all technology needs for Macpek’s 15 stores across the Quebec province.

Macpek has grown steadily over the years, in revenue, headcount, and locations. As the company scaled up, so did their need for a more advanced data analytics process. Prior to becoming a White Cup BI customer in 2015, Macpek used Oracle Hyperion ERP and Excel spreadsheets to create and share sales reports across the organization. Due to the complicated nature of the ERP, all report requests were generated through the Macpek IT team. Over time, the need for more and different types of reports created a strain on the small IT team.

In addition to the exorbitant time the IT team spent creating reports, the reports were outdated quickly and often were not accurate across the organization. There was a clear need to have a single source of truth that updated quickly and was easily accessible by multiple teams. Macpek automated the reporting process with White Cup, opening hours on the IT team’s scheduled and increased productivity by 30%.

In 2015, Macpek chose White Cup BI (formerly MITS BI) as their business intelligence solution. The search included comparison shopping with Phocas, Infor Birst, and Microsoft BI. Ultimately, they chose White Cup BI for its easy-to-use, pre-built reports and dashboards, integration with their ERP, Infor’s CSD, and a strong recommendation from another White Cup BI customer.

As with any new software, adoption and user buy-in is key to a successful launch. Since the company wasn’t familiar with BI capabilities, early on there were skeptics and some hesitancy to change. “Initially, we tried selling everyone on the idea of data analytics in general. In the past, everyone was used to just sending IT an email and they would receive a report, so the idea of doing it themselves was daunting at first,” Wark said. “Once we did walkthroughs with department leaders to show how the tool could solve their specific problems, that’s when they started to see how it could make work easier and more efficient.”

Wark and his team were able to demonstrate how easy it was to create reports and queries with just a few clicks and were soon able to onboard 100+ users. “Adoption for us was more of a dimmer switch than a light bulb. But now it’s cascaded through the team and people love it, especially our sales reps,” said Wark.

Currently, Macpek uses White Cup BI in all aspects of the business. The sales team, which is approximately 30 people across 15 locations, uses White Cup BI in the field to determine how to prioritize outreach on a daily basis. Additionally, the purchasing team performs segmentation, monitors pricing, analyzes cost and sales trends, as well as tracks turnover and vendor performance. Moreover, White Cup is an indispensable tool for the executive team for strategic decision making and performance measurement.

By empowering the employees with self-service capabilities, White Cup has substantially freed up time and resources for the IT team to focus on high-impact, revenue-generating initiatives such as building two new e-commerce websites.

In the past, sales reps received reports every two weeks, which left a lot of room for missed opportunities and required more reactive measures than proactive sales. Rather than waiting for two weeks for updated data, the near real-time data updates empower the sales teams to proactively make critical sales and purchasing decisions without missing any opportunities.

Macpek is a prime example of how the proper software solution selection combined with the right adoption process can help distributors streamline their process, create a productive workforce, and drive revenue. Next on the digital horizon, Macpek is moving to the new White Cup BI cloud solution, which will make it even easier for them to sell smarter and faster. Contact White Cup to learn more.