General Mills Leverages Cloud Tech to Transform Supply Chain

In today’s fast-paced business environment, the integration of cutting-edge technology is not just an option but a necessity. 

For General Mills, a global leader in the food industry, embracing cloud technology has become a cornerstone in revolutionising their procurement and supply chain operations. 

By leveraging cloud-based solutions, General Mills has significantly enhanced collaboration, increased efficiency, and improved decision-making across its vast and complex supply chain network.

Cloud adoption offers myriad benefits, from real-time data access and process automation to advanced analytics and cost savings. 

It enables General Mills to scale operations seamlessly, ensure robust data security and maintain regulatory compliance, all while fostering better supplier and customer relationships. 

The global reach and 24/7 availability of cloud services ensure that their supply chain is resilient and agile, ready to adapt to changing market demand or disruption.

Moreover, cloud technology supports General Mills’ commitment to sustainability by optimising resource use and reducing the carbon footprint of their supply chain activities. 

As the company continues to innovate and grow, cloud adoption continues to be a pivotal element in driving efficiency, sustainability, and competitive advantage in their procurement and supply chain strategies.

Through a shift to its 'always-on' model, General Mills has reshaped its overall management and logistics flow. Dave Jackett, Senior Director of Systems, Data & Tech for General Mills’ Supply Chain Manufacturing & Logistics, discussed the impact of this on its procurement operation.

Reshaping the Model

The shift to 'always-on' was initiated in 2020, when the company moved its master and operational data to the cloud as a way to augment the supply chain model through advanced analytics and AI.

“Our always-on models have started to reshape how we run our supply chain by giving our teams the data and insights they need when they need it,” says Dave. 

“We’re able to make faster and better decisions, giving our teams more capacity to tackle more strategic challenges, partner with our businesses, and build capability for the future.”

Paul Gallagher, Chief Supply Chain Officer at General Mills, is well placed to explain the benefits that can be gained from digitising the company's supply chain. 

Earlier this year, he highlighted how this approach has led to increased efficiency and resiliency, in addition lowering the company's costs and carbon footprint.

“In our procurement organisation, we’re using enhanced datasets to develop models that identify the gap between what we’re currently paying and what the ingredients or packaging materials should cost,” he told the Gartner Supply Chain Podcast. 

“In manufacturing, we’re rapidly implementing the use of what we call real-time analytics to eliminate waste. Using generative AI algorithms, we’ve seen more than 30% waste reduction. We’ve implemented the data and now we’re expanding this programme globally, ensuring that we’re driving value across our manufacturing.”

Sharing the Knowledge

Collaborating with software developer Palantir Technologies, the duo created a comprehensive digital platform providing end-to-end logistics flow (ELF) visibility into the supply chain. 

This platform is built on a digital twin of the supply chain, advanced analytics, and AI. 

This data is then shared across General Mills' entire value chain, through centrally developed capabilities that provide both functional and E2E supply chain visibility. 

“All these capabilities push and pull data from a single source of truth in our connected data model,” Dave adds. 

“For procurement, we’ve built capabilities to improve raw material forecasting, risk management, cost modelling, transportation bidding analytics, and more. We also have a strong focus on supplier diversity and sustainability which are both supported by centralised analytics. All these capabilities are leveraged in a standard source-to-pay process powered by workflows that guide our procurement team to the insights they need when developing strategy and executing supplier relationships.”

Under the 'Standing for Planet' initiative, General Mills is focused on combating climate change by reducing greenhouse gas emissions across its value chain. 

The company has exceeded its goals in emissions reduction and is actively engaging in regenerative agriculture whilst committing to a no deforestation policy across its supply chains.

Additionally, General Mills is sourcing renewable electricity and prioritising recyclable and reusable packaging. 

“To manage performance, elevate risks, and make key operational decisions, we use a Business Performance Management capability that was purpose-built to operate from the CSCO all the way to our plant floor,” Dave says. 

“It connects over 3,000 business and supply chain teams to metrics, insights, and decisions and is the heartbeat of how we run our E2E supply chain.”

Never Switching Off

General Mills’ 'always-on' model, powered by AI, aims to slash waste and boost efficiency across the value chain. 

Enhanced company datasets and digitalisation has given General Mills the power to leverage AI to.. drive resilience, cost savings, and environmental sustainability, while ensuring seamless operations amidst disruptions. 

The business also implemented end-to-end logistics flow visibility and enabled agile decision-making at scale. The creation of the COD (Connected Data Model) in the cloud has been critical to the development of the 'always-on' capabilities. 

“It has created a single source of truth for our teams, we don’t spend time reconciling data across systems or following up on bad data,” Dave says. 

“It has accelerated development time of new capabilities by over 60% as finding data and organising it used to be a large part of every project. It has also enabled 90% faster data processing rates, speeding up the time to decision and the responsiveness of our tools. In addition, it has opened opportunities to collaborate in real-time with our suppliers, customers, and 3PLs.”

The Biggest Benefits

This model has seen a number of benefits to both business partners and supply chain teams. General Mills has been able to generate significant cost savings which can be reinvested in brand building or in supply chain capabilities, creating a flywheel for future savings. 

The company has also seen an increase in employee productivity.

“By cutting down the time spent searching for information, and in some cases delivering recommendations to our teams, we reduce non-value add work,” Dave adds. 

“There is also a competitive advantage we create when we can respond quicker to disruption and deliver better service to our customers.”

The Power of Data

General Mills shows no signs of slowing down, as Dave outlined plans to “rapidly expand” its Intelligent Execution capabilities into new areas including sourcing, customer order fulfilment, master data management, and more. 

“As we connect adjacent processes, we are opening the opportunity for process reimagination,” Dave says. 

“Our goal is to move from vertical/siloed roles to more E2E roles that manage broader parts of our supply chain. 

“We are also investing in collaboration capabilities to extend our capabilities to ecosystem partners. By harnessing the power of our suppliers and logistics partners, we believe we can drive value and resilience for the entire value stream.”

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