Key results
increase in cross-sell order value driven by embedding product recommendations into sales rep workflows using affinity insights.
reduction in delivery discrepancies after integrating proof-of-delivery scan data with order and invoice systems for real-time exception handling.
improvement in AR collection cycle enabled by AR dashboards that surfaced high-risk accounts and aging trends by region and rep.
gross margin uplift achieved by surfacing low-margin SKUs and renegotiating vendor terms based on sales velocity and rebate utilization.
About the Client
The client is a U.S.-based foodservice distributor serving over 8,000 restaurants, with a strong presence in the Italian and pizzeria segment. With 14,000+ SKUs and a growing national footprint, the company is undergoing a data-driven transformation across sales, operations, and finance.
Key Challenges
Sales reps lacked visibility into customer-level product gaps, limiting their ability to drive relevant cross-sell or upsell conversations.
Frequent delivery disputes and manual proof-of-delivery reconciliation led to delayed billing and strained customer relationships.
Finance and sales teams worked off inconsistent AR reports, making it difficult to track overdue accounts or prioritize collections.
SKU-level profitability and inventory aging were not visible, making it hard to optimize product mix, vendor terms, or pricing decisions.
Our Approach
Customer-Centric Data Strategy
- Unified data from ERP, CRM, delivery, and finance systems
- Enabled customer-level insights through Azure Synapse
- Created 360° views for segmentation, margin, AR, and sales
Machine Learning for Growth
- Built association rule mining model using Apriori and MLxtend
- Trained product affinity algorithms based on historical order data
- Ranked customer propensity for product adoption across SKU lines
Modern BI Infrastructure
- Automated dashboards for AR, sales, vendor terms, and performance
- Implemented real-time proof-of-delivery reconciliation
- Built multi-layered Azure architecture with clean staging, EDW, marts
Embedded Sales Intelligence
- Personalized dashboards for sales reps with product recommendations
- Territory performance metrics based on visit-to-order and drop size
- Visualizations for top cross-sell combos per customer cluster
Implemented Solution
Product Affinity & Recommendation Engine
- Deployed Apriori model to find frequent itemsets
- Generated top 5 product recommendations per customer
- Delivered insights to field reps via Tableau dashboards
Sales & Customer Intelligence
- Segmented customers by order frequency, category mix, and margin
- Built sales rep scorecards and conversion funnel KPIs
- Identified missed opportunities based on historic orders
Inventory & Finance Optimization
- Inventory views by Weeks on Hand, OH/OO, and reorder triggers
- Automated AR dashboards with DSO, risk flags, top/bottom analysis
- Vendor pricing and rebate analysis for margin uplift
Data Integration & Governance
- Ingested multi-source data via Azure Data Factory
- Modeled structured zones (Landing → Staging → EDW → Mart)
- Ensured accuracy with data quality checks across pipelines
Technologies Used
