Baking & Snack - March 2009 - 35

Instilling

Vision
Corporate mandates of change
resulted in tremendous
improvement for Lance, but
implementation at plant level
added the 'crisp' to the cracker.
BY STEVE BERNE
any of the enterprise shortfalls David Singer, president and c.e.o., Lance, Inc. identified when he came on board in 2005, directly impacted plant operations. And despite
tremendous teamwork and open communication to
implement solutions, change was required throughout the organization, including the front lines of operations. Management and employees relished these
ideas. They were ready for change.
While the company had two No. 1 brands (Lance
sandwich crackers and Cape Cod potato chips), great
manufacturing capabilities, experienced employees, a
direct-store-delivery (DSD) system and good corporate and family values, Mr. Singer identified four areas that needed immediate attention - organization,
supply chain, DSD and information technology (IT).
He noted that the company had evolved over its
95-year history into multiple small companies with
minimal interaction - like silos linked only at the
periphery. He cited tight capacities regarding supply
chain. Plant upgrades were required to handle the
needs of a wider variety of products and distribution,
so they could be more profitable. Logistics were set up
as individual bakery businesses vs. a mixed-product,
multiplant business.
His strategy of attack culminated into what Mr.
Singer coined 1Lance. The program took a decentralized, multicompany mindset and brought everything
together in a centralized, functionalized approach. The

ᮡ 2009 Baker of the Year award winner Lance, Inc. can produce more than
2 million sandwich crackers per hour at its Charlotte, NC, bakery.
program was based on common goals, and he made
sure everyone understood the destination.
"Prior to 1Lance, each business and plant was its
own entity," said Terry Helms, senior director baking
services and former plant manager at the Charlotte,
NC, plant for 15 years. "There was no sharing of information or resources and very little communication. In
some cases, an effort was made not to tell others what
was happening at your plant, although there was no
formal corporate competition or award for best performance. It had just evolved that way."
Now there is total sharing of information, according
to Mr. Helms. "We not only make it available but also
meet to discuss ideas and expand our knowledge base.
We share best practices. And there was no resistance
to implementing these practices: Just the opposite. It
was embraced."
Goals at the plant level were to standardize processes, mindsets and consistency between the plants
and to promote continuous improvement. A lot of this
resulted from the company's vision stream program, a
continuous set of cross-functional task forces that Mr.
Helms (bakery side) and Joe Irwin, his counterpart on
the salty snack side of the business, spearhead.
Projects, many initiated by employees, run the
gamut from energy savings to product quality and process efficiency. Teams are assembled, ideas discussed
and proposals made to management in attendance.
"It is our directive to provide feedback and support,"
March 2009 / BAKING & SNACK

Baking & Snack - March 2009

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