Acclamations
The Wilkinson Group’s client list spans a wide
variety of business types and profiles. Arranged by industry type, the following contain
brief success stories as described by a small sampling of current clients. Aside from the
obvious, one additional benefit they have in common with all Wilkinson Group
clients is that they did not bear any direct cost to achieve the gains
described.
Our corporate offices and two satellite facilities
employ nearly 2000 people. To serve them we previously used three different suppliers to
operate a cafeteria, vending services and office coffee services. The Wilkinson Group
reconfigured the services for award under a single contract to a new provider; improved
the quality of services in all areas, (including some selective pricing reductions), and
improved Allergan’s financial position by nearly $400,000 over the course of the new
contract. Additionally, The Wilkinson Group’s creative cost structure allowed us to
undertake this project a year sooner than would have been possible if we’d had to
budget for it.
The Wilkinson Group‘s redesign of services and
management of a competitive bid process dramatically upgraded the equipment and service
standards for the vending services at Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles.
Additionally, as a direct result of The Wilkinson Group’s involvement, the vending
sales through our new operator are up 253% from those reported by our previous vendor, and
the income returned to CHLA is up over 300%.
ScrippsHealth previously had a variety of different
vending operators serving nine ScrippsHealth hospitals and skilled nursing facilities. The
Wilkinson Group conducted a feasibility study to determine the possibility and potential
benefit of consolidating all of our vending services under a single contract with one
provider; and, thereafter, managed a Request For Proposal process to capture the
benefits identified. The result has been the implementation of uniform service, pricing
and income standards; new equipment; expanded services; and a guaranteed dollar return to
ScrippsHealth that is significantly greater than our previous earnings.
The Wilkinson Group did such an excellent job of
designing California Western School of Law’s vending services (which had some
significant location challenges before their recommendations) and assisting us in the
negotiations with our new vending company, that we followed up by asking their assistance
with our cafeteria food services the following year. We were impressed by their knowledge
of the industry, source of contacts and information, and the integrity of Clay Wilkinson
who personally guided us through unfamiliar territory. I confidently recommend The
Wilkinson Group to any organization that wants to maximize the benefits from their
refreshment service contracts.
The Wilkinson Group’s "no cost
analysis" quantified the potential to upgrade the vending services in accordance with
Maric College’s objectives; and, after an investigation of their client list, we
retained them to implement their redesign for us through the most qualified vending
operator available within our market. The results of The Wilkinson Group’s efforts
have exceeded our expectations. Product selection and variety, equipment technology,
appearance and service improvements combined to yield incremental sales growth, (and
commission income), during the first year---even after adjusting for our increased
enrollment. In addition, The Wilkinson Group’s on-going management of our
vendor’s performance has reduced our staff’s day-to-day involvement in the
vending services.
The Wilkinson Group redesigned the vending services
at our 17 campus locations across the state and devised a Request For Proposal that
allowed us to make regional contract awards to the best operator’s in each geography.
Equipment, services and pricing have all been standardized at improved levels; and the
income back to National has nearly doubled. Both the initial process and The Wilkinson
Group’s ongoing oversight of the vendors’ performance were so beneficial that
after the first year we extended their involvement to cover our cafeteria operations,
where they achieved similarly beneficial results.
Macy’s West views the vending services in our
department stores, and any income that can be derived from them, as amenities intended to
benefit our Associates. The Wilkinson Group is responsible for maximizing these benefits
for the Associates, and for minimizing the involvement of Macy’s West management.
Under the management of The Wilkinson Group, service standards have never been better or
more consistent throughout the Macy’s West chain; income is up considerably; and
vending issues are not a distraction from the business of operating our retail stores.
I first spoke with The Wilkinson Group when I was
only months away from relocating an entire store to a new location that was under
construction. Although the Associate vending is an important aspect of our break room
amenities, there were many logistical considerations regarding relocation of the store
operations that took precedence over the vending scenario. After determining that The
Wilkinson Group was structured to benefit my situation, and checking their references, (a
number of which came from within the Nordstrom chain of stores), I assigned them the
project to design the vending configuration for the new store and locate the best operator
to serve the Associates. It could not have been easier for me. In fact, The Wilkinson
Group even coordinated the removal of the equipment from our old store location after the
move; and they continue to be an asset with their on-going oversight of our vending
operations.
The Wilkinson Group worked very effectively with our
Employee Recreation Association to identify General Atomics’ objectives for the
vending program, and designed the services and Request For Proposal accordingly.
When the vendor selection was complete, The Wilkinson Group coordinated the installation
of services; and has continued to protect General Atomics’ interests by regularly
monitoring the vending company’s services and commission payments. In fact, The
Wilkinson Group was even instrumental in identifying a significant short payment of
commission income from our previous vending company---and in effecting a full collection
for us.
As clearly beneficial as The Wilkinson Group’s
involvement was in updating and improving the vending services at Signet Armorlite, their
ongoing involvement has been equally valuable. Their Performance Appraisal reports
on the services of our vendor enable us to periodically re-confirm the current validity of
our past decisions, and provides a vehicle for keeping our services current with changes
in both our company and the vending industry.
When we engaged The Wilkinson Group it was because
we knew we needed to improve the equipment and services for our employees and that they
could facilitate the project’s success. But, frankly, we were skeptical when The
Wilkinson Group gave us what they termed a "conservative" projection for the
potential increase in commission income---without increasing the vend prices. The
Wilkinson Group streamlined our RFP process by pre-qualifying the best vending companies
in our area to invite to the bid; and when it was completed, we had greatly improved and
expanded services with a few key price reductions, and our income was increased by well
more than had been projected.
In 1995 the FBI was consolidating a number of
smaller field offices into a new Field Headquarters building under construction in San
Diego. As Administrative Officer, my planning and acquisition responsibilities for the new
Headquarters encompassed everything from carpet and furniture to advanced communication
systems---and included employee breakroom services. The Wilkinson Group’s assumption
of the vending service oversight and management was a tremendous relief. They worked with
the building contractor to design the ideal vending service configuration, coordinated
with another government agency to ensure compliance with applicable federal requirements,
and then managed the Request for Proposal and vendor selection process. After
vendor selection, The Wilkinson Group supervised the vendor’s installation of the
equipment just prior to our taking occupancy. The Wilkinson Group’s involvement
enabled me to devote the requisite time to the many other details, while remaining
confident that the vending service transition was being managed professionally.
The Wilkinson Group has proven to be a unique, extremely
knowledgeable, and highly valuable resource for the District. Their detailed and
professional approach, coupled with their depth of specific industry knowledge, has been
greatly informative and beneficial regarding past and present vending contracts, and has
contributed significantly to a revised view/structure for all future contracts. Every
responsible organization that wishes to protect and optimize their financial interests and
returns from vending service contracts should afford themselves the opportunity to meet
and work with The Wilkinson Group.
Fox Animation’s agenda for the vending and
coffee services is very simple…we want our employees to have the best quality that is
available. When we convert from project development to full scale production our staff
doubles, and we go to a six or seven day work week that includes three shifts. As the
primary source of refreshments for our employees, the demands on the vending and coffee
services increases dramatically, and we need a supplier that can adjust to our fluctuating
needs smoothly and without sacrificing quality. The Wilkinson Group’s service design
and competitive Request For Proposal process was instrumental in achieving our
objectives for the refreshment services, and their Performance Appraisals identify
any opportunities for improvement or service expansion that is appropriate for our vendor
over time.
As operators of public skating rinks across the
United States we rely on vending machines to serve our customers and to generate revenues.
The Wilkinson Group designs the equipment and service arrangement that will maximize both,
and then installs the vending operator in facility around the country that has the best
operational standards. The Wilkinson Group’s involvement has improved services and
increased Ice Chalet’s income by 75%. Furthermore, since vending services are a cash
business, The Wilkinson Group’s knowledgeable supervision of the vendors’
commission income reporting continues to protect Ice Chalet’s financial interests.
Before The Wilkinson Group’s involvement, we
thought that our remote location was a limiting factor in contracting quality refreshment
services. The Wilkinson Group negotiated improvements with our current catering truck
supplier, and completely restructured our vending services for award to a company with far
superior standards than we had been accustomed to. The following year, The Wilkinson Group
designed an additional expansion of vending services that allowed us to eliminate the
catering truck completely, and services have never been better.
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