Case Report: Maybelline

For this report, please do not exceed two pages including this page. 1. Describe differences in the workflows of the IVR systems (the old one) as well as the MSP systems (the new one) at Maybelline. In IVR systems,

Reps need to do complete paper-based surveys to collect data. Reps translate data collected into answers to the IVR system by pressing telephone keys. The system consolidates information and delivers it to top management as hard copy and In MSP systems,

Reps complete data collection by handheld, pen-based PDAs instead of paper-based surveys. reps enter their reports by handwriting at clients’ sites Data can automatically be uploaded to the database at headquarters. 2. What were the benefits of the new MSP systems by replacing the old IVR systems? I think the main benefits of the new MSP systems are as follows. It saves time and labor of reps.

With the old systems, reps have to do paper-based surveys which means they have to take a lot of time recording data. It is of low efficiency and inconvenient. The new system solves this problem by using handheld, pen based systems. MSP systems allow reps to enter data without papers. This method not only saves the time of reps by 30 to 40 minutes per day but also saves papers. The new systems provide efficiency and high flexibility.

New systems address the problem of delays of the report delivery in IVR systems. In the old system, reports were frequently not on time which results in the delay of reports. The new systems allow district managers to contact reps instantly and that extremely improves the efficiency. New systems provide high flexibility. In old systems, reps have to press appropriate keys to answer lots of questions in which most of questions may not relevant. That will bring about the error rate of information and a waste of time. New systems provide the feature of error checking and validation which fewer data-entry errors since no rekeying is needed. MSP systems help to speed up business activities and support decision making. The systems speed information along the supply chain and provide manager of conditions or factors that affect the selling of goods in a timely way. It performs market analysis to optimize merchandising and customer- service efforts.

3. What would be the potential challenges when implementing the new systems in Maybelline? Since the data were instantly uploaded to database, what if there is something wrong with data when uploading? How can we make sure that the data can be renewed? What’s more, since there is no paper-based surveys left, the data in the headquarter may be lost and we cannot save the original data. Because every rep has to use the system, we should make sure that every one of them should operate the system correctly. Therefore the company has to train every new rep which will definitely cost money. Should all the reports be menu driven? Some important data may not be included in the questions of the menu. And how to help reps to skip those irrelevant questions is also a problem.