Week 4 EasiYo Case Study
Managing change and diversity at EasiYo FROM A MANUFACTURING base in
Auckland, EasiYo enables over a million homes in New Zealand, Australia, the UK, Italy and China to enjoy fresh yoghurt every day of the year. It supports home production through the supply of powdered bases and culture and a plastic incubator in which the yoghurt ferments. Paul O'Brien joined the company as CEO in December 2009 and has overseen sales growth of around 30 per cent a year, on the way to a target of sales in excess of $50 million to 20 plus countries. It is part of the
New Zealand success in dairy products but for EasiYo business growth has also been about managing the transition from humble beginnings into a multinational enterprise with a product that relies on strict compliance to high standards of food quality and safety.
EasiYo started in the early 1990s as a husband and wife team working from their garage. The business succeeded through research and development, firstly into yoghurt making, then finding the right milk powder and freeze-dried culture to ensure 100 per cent setting of the incubated yoghurt at home.
Partnership with the Westland Dairy
Company, who purchased the company outright soon after Paul O'Brien took charge, gave EasiYo R&D capacity. Recent growth has been based on marrying corporate management with the strengths inherited from the original family business. Paul joined
a company that had grown rapidly with NZ$25 million sales, three quarters from exports, but lacking in the formal management systems to maintain high performance and build a platform for continued growth.
Paul's first four days with the company were unusual for a CEO. He spent them working on the shop floor, introduced to the production team as just another recruit. This experience combined with his early period in the manager's office led to two main observations: management needed to be more measurement based; the workforce was a great asset but exposed the business to
some
Auckland, EasiYo enables over a million homes in New Zealand, Australia, the UK, Italy and China to enjoy fresh yoghurt every day of the year. It supports home production through the supply of powdered bases and culture and a plastic incubator in which the yoghurt ferments. Paul O'Brien joined the company as CEO in December 2009 and has overseen sales growth of around 30 per cent a year, on the way to a target of sales in excess of $50 million to 20 plus countries. It is part of the
New Zealand success in dairy products but for EasiYo business growth has also been about managing the transition from humble beginnings into a multinational enterprise with a product that relies on strict compliance to high standards of food quality and safety.
EasiYo started in the early 1990s as a husband and wife team working from their garage. The business succeeded through research and development, firstly into yoghurt making, then finding the right milk powder and freeze-dried culture to ensure 100 per cent setting of the incubated yoghurt at home.
Partnership with the Westland Dairy
Company, who purchased the company outright soon after Paul O'Brien took charge, gave EasiYo R&D capacity. Recent growth has been based on marrying corporate management with the strengths inherited from the original family business. Paul joined
a company that had grown rapidly with NZ$25 million sales, three quarters from exports, but lacking in the formal management systems to maintain high performance and build a platform for continued growth.
Paul's first four days with the company were unusual for a CEO. He spent them working on the shop floor, introduced to the production team as just another recruit. This experience combined with his early period in the manager's office led to two main observations: management needed to be more measurement based; the workforce was a great asset but exposed the business to
some