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Mondelēz International is transforming its global supply chain knowledge management from paper-based systems and isolated local experts to digital, AI-driven networks. This shift utilizes cloud platforms like Starmind to democratize expertise, improve decision-making, and enforce a cultural shift toward collaborative sharing, significantly enhancing efficiency.
Mondelēz and Starmind in Conversation
The rapid evolution of technology has fundamentally reshaped how global organizations capture, share, and retain institutional knowledge. A recent webinar featuring Catriona Newman, Global Supply Chain Capability & Knowledge Management Lead at Mondelēz International, and Randall Beck, Customer Success Director at Starmind, highlighted this journey, outlining how Mondelēz is moving past legacy knowledge silos using sophisticated technological tools and deep cultural change.
Catriona’s role at Mondelēz involves developing and executing the global strategy for learning, capability development, and knowledge management across core functions like manufacturing, engineering, safety, and quality. Given the scale of Mondelēz, which operates in over 80 countries and employs approximately 91,000 people, the challenges related to knowledge flow are significant.
The Legacy Challenge: From Paper to the Cloud
For decades, knowledge management (KM) practices in the supply chain have been defined by fragmented, location-specific data storage and heavy reliance on undocumented expertise.
The Problem of ‘Bob’: Knowledge Loss and Inefficiency
A critical issue faced by Mondelēz and other organizations stemmed from their dependence on the informal, local expert, colloquially known as "Bob". Bob was the go-to person who possessed valuable tacit knowledge, experience built over years, that was rarely written down.
Practical Issues Mondelēz Experienced:
- Fragmented Data Storage: Knowledge documentation relied heavily on paper and local, isolated storage methods such as individual USB sticks or computer hard drives, making data difficult to locate and track down.
- Knowledge Containment: Knowledge rarely flowed across regions, remaining contained within the "four walls" of individual factory sites.
- Critical Knowledge Loss: When Bob retired, that vital, unwritten tacit knowledge retired with him, forcing companies to confront significant knowledge loss. This often led to inefficiency, as the company might have wasted time and energy recreating knowledge or repeating mistakes that had previously been solved elsewhere.
Practical Solutions: Centralizing Data Access
Technology has provided the key solution to these issues, primarily through the adoption of cloud-based systems. This transition has centralized and simplified access to knowledge. The practice of emailing multiple document copies has been replaced; information is now stored in a single location that everybody can access, and collaboration tools allow multiple users to edit and view documents simultaneously and asynchronously. This centralized approach ensures that documents are always current and accessible globally.
Technology as the Catalyst: Democratizing Expertise with Starmind
The core of Mondelēz’s strategy involves leveraging advanced technology to move from relying on the single, irreplaceable Bob to accessing "multiple Bobs", a network of experts and platforms available digitally.
Identifying Experts Globally: The Rise of 'Many Bobs'
Catriona puts it simply, “One person can't know everything, so sometimes finding those answers and finding the right person can be a bit more hard work.” Tools like Starmind’s Expert Finder are crucial in democratizing expertise and improving collaboration.
She adds, “We use the likes of Star Mind to identify experts globally quicker at the time of need and help people build their [internal] networks.” These systems help Mondelēz to identify global experts faster at the time of need, regardless of their geographical location or specialty.
By using these digital platforms, employees can build their professional networks and connect with the right specialists across continents and regions, effectively breaking down the geographical and functional silos that previously existed between countries, regions, and sites. The objective is for tools like Starmind to become as common in daily workflows as email, such as Microsoft Outlook.
“Culture changes will start to happen, really shifting from knowledge hoarding, like what we talked about with ‘Bob,’ to more collaborative cultures, where people get to realize that sharing is the norm. Tools like Starmind will be as commonly used as Outlook in the future, and this means that allowing users to find anything within seconds, and people, without even thinking.”
- Catriona Newman, Global Supply Chain Capability & Knowledge Management Lead at Mondelēz International
The Role of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in KM
With most workplaces facing "information overload" due to the volume of data stored in cloud systems, AI offers a strategic solution. AI is being introduced to address the challenge of data being scattered across various formats and locations.
AI aids the movement from merely finding information to interpreting and applying information. It makes written knowledge more accessible and assists humans by informing decisions, rather than replacing human creativity and the ability to see complex connections. The fundamental goal of incorporating AI is to automate routine work so that human supply chain personnel can focus on creative thinking and strategic problem-solving.
The Crucial Component: Cultivating a Collaborative Culture
Catriona emphasized that technology alone is insufficient; cultural change is still required to leverage these digital systems fully. Historically, employees often gravitated toward the one or two people they knew, fostering a culture of limited local sharing.
Moving from Hoarding to Sharing
To prevent knowledge loss, increase efficiency, and break down organizational silos, Mondelēz is focusing on a fundamental cultural shift.
The company must transition from the historic practice of knowledge hoarding to establishing collaborative sharing as the new norm. This means encouraging openness and curiosity across the organization to try new tools and ways of working, ultimately making people more comfortable with technology adoption. When shared lessons are effectively captured and distributed, it leads to faster learning and the elimination of repeated mistakes, such as depositor errors in a factory. The aim is for people to realise that sharing knowledge is an expected part of their professional role.
This evolution represents a major paradigm shift: moving from reliance on isolated, paper-based expertise to globally connected, AI-assisted networks. The success of future supply chain knowledge management depends equally on successful technology adoption and the complete cultural transformation of the organization. This journey is akin to shifting from relying on a personal, handwritten phone book (the local Bob) to accessing a globally shared, instantly updated, and intelligent directory that connects you not just to the right contact, but to the answer itself.
