Willie Itule Produce, Phoenix, Ariz., is applying its commitment to quality with technology solutions in order to scale at the rate of change in the produce industry.
“We realized that to continue to scale our business, we needed a serious infrastructure upgrade,” says Billy Itule, senior management and operations.
To achieve this, Willie Itule Produce turned to Produce Pro Software, Woodridge, Ill., to evolve its enterprise resource planning (ERP) management infrastructure.
“As a member of Produce Alliance, we heard many Produce Pro success stories from other colleagues, and their experience with the technology and systems strongly influenced our decision to adopt this platform,” says Itule. “After thorough research and assessment, we felt confident that this was the ERP tool needed to grow our business and be as efficient as possible.”
Part of the success story with Willie Itule Produce is the partnership and engagement from the very beginning of the process.
“I'm always amazed at how their team is so engaged and eager to learn about all facets of the system. Willie Itule is a very well-run organization. Their implementation showed that because from the top-down, everyone was bought into the process,” says Marc Hatfield, national sales manager, Produce Pro Software.
What the team at Willie Itule Produce discovered during the implementation was that it’s more than just launching a tool; it’s about supporting the people behind it every step of the way.
“Perhaps the most difficult part of transitioning to a new ERP is the cultural change it represented for our team, which came with some reservation,” Itule says. “However, the training provided by Produce Pro, as well as the ongoing support, relieved those concerns. Produce Pro listened well and took our questions seriously as we ramped up to deployment, which made going live significantly easier for everyone at every level.”
Willie Itule Produce has been running the Produce Pro system for eight months. With the ability to view live inventory statistics, and subsequently, report on that data, it uncovers areas of opportunity in the business, refines efficiency to improve client experience and capitalizes on performance.
“Inventory has been a game-changer for us,” Itule adds. “Having such extensive access to data has highlighted areas of opportunity in our business to increase productivity, and has helped us identify ways we can grow to meet our clients’ evolving needs.”
With four decades of quality produce, people and service, Willie Itule Produce’s partnership with Produce Pro Software is paving the way for many more years of growth.
“Over the almost 40 years Willie Itule Produce has served Arizona, we’ve had to change to grow and maintain the high standard of excellence,” says Itule. “When it comes to technology, transitions are always challenging, and the Produce Pro team did everything they could to ensure our success from Day 1 and beyond. We feel confident we chose the industry leader for ERP in partnering with Produce Pro Software.”
