Kenvue, the leading consumer health company with a portfolio of iconic brands used daily by 1.2 billion people, navigated a significant transition during its split from Johnson & Johnson. Inheriting a system for artwork and labeling that, while functional, presented challenges in terms of fragmentation and manual effort, Kenvue embarked on a bold digital transformation. This represented a substantial strategic pivot. Through a strategic partnership with Kallik, Kenvue leveraged advanced tools and artificial intelligence to create a streamlined, end-to-end digital ecosystem, enhancing efficiency and accelerating time to market.

Challenges

As Joseph Konopka, Director of Digital Acceleration at Kenvue, described at Gartner’s recent Supply Chain Symposuim/Xpo, the existing system presented several complexities. Information was often 'hard to find,' and processes were 'complicated' and 'manual,' leading to 'long durations and many rework cycles – up to 8 to 10 rework cycles on a regular basis.' It was clear a new approach was required. The immediate need to update every single label with a new manufacturer and corporate address post-split also increased the urgency for a more agile approach.

Gurdip Singh, CEO of Kallik, reflected on the broader industry landscape, noting his own surprise upon entering the labeling sector: "When I joined the industry, I was shocked to hear how many manual processes operate [across the sector], and how much value can really be derived from addressing these. It's something that I think is really critical for leaders to fully embrace."

Konopka echoed this frustration from his own experience: “So many times people have come to me and said, ‘I can’t find this piece of art,’ or, ‘Why does it take so long?’ or, ‘Why do I need so many regulatory people?’” While the need for change was obvious, actually executing that change across a global, highly regulated business was not without its fair share of challenges – especially when there were over 20,000 artworks to work with!  “Nobody wanted to change anything because of how hard it was,” Konopka admitted.

That’s why choosing the right partner is critical. Kenvue needed a provider with deep migration expertise and a platform designed to streamline the transition. This is where Kallik came in with Veraciti’s one-of-a-kind, AI-driven tool, AToM – really changing the implementation game as the first tool of its kind to tackle common data migration challenges.

With the issue of migration simplified, Kenvue decided to make the transition with a vision to "make sure that we were ultimately adding accreted value to the company" by accelerating innovation, improving compliance, and significantly reducing manual interventions. They also identified a growing need to synchronize physical labels with digital content for e-commerce platforms and market-specific digital leaflets.

The Solution: A Strategic Partnership for Digital Transformation

Kenvue embarked on a comprehensive digital transformation, starting with the foundational step of creating a digital twin of existing labels. This commitment to digitizing the current state from day one, rather than building an empty system, was crucial.

The creation of a structured database across each and every data element enabled consistency, efficient impact analysis for updated, and streamlined decision-making. For example, by analyzing their Listerine UK portfolio, they discovered that "80% of the SKUs are usually content is shared," yet each change was often handled individually.

To eliminate manual re-typing, the software facilitated automation of key data elements through direct integration with  their source of truth (e.g., ingredient systems) to labels and digital platforms. This ensures consistency across all touchpoints and significantly reduces the chance of errors being made.

An "event-based action triggering" system was also implemented, automating job initiation based on regulatory changes or market events. Furthermore, the solution helped integrate SAP data to dynamically trigger the correct product images for e-commerce sites, ensuring accuracy and avoiding customer confusion.

Driving Seamless Implementation with AI-Powered Migration

Beth Peckover, Chief Delivery Officer at Kallik, commented on the foundational element of such ambitious transformations: "Achieving a true labeling and artwork digital transformation starts with a seamless and intelligent migration. Our approach to implementation focuses on deeply understanding a client's existing complexities and utilizing our AI migration tool, AToM, to extract label data efficiently and accurately.

“This process establishes a 'single source of truth' for accurate artwork management and labeling, streamlining complex data into digitized solutions. This 'right first time' methodology not only maximizes efficiency but provides complete regulatory confidence and ensures a dynamic, adaptable system capable of responding quickly to market changes. We firmly believe that AI-powered technology, like our advanced migration solutions, is absolutely integral to the future of efficient and compliant labeling and artwork management."

Results

The transformation brought about by this strategic move has delivered significant benefits across Kenvue’s business. In one specific case study, Kenvue was able to make packaging changes 95% faster simply by reusing existing content, turning complex revisions into a 'copy, paste' operation. This represented a remarkable improvement in operational speed. This capability empowered the organization to 'review only what has changed,' leading to greater efficiency and a more agile approach to updates.

Gurdip Singh underscored the strategic importance of digital transformation in labeling and artwork management: "It’s crucial that we think about labeling very differently to it just being a back-end process that underpins the business. It's an absolutely invaluable asset to accelerate your business."

If you're looking to transform your labeling and artwork management processes, just as Kenvue has, speak to one of our labeling and management experts today. Call +44 (0) 1827 318100 or email enquiries@kallik.com to see how Kallik can help your business.