Redefining competitive advantages to create a better future for all : Neo Group & Supply Wisdom

“One of the things companies like us need to do is make sure that we are providing greater value to our clients and dealing with situations that exist today and will in the near future, and not years ago.”

The global sourcing and outsourcing space is currently a $300B plus market with a growth rate of 5-10+ % growth a year. As complexity of locations, suppliers and sourcing activity rises, so does the need to have better oversight and risk management. While many firms provide supply chain services in the manufacturing sector, the supply monitoring space is not served well in the services market. Also, complexity of sourcing, multiple captive operations and need for better vendor management has fueled the market for advisory services, which potentially exceeds $1B annually. While strategic consulting firms try to serve the space, they lack operations and execution experience. Founded in the year 1999 and incorporated in 2007, Neo Group, a self funded company with deep data, propreitary analytical models and actionable advice has helped Global 5000 firms achieve business objectives and address challenges by leveraging global services and sourcing.

Neo Group has been recognized by various industry groups and buyers as a leader in this industry, such as Consulting Magazine recognizing its founder, Atul Vashistha, as one of Top 25 Most Influential Consultants and Top 6 IT Power Brokers. With Offices located worldwide in USA, India, Colombia, Netherlands, Brazil, etc and with competitors such as McKinsey, BCG, Bain, Lexis Nexis, CEB and D&B, Neo Group’s success story is reflected through the dependency of buyers of Global Services on the company’s’ advice, data, analytics and monitoring to make critical decisions like what to source, when to source, where to source, who to partner with, how to manage and how to monitor, and more.

Carving a niche As companies look to create competitive advantage, they have recognized the benefits of global sourcing and placed reliance on their supplier or their own operations. This scale and the distribution of work among locations and suppliers require in-depth expertise and on-going monitroing, which is not easily available in-house easily and advisory firms like Neo Group provide this and help create rapid and on-going success.

The company was founded on the belief of “Talent Without BordersSM” and it all began when Mr Atul Vashistha, the Founder was leading international operations for a Fortune 25 firm but had a burning desire to be entrepreneurial and make an impact. The 1999 stock market bubble and a lucky bet on a friend’s IPO debut created enough funds for him to leave the security of a Fortune 25 firm and do something on his own, the result of which was Neo Group. The company started as a service to help clients select outsourcing suppliers, better manage their vendors and operations and when a client requested an early warning system to help better manage risks, the collaborative efforts led to the birth of Supply WisdomSM.

With a Revenue Model dependant on Supply Monitoring Subscriptions and Globalization Advisory Fees, Neo Group has a successful track record of innovative service by a team comprised of experienced, hands-on professionals and industry thought leaders who are regarded as experts in the services sourcing space and regularly contributes to various industry publications such as Forbes, Fortune, Wall Street Journal, CNN, etc. Having carved a space and differentiated itself from its competitors by being an analytics-driven, expert-led advisory, Neo Group has averaged a growth rate of over 25% per year since 2010.

A preferred choice among clientele and a step ahead of competitors The company’s advisory services focus on helping clients on their sourcing strategy (what to globalize/source and what to retain), sourcing (where and how to globalize/source) and how to best transition and govern it, which makes the clients become “Great Globalizers”, where as the company’s Supply WisdomSM , a cloud based subscription service helps clients understand and monitor the risks and opportunities associated with their locations and suppliers globally in real-time.

As complexity of locations, suppliers and size rises, so does the need to have better oversight and risk management. While many firms provide supply chain services in the manufacturing sector, the supply monitoring space is not served well in the services market. Information about emerging markets is not easy to obtain, especially as it relates to labor data. While global businesses often focus on their suppliers and the risks associated with them, location-based risks, such as weather, elections, law changes and labor shortages, are often overlooked and it is in such circumstances, that Solutions like Supply WisdomSM provide a reliable way to address these pain points. “On our monitoring service, Supply WisdomSM, the competitive differentiators are that it’s a real-time service, has globally aggregated data, with a proprietary risk model and algorithms, including expert guidance and is cloud-based. On our advisory services, we are differentiated by being analytics-driven and expert-led. We leverage proven methodologies, deep globalization data and analytics along with advisors who have prior operations experience”, says the Founder of Neo Group, Mr Atul Vashistha.

Today, over 100 market leaders like Walgreens, Time Warner, Northern Trust, Merck and Disney leverage this service to monitor and mitigate sourcing risks. Talking about the benefits of the service, a F500 Financial Services Company says, “Data on wages, attrition and ice, other key parameters provided through Supply WisdomSM helped us effectively negotiate a large deal with a provider and then manage it effectively”, while another F500 Technology leader says, “Critical risk mitigation recommendations regarding a possible tax change helped us re-allocate our portfolio and save over $3 Million a year. Supply WisdomSM is used extensively by our governance teams to monitor location and vendor risks on an ongoing basis”.

Plans for the days ahead
The company’s clientele that includes leading companies on both the Global 5000 and the Mid-Market such as Microsoft, Union Bank, Kronos, Good Year, Zurich, Discover etc is increasing day by day as Supply WisdomSM is seeing great traction in Financial Services, Life Sciences, Retail and Technology, apart from the clients across the other verticals such as advisory services that is seeing great traction in media and entertainment, digital, retail, financial services, manufacturing and technology. “Our goal is to be the singular source of advice, data, analytics, monitoring and management solutions for clients that source and manage talent globally”, adds Mr Atul.

Committed to a growth mindset that is focused on continuing to create great globalizers by helping clients realize extraordinary outcomes, the company plans to continue to invest in creating solutions that will help its clients take advantage of global talent while addressing risks, in the days ahead to come.

Knowing the Key Executives

Mr Atul Vashistha: CEO & Founder The founder of Neo Group, Mr Atul is recognized globally as a leading expert on globalization, outsourcing and governance. Prior to founding Neo Group, he was Senior Vice President, International at Cardinal Health (NYSE: CAH). He serves on the Boards of Nearshore Executive Alliance, Shared Assessments, IDEADental and IAOP and is a Former Chair and current member of the Young Presidents Organization besides having served on the USA Department of Defense, Defense Business Board, from 2007-2013 and also supports numerous economic development, human development and CSR initiatives such as Echoing Green, GreenStart, World Education Foundation, Because I Am a Girl and Foundations for the Future.

Recognized by Consulting Magazine and Globalization Today as one of the “Top 25 Most Influential Consultants” & “Top 6 IT Powerbrokers” and “Industry Most Influential Powerhouse 25”, respectively, Mr Atul has also been recognized by the Near Shore Americas as one of the Power 50. HRO and FAO Today named him a Superstar.

The author of three books, various ongoing columns for Global Decisions, Pulse and Global Services is also sought after for expert opinion by Media and Wall Street analysts at CNN, ABC, CNBC, Wells Fargo, Goldman Sachs, Fortune, Forbes, Business Week, Wall Street Journal, Investor’s Business Daily, Economist, CIO, CFO and other global organizations who are in awe of his take on critics such as Lou Dobbs and his previous segment on CNN. Neo Group has been fortunate to have other leaders who joined the company in its formative years and have helped steer it to success. Pankaj Sharma who is a veteran of neoIT and then Electronic Arts along with Hemant Puthli, a veteran of Deloitte and neoIT, have played key roles.