ISSA, in partnership with Sustainability Dashboard Tools, has begun phase two of the new Distributor Efficiency Analytics and Learning (DEAL) program. DEAL is a comprehensive program that incorporates learning, analytics, and awards to help distributors, wholesalers, and manufacturers benchmark their performance, streamline their operations, and realize significant savings in warehouse facility and transportation expenses. DEAL can help businesses reduce up to 30% of facility and fleet operating costs, according to the association.

“Reliable data gathering and analytics allows us to see the big picture,” said John Barrett, ISSA’s executive director. “This systematic process helps companies identify inefficiencies, create realistic targets for improvement, ascertain their competitive edge, and gain recognition for their environmental leadership. Through DEAL, companies can meet their customers’ growing requirements for supply-chain information, compare their performance to cleaning-industry and other distributors nationally, and receive ongoing, cost-effective consulting on efficient operations.”

Connor Flynn, buyer at Alliance Paper and Foodservice Equipment, said, “One of the best things the DEAL program does is review invoices. If a provider charges an unusually high amount for waste, water, or electricity one month, DEAL will notify us. Identifying price discrepancies promptly, whether it is billing- or operations-related, saves a great deal of time and money for DEAL participants.”

Through its Learning Sessions, including e-learning and webinars, the DEAL program coaches and guides participants to ensure they understand the process. Then DEAL’s Analytics component help participants track their performance, identify opportunities for improvement across multiple facilities, and compare their operations to other companies with similar attributes on a national level. The program’s Awards component kicks in to recognize and reward participants who have implemented the program successfully.

Sustainability experts have recognized the DEAL program for its practical approach. According to Brenna Walraven, Building Owners and Managers Association International (BOMA) fellow and president and CEO of Corporate Sustainability Strategies, “What benchmarking does is give you improved visibility on your performance to help teams better manage costs and performance. The great news here is that the DEAL program is a huge asset because it does the heavy lifting by managing the benchmarking process for you. Rather than being a data entry clerk, the ISSA DEAL program gives you the time to visualize the data and focus on opportunities for cost savings and revenue generation.”

Jonathan Adkins, ISSA’s market research and analytics director, added, “DEAL offers a prescriptive learning platform, teaching best practices from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Energy Star and SmartWay transportation programs." 

For more information, visit issa.com or www.green2sustainable.com.