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Avon Appoints New Chief Supply Chain Officer

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Avon Products Inc. announced that Vikram Agarwal has been named senior vice president and chief supply chain officer, effective February 1, 2019.

Vikram Agarwal

Vikram Agarwal

Agarwal succeeds Michael Watson, who has decided to step down to pursue other professional opportunities. The company also announced that Susan Ormiston, senior vice president of Human Resources, will be leaving this month for a new opportunity outside Avon.

“We are delighted to welcome Vikram to the Avon team and look forward to the expertise and insights he brings from having overseen large, complex supply chains of consumer goods organisations,” said CEO Jan Zijderveld. “Our supply chain transformation and operating with flexibility to best meet Her needs is central to our efforts to ‘Open Up’ Avon. I’m confident that Vikram’s experience in emerging and fast-changing markets as well as in transformational agendas make him well suited to lead a revitalised supply chain team in continuing to drive improvements in service quality and Representative satisfaction and well as ensuring that our global operational structure is operating as efficiently and effectively as possible.”

Agarwal, who will report to Zijderveld, joins Avon following a 30-year career in operations and supply chain at Unilever. Most recently, he served as executive vice president, Supply Chain Africa, where he was responsible for a multi-billion-dollar regional business, including end-to-end supply chain across 15 countries, 14 factories and 25,000 employees.

“I am excited to join a great company like Avon, and the Avon team,” said Agarwal. “I am confident that there are significant opportunities to serve our Representatives, enhance performance, capture efficiencies and continue to develop a supply chain organisation that will best support Avon’s growth into the future. I look forward to working with the senior leadership team, and the global supply chain group, to drive operational excellence and advance Avon’s transformation.”

Xyngular Introduces Accelerate with Thermolit Blend

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Xyngular recently introduced Accelerate with Thermolit Blend, a new product to help the millions of Americans who have resolved to lose weight in 2019.

Like the previous iteration of this product, Accelerate, Accelerate with Thermolit Blend is also a thermogenic (fat burner). Used most effectively as part of Xyngular’s premier weight loss solution, Ultimate System, the new product works by suppressing appetite, controlling hunger and converting fat into energy as part of a stimulant-free fat burning process.

“This solution is another step toward our ultimate goal of improving people’s health and quality of life,” said Russ Fletcher, Xyngular CEO. “We hope to get it in the hands of as many people as possible to provide solutions to those people who may otherwise have trouble shedding pounds and getting their health on track.”

Accelerate with Thermolit Blend ignites the body’s fat-burning potential by naturally promoting thermogenesis—the body’s ability to burn calories.

Xyngular, a leading provider of simplified weight-loss systems, is headquartered in Lehi, Utah.

Mary Kay Europe Wins Coveted Brandon Hall Group Award

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Mary Kay Europe won a coveted Brandon Hall Group Bronze award for excellence in the category of Best Advance in Learning Management Technology for External Training.

Brandon Hall Group, one of the most well-known and established research organizations in the performance improvement industry, honored the beauty company’s new, innovative Link & Learn™ global sales education system.

Mary Kay Independent Beauty Consultants in nine European markets are among the first to experience the robust learning curriculum designed to amplify educational support for the independent sales force and increase their business success. The innovative e-learning platform connects Mary Kay Independent Beauty Consultants to a learning community based on content, accessibility and localization.

“Mary Kay fosters a culture of innovation and we are honored to receive the 2018 Brandon Hall Group Bronze award for the hard work put into the launch of our Link & Learn™ technology,” said Beth Lopez, vice president of Global Sales Education for Mary Kay and vice president of Sales and Marketing for Mary Kay Inc.’s European Region. “Reaction and engagement to the new sales education system has been overwhelmingly positive and we will continue to work with our Mary Kay markets to roll out this innovative, award-winning platform to help continue our mission of enriching women’s lives around the world.”

Brandon Hall Group Excellence Awards in Technology recognize organizations that have successfully deployed programs, strategies, modalities, processes, systems and tools that have achieved measurable results. Entries for the awards are based upon criteria including breakthrough innovation, unique differentiators and value proposition. A panel of veteran, independent senior industry experts alongside Brandon Hall Group analysts and executives evaluated the entries. The award winners will be honored at the Human Capital Management Excellence Conference hosted by Brandon Hall in West Palm Beach Florida in January.

“We’re proud to honor the innovators. As human capital management continues to evolve, the creativity of the award winners is breathtaking,” said Rachel Cooke, chief operating officer of Brandon Hall Group and head of the Awards Program. “Organizations of all sizes showed that creativity and technology can create new and better work experiences.”

David Casanova Named Stemtech VP of Global Markets

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Stemtech Corporation recently announced the appointment of David Casanova as vice president, Global Sales & Marketing.

“We are thrilled that a world-class executive like David was interested in joining the Stemtech management group,” said Ray Carter, Stemtech CEO. “His passion, work ethic, experience and leadership will be a tremendous asset to the company.”

Casanova brings over 30 years of industry experience around the world, having worked at the executive level with major industry leaders.

“I am so excited to be joining a company on the forefront of wellness technology, with unique, in-demand products that practically sell themselves,” said Casanova. “The company is poised to reach greater heights and I am happy to be able to contribute to Stemtech’s success.”

New Avon Appoints Laurie Ann Goldman as CEO

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New Avon LLC announced it has appointed Laurie Ann Goldman as chief executive officer, effective January 14, 2019.

Goldman succeeds Scott White, who joined Avon in 2016 to lead its separation from Avon Products, Inc. and the operational transformation of Avon’s business in North America.

Goldman, who joined Avon’s Board of Managers in August 2018, is a marketing and branding executive with more than 30 years of experience at leading consumer products companies. She was the chief executive officer of Spanx, a multinational women’s apparel company, for 12 years, and was instrumental in building the brand from a small start-up to a successful global business. Earlier in her career, she held various senior leadership roles in the Global Marketing division of The Coca Cola Company.

“Laurie Ann is an experienced and inspirational leader in women’s lifestyle and consumer products, and we are thrilled to welcome her as our new CEO,” said Lori Bush, chairwoman of the Avon Board of Managers. “We believe Laurie Ann’s proven brand and business-building capabilities, along with her passion for empowering women, make her the ideal CEO to further promote the success of our Representatives and ensure outstanding experiences for their enhanced satisfaction for our customers.”

“The right product has the power to change a woman’s life, and each woman has the power to change the world,” said Goldman. “I’m thrilled to join Avon, the company that invented social selling, and lead the team and community of beauty advisors in driving product sales and progress for women. I thank Scott for his many contributions and look forward to delivering sustained growth through strategic innovation that will invigorate the business and ultimately help women face their futures with confidence.”

Chan Galbato, chief executive officer, Cerberus Operations and Advisory Company, LLC, and Member of the Avon Board of Managers, added, “This transition is the result of our original long-term plan for reinvigorating Avon—to improve the company’s fundamental operations and then transition to focus on strategic growth. We are grateful for Scott’s leadership during this critical stage of Avon’s development and are confident that the strong foundation he established will allow the company to thrive in the years to come. In addition to the separation and creation of an efficient corporate infrastructure, Scott drove key initiatives to fully digitize the business, establish strategic partnerships for manufacturing and R&D, and enhance our Representative experience. We are excited for Laurie Ann to now take the company forward and drive deeper customer engagement and sustained growth.”

White will transition to a strategic advisor role and work with Cerberus Operations and Advisory Company, the proprietary operations platform of Cerberus Capital Management, L.P., Avon’s financial and strategic partner. In his role, he will continue to advise Avon and will also work on key initiatives across Cerberus’ portfolio of operating company investments.

“I would like to thank the entire Avon community, including our Representatives, associates and customers, for their ongoing dedication and belief in our iconic brand, great products and the opportunities we provide to women throughout North America,” said White. “I am confident in Avon’s future and believe that with Laurie Ann’s leadership, the company will be able to drive modern, relevant experiences for our customers while creating sustainable long-term growth. I look forward to continuing to work with the Avon team, as well as Cerberus’ other portfolio companies, in my strategic advisor role.”

Michael O. Johnson Reassumes Herbalife CEO Role Following Goudis Departure

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Herbalife Nutrition Ltd. announced that effective immediately, Michael O. Johnson, the company’s executive chairman, will reassume the role of CEO.

The Board of Directors of Herbalife Nutrition Ltd. Made the announcement that Johnson will serve on an interim basis following the resignation of current CEO Richard Goudis.

Johnson, who led the company as its chief executive officer from 2003 to 2017, will oversee the operations, along with other senior executives, and continue to drive Herbalife Nutrition’s strong performance and growth trajectory. Pursuant to the Board’s succession plan, and to ensure an effective and orderly transition to a permanent CEO in the future, the Board expects to select the permanent CEO from the company’s proven senior leadership team.

Goudis’ departure is not due to any issues regarding the company’s financial reporting, but pertains to comments which recently came to light, made by Mr. Goudis prior to his role as CEO, that are contrary to the company’s expense-related policies and business practices. The comments made were inconsistent with Herbalife Nutrition’s standards and do not reflect the company’s culture.

The company today also announced preliminary volume point results for the fourth quarter 2018, which were up 11.6 percent worldwide from the same period in 2017 and reaffirmed its initial full year 2019 guidance as announced on October 30, 2018, thereby demonstrating the company’s consistent and continued confidence in the business moving forward.

Stella & Dot to Exit European Market

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According to a BBC report, US direct seller Stella & Dot is ending its operations in Europe.

Several UK sales reps, some of whom host parties to sell jewelry, say they have been messaged by the firm to say it has been hit by declines in the value of the pound and euro.

Messages have been posted online by the sales reps from chief executive and founder Jessica Herrin, who founded the company in 2003 and also founded WeddingChannel.com.

Herrin says the once profitable European business is now operating at a loss.

“Sadly the market conditions in Europe have become very difficult,” she wrote. “In the last few years the British pound and Euro have devalued against the US dollar by almost 20 percent, causing a deep decline in our margin, whilst at the same time operating costs have increased.”

Herrin also wrote that the decision to close had been taken with a “heavy heart” and after “countless deliberations” and that it was of “utmost importance” to exit gratefully.

UK sales representatives, known as stylists, will be able to continue to sell products and earn commissions until April 7.

DSA Establishes Third-Party Self-Regulatory Program

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The US Direct Selling Association (DSA) has announced that its Board of Directors unanimously approved the establishment of a third party self-regulatory program.

The Direct Selling Self-Regulatory Council (Direct Selling-SRC), which will be administered by the Council of Better Business Bureaus (CBBB), is designed to ensure high standards of integrity and business ethics which remain the guiding principles for all direct selling companies in the marketplace, regardless of DSA membership.

The Direct Selling-SRC will encompass active monitoring of the entire direct selling marketplace, including websites and social media of direct selling companies and their independent sales forces in the areas of income representations and product claims. In addition to a new process of investigating and reporting potentially non-compliant companies to the appropriate government agencies, the Direct Selling-SRC program administrators will also manage consumer/company complaint resolution. The program will also include a competitive challenge process, enabling independent companies to identify issues for the Direct Selling-SRC to review.

“We are proud to announce the creation of this program with the Council of Better Business Bureaus (CBBB),” said Joseph N. Mariano, president and CEO of DSA. “It was imperative the DSA partner with a third-party, independent organization such as the CBBB to ensure the enforcement of business standards and meet our objectives for self-regulation. Direct sellers are America’s original entrepreneurs with unique opportunities to connect with customers, as well as pursue independent businesses. Along with that unique opportunity is increased responsibility. Our salespeople perform demonstrations person-to-person frequently in the home and we have long been aware of the additional accountabilities for our companies and salespeople to ensure trustworthy, reliable experiences. Our top priorities continue to be protecting consumers and promoting our viable, time tested retail channel.”

Mariano continued, “We know that direct selling has sometimes suffered from perceived problems, occasional bad actors, and others who pretend to be legitimate. We have decided to address these issues directly, by holding companies to the highest standards with an effective third-party regimen.”

Lee Peeler, executive vice president of CBBB for National Advertising Programs, described the Direct Selling SRC, “The new program is a combination of a strong legacy with the ability to evolve so that it can keep pace with marketplace dynamics, respond to consumers’ needs and expectations, and complement law enforcement as the hallmarks of successful self-regulation.

“The program is built on the same strong foundation as other CBBB-administered self -regulation programs: clear standards, independent administration, transparent decision making and accountability for non-compliance,” stated Peeler in discussing how the program will align with existing CBBB operating units. “The Direct Selling-SRC will have all four of these components, will be backed by robust online monitoring, and will be applicable to DSA members as well as non-members. This will go a long way to ensure higher levels of compliance with best practices and help elevate the industry’s reputation.”

Peter Marinello, vice president of CBBB, will serve as executive director of the Direct Selling-SRC, overseeing the program and its staff. He brings a wealth of legal and self-regulatory experience from the National Advertising Division and the Electronic Retailing Self-Regulation Program.

Marinello complimented the DSA leadership for its efforts on co-development of the Direct Selling-SRC. “Good self-regulation starts with leaders in an industry with faith in their commitment to truthful and honest advertising. I am excited to be part of this new important chapter for direct selling.”

While the DSA has had a reactive, self-regulatory program for its members for nearly five decades, the creation of this new, proactive program represents a dramatic step forward to raise the bar for all direct selling companies. The program’s foundation is based on guidance from the regulatory community including the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), CBBB, outside experts and DSA’s leadership.

“DSA members have long ascribed to our Code of Ethics, and that program will continue to be enforced by our Code Administrator,” said Mariano. “However, the Direct Selling-SRC will allow for a more comprehensive review of the marketplace as well as to ensure truthful, accurate content and representations by members and non-members. We are in an exciting time that will eventually bring increased accountability for the entire direct selling industry.”

DSA is the national trade association for companies that offer entrepreneurial opportunities to independent sellers to market and sell products and services. The DS-SRC launched on January 4, 2019. More information on the new entity can be found here.

Customer Care: 5 Trends for 2019

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A recent business article by Twitter noted customer care trends from 2018 that they expect to continue to grow in 2019.

Direct Messaging

More consumers are connecting with companies through direct messaging (DM’s) than through more public methods like tagging in a Tweet. According to Sprinklr, 80 percent of consumers engage with brands online, and 54 percent of customers prefer social messaging channels for care instead of phone or email.

It’s easier than ever to reach out privately. With more businesses enabling DM’s on their accounts, customers can private message companies even if they don’t follow each other. DM’s allow for longer messages and don’t limit text to 140 characters, and consumers can upload photos, videos and sensitive personal information without broadcasting it to the world.

Customer Care Bots

Customer care bots, or chatbots, allow companies to offer 24-hour, automated replies that can instantly help customers navigate a technical issue or even order their lunch. Chatbots are a quick-and-easy (not to mention cost-effective) solution for offering simple answers to common questions, but if they aren’t implemented with a strategy, they can feel clunky to people used to real-life interactions.

Chatbots may not have been the solution of 2018, as was widely predicted, but they aren’t going anywhere. Expect them to keep growing and evolving. According to a CNBC report, chatbots could cut business costs by $8 billion by 2022.

Social Care Strategies

There’s been a lot of hype around adopting social media customer care strategies, but now with most brands establishing their social care strategy, there is a move towards personalization. Companies are focusing on more human interactions like active conversations through messaging while adopting a more casual tone and using emojis.

Putting more energy into social care strategies can also mean major savings. According to the Online Marketing Institute, it costs $1 to solve a customer service issue on social media compared to customer call centers, which can cost six times as much.

Customer Care Agents

Marketing and PR departments have long used social data to influence decisions, but now customer care teams are using it to shape interactions. According to Sprinklr, brands generally spend 98 percent of their time and resources trying to reach customers, and only 2 percent on customer care. But now it’s easier than ever to use technology to track mentions and reply quickly to both positive and negative comments—a strategy that shows the world how much a company cares.

Social data also allows care teams and advertisers to work together and deliver more relevant ads. Pinpointing someone’s unique interests or needs can help a brand deliver ads that matter to them, like focusing on a product’s eco-friendly attributes instead of serving a more general ad, or addressing a specific comment or complaint.

Loop Loft used to broadcast the same message across social channels, but when business stagnated, it turned to social data for insights. A few months after teaming up with Sprinklr and personalizing social media ads, Loop Loft experienced a 400 percent increase in ROI.

Customer Care the New Marketing

With consumer interactions more public, customer care is becoming the new marketing. It’s not that one can replace the other—it’s that they’re now working together instead of in silos.

Feedback often appears as public comments under social posts and care teams are seizing the opportunity to actively find them and offer public, personal responses. When it’s done well, word spreads.

Twitter noted that with more than 3 billion people on social media this year, it’s natural that more consumers are using social media to connect with businesses when they have questions, compliments, or complaints. Customers expect the ability to connect with companies online, which means more customer service teams are turning to social media as their primary way of reaching out.

Avon to Sell China Manufacturing Operation

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Avon Products, Inc. (AVP) announced it has entered into a definitive agreement with TheFaceshop Co., Ltd., for its manufacturing operation in China.

TheFaceshop Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of LG Household & Health Care Ltd., one of Asia’s largest consumer goods and beauty companies, will acquire all of the shares of Avon’s Beauty manufacturing operation in Guangzhou. Net proceeds to Avon will be $44 million.

The companies also agreed to enter into a manufacturing and supply agreement, under which the Guangzhou factory will manufacture products for Avon’s fast-growing Chinese business and other markets, while maximizing the capacity of the plant for its own production. Avon’s associates at the facility will remain with the operation.

These agreements are another step in Avon’s strategic shift to opening up its business mind-set with best-in-class partners to efficiently manufacture and deliver products in service of the millions of beauty entrepreneurs and their customers around the world.

“This transaction is a significant step forward in our efforts to ‘Open Up Avon’ by operating more efficiently, with a leaner, more agile global infrastructure,” said Jan Zijderveld, CEO of Avon. “This agreement provides us with greater operational and financial flexibility, while allowing us to benefit from the local knowledge, world-class products, R&D expertise and infrastructure of internationally- recognized partners such as LG H&H. By operating with a local structure that fits our purpose, we will be better positioned to capture the significant opportunity in China and the wider Asian market. We know LG H&H well and believe that they will continue to be a strong partner for Avon as we collectively seek to grow our business in the region.”

Suk Cha, CEO of LG Household & Health Care, said, “We are pleased to have reached this agreement with Avon and add a state-of-the-art facility with powerful capabilities to deliver quality products for the fast-growth local market. Our past interactions with Avon provide us a sound understanding of its brand power and global reach, and we look forward to continuing our relationship with Avon as we both explore ways to grow our product lines, bring desirable products to market faster, and each accelerate our growth across Asia.”

The transaction is expected to close by February 2019 following customary local regulatory approvals.

Is Your Arbitration Clause Enforceable?

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With the start of a new year, direct selling companies might benefit from taking a new look at the arbitration clauses designed to protect them from class-action lawsuits.

Why? Last week, the Ontario Court of Appeal deemed Uber’s arbitration policy to take advantage of drivers. A panel of three judges ruled on Wednesday that Uber was improperly forcing its drivers in the province to resolve complaints about pay or other work issues through an international mediation process in the Netherlands. Drivers disputing even small complaints face a steep cost of $14,500 to initiate the process, the ruling said.

The clause, raised in the class action certification process, is both “unconscionable” and amounts to “illegal contracting out of an employment standard,” Justice Ian Nordheimer wrote, with Justices Kathryn Feldman and Gladys Pardu concurring in allowing the appeal.

Michael Wright, managing partner at Cavalluzzo LLP in Toronto, says the decision shows that if arbitration provisions are too onerous for one party, they may be set aside.

“What the court concluded was that Uber overreached fairly dramatically here,” says Wright, one of the lawyers who represented appellant David Heller in the case, Heller v. Uber Technologies Inc., 2019 ONCA 1.

The decision overturned that of the lower court and dealt a blow to the ride-hailing technology company, which now faces the prospect of a class-action lawsuit in Ontario.

The enforceability of arbitration clauses has been challenged in direct selling previously. In 1998, a group of Amway distributors filed suit alleging that the arbitration clause in their distribution agreement with Amway was unenforceable. The District Court held that the clause was. It found that the arbitration agreement was not unconscionable and further reasoned that the parties were sophisticated business people who were aware of the consequences of agreeing to such an arbitration clause.

Maybe now is a good time to start the new year by revisiting your arbitration policy to see if it would stand up in court.

Facebook Breach May Bring About EU-Style GDPR Privacy Rules in U.S.

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Recent news of a Facebook breach might have a major impact on Information Technology Asset Management (ITAM) practices in the U.S.

News just before Christmas that Facebook is allowing advertisers and marketers direct access to personal data—and even private conversations—may have the effect of accelerating consideration in the U.S. of General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) privacy rules, according to Dr. Barbara Rembiesa, president and CEO of the International Association of IT Asset Managers (IAITAM).

“The year 2018 has been a difficult one for Facebook,” said Rembiesa. “Between testifying before both domestic and international courts as well as the bad publicity surrounding the Cambridge Analytica scandal, one would think that Facebook would be careful how it handles and distributes personal information. This time, it turns out Facebook was selling access to your personal data. This includes private conversations.”

The data sharing deals which Facebook engaged in have been revealed to be especially liberal with their access to personal identifying information (PII). This PII can include everything from a user’s name and email address to their photos, birthdate and even private Facebook Messenger texts. The intent was to benefit everyone using Facebook. By having all that information accessible by the various organizations, ads and marketing campaigns were supposed to be easier to tailor to their target demographic. However, this information sharing went far beyond the scope of what most people anticipated and has created a privacy crisis to which Facebook needs to respond.

“Advertisers and marketers used their wide-open access to harvest PII from Facebook users without the knowledge of the individual,” Rembiesa said. “As a result, some users of Facebook and other social media platforms are now looking for a solution to protect their data as well as their digital identity. Those same people have looked at the EU and their sweeping regulation that turned the power and authority of protecting PII back to the individual: the GDPR. The recent Facebook discovery has people looking for the adoption of something like GDPR in the U.S. faster than anticipated. It seems that people feel they are able to make decisions about their personal data better than any company or organization would.”

What would happen if the U.S. followed such a path?

Assuming a bill like GDPR is passed in the United States, the next question is how corporations will adopt the new regulation. Organizations in the European Union currently use Data Protection Officers (DPOs) for handling compliance, and many U.S.-based companies are actively recruiting DPOs in preparation for what is to come.

“The good news is that organizations that have mature IT Asset Management programs already have the professionals needed under their roof,” said Rembiesa. “The roles and responsibilities required of a Data Protection Officer are a natural addition for an IT Asset Manager. IT Asset Managers produce policies and processes and utilize best practices that care for software, hardware, and mobile assets. As Data Protection Officers, those practices would extend to personal identifiable information since such information is stored on those assets.”