50 Companies making the Net Work
(Click on the Company Name to see the BusinessWeek.com story)
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Krispy Kreme - A network linking 320 stores to take orders and alert store managers when they have overstocked. The Payoff: Ordering errors are down 90%, while productivity gains allow managers to run twice as many shops.

Gilbane - Automate the entire process of managing large and complex construction projects over the Web. The Payoff: Gilbane's sales jumped 15%, to $2.5 billion last year, in part because of improved customer satisfaction.

GM - Use electronic auctions to unload vehicles, to auto dealers, at the end of their leases. The Payoff: Last year, GM moved 303,000 vehicles through such auctions, saving an estimated $180 million.

IndyMac Bancorp - Link the mortgage bank to loan brokers nationwide over the Web, allowing brokers to submit and track their client's loans. The Payoff: Helped drive down the cost of processing loans, pushing up profits 25% this year. (See Also: “IndyMac's Home Loans in a Snap”)

Intrawest - Use a Web site not only to take reservations for its ski resorts but also to offer unique travel packages. The Payoff: Expected to keep 10% more of travel-package revenues than when selling through other travel Web sites.

JetBlue - Arm pilots with Internet-linked laptops to replace paper manuals and allow them to handle pre-flight calculations. The Payoff: Helps shave flight times, cutting operating costs and improving customer satisfaction.

Owens & Minor - A service that allows health-care organizations to lower costs by analyzing pricing trends in their purchases. The Payoff: Customers have gained volume discounts and switched to lower-cost items, shaving 2% to 3% off their expenditures.

UPS - A service that allows workers to send and track packages without a bureaucratic stamp of approval. The Payoff: Demand has grown by 20% in the past three months, with 6,000 companies and 300,000 employees signed up.

Charles Schwab - Position Schwab as a full-service investment firm, with computer-generated stock ratings. The Payoff: Investment advice at a small fraction of the cost of human analysts.

Landstar - An automated dispatch service informing 8,000 independent truckers about available loads. The Payoff: Trucker retention has increased from 36% to 51%, two to three times what most companies average.

TaylorMade - Equip the company's 100 sales people with handheld devices that connect via the Net to updated sales and inventory figures. The Payoff: Sales-rep productivity is up 25% this year, helping make the company the No. 1 seller of golf clubs.

CUSTOMISATION

BMW - Build to order most cars in Europe, and up to 30% of U.S. cars, at no extra cost, by linking dealerships, factories, and suppliers. The Payoff: Provide more options to customers, slash the time it takes to deliver cars by a third, and cut overstock.

Harrah's - Analyze data about the gambling habits of customers, so Harrah's can tailor royal treatment to get gamblers to spend more. The Payoff: During the past four years, Harrah's share of business from its clients has increased nearly 20%. (See Also: “Harrah's: A Big Payoff from Loyalty”)

Stop & Shop - Introduce "shopping buddies," small computers attached to grocery carts, to target customers with promotions. The Payoff: While still in field trials, the buddy could improve loyalty and help Stop & Shop sell more groceries.

Wells Fargo - Track and analyze every transaction made by its 10 million retail customers, whether at ATMs, bank branches, or online. The Payoff: Wells Fargo better targets products, from mortgages to credit lines. It sells nearly double the industry average per customer.

STREAMLINING

FBI - Digitizing millions of fingerprint cards and connecting law-enforcement agencies to a huge database of fingerprints. The Payoff: It can scan its 46 million sets of prints in minutes, a process that used to take six months by hand.

GE - Automatically sifts through data in commercial loan applications in order to weed out poor candidates. The Payoff: Cut costs by $20 million a year over two years.

Imperial Sugar - Lets customers place orders, check stock, and track shipments via the Web. The Payoff: With 10% of sales now coming over the Web, they cut in half the number of customer-service reps.

Nike - An online system that links Nike with manufacturing partners to save time and reduce costs. The Payoff: In four years, Nike has reduced the percentage of shoes it orders on speculation from 30% to 3%.

Posco - An online production-planning and order-tracking system that slashes the time and cost of steelmaking. The Payoff: Inventory and delivery times have been halved. Costs saved by $17 per ton.

Progressive Insurance - Overhaul Web site so independent agents can obtain quotes and complete new policy applications online. The Payoff: The 30,000 agents now process transactions 40% faster than before. That boosts their volume, keeping them loyal.

Whirlpool - Link every Whirlpool factory and sales operation together with suppliers and key retail partners. The Payoff: Whirlpool cut inventory as a percentage of sales from 15% in 1997 to 12% today.

Sutter - To reduce medical complications in hospital intensive-care units with a constant feed of vital statistics to doctors. The Payoff: Complications such as blood clots have been reduced from a 25% frequency rate to near zero.

Shiseido - Connects cosmetics sales outlets to the sales staff and to the factory floor. The Payoff: Shiseido has cut inventory by 30%. And fewer than 1% of all orders go unfilled because products aren't in stock.

HIP - Link doctors, patients, and health administrators using an online system. The Payoff: Saves $10 million annually in claims processing.

MANAGEMENT

Yellow - To analyze 60,000 orders daily to figure out how many Teamsters it needs at its 325 facilities. The Payoff: By calculating the employees needed, the company saves $100 million a year.

BostonCoach - Use wireless network to track limos and combine that data with customer bookings to manage its fleet. The Payoff: Since January, productivity has soared 20%. That's expected to boost sales 10%, to $104 million, this year.

Bristol-Myers Squibb - A Web system for managing and speeding up drug research and development. The Payoff: Slashing by one-third the time it takes to develop new medications, saving money and boosting revenues.

CareGroup - Create digital report cards that rate 2,500 docs on 20 aspects of their care for insured patients. The Payoff: Spots inefficiencies, saving $4 million a year. That has helped land $234 million in new health-insurance contracts.

Kinko's - Replace a collection of 51 employee-training sites countrywide with e-learning in 2002. The Payoff: Save around $10 million a year in training costs and roll out new services in stores more efficiently.

CUTTING EDGE

Fresh Direct - Use technology that allows the online grocer to custom-make each food order -- at prices as much as 35% lower than rivals. The Payoff: FreshDirect is on track to hit $90 million in revenues in its first year. Labor costs 60% lower than rival stores could lead to profits by year end.

Amazon.com - Let merchants use its gold-standard e-commerce technology to quickly set up shop on Amazon. The Payoff: Other retailers now account for 22% of all items sold on Amazon, helping boost the e-tailer to profitability.

Wal-Mart - Push its 100 top suppliers to use "smart tags" embedded in product cases to track much of what the discounter sells. The Payoff: Knowing where every item is, and keeping shelves stocked. Analysts expect Wal-Mart to reap pretax savings of as much as $8 billion by 2007.

Dell - Automating more of its e-commerce network, by installing robots on assembly lines that process orders from the Web. The Payoff: The automated assembly line pumps out 900 computers an hour, vs. 300 before. Output is up 40%.

Florida Virtual School - Make a wide array of courses available online to Florida high school students. The Payoff: Broadens curriculum for poor and rural districts, as well as homebound students.

Metro - Open an innovative grocery store replete with portable digital shopping devices and automatic checkout. The Payoff: More efficiency, greater convenience, and better inventory management -- if the technology can be perfected.

P&G - Develop a wireless tracking system that monitors everything from paper towels to toothpaste from factory to store shelves. The Payoff: More accurate tracking of inventory and demand will cut inventories and boost sales by keeping store shelves stocked.

Cisco - Switch 35,000 employee and consultants to Internet telephone systems. The Payoff: Cuts phone costs, provides data services, and promotes the company's technology. (See Also: “How Cisco Saves with Net Telephony”)

Wegmans - Create a detailed online product catalog of every item so Wegman's 65 grocery stores order just what they need. The Payoff: By preventing misguided orders, Wegman's could see annual savings of $1.5 million by 2005.

eArmyU - Provide 40,000 far-flung soldiers with education opportunities through a virtual university. The Payoff: Boosts the Army as a career path; better-educated soldiers.

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