Rediscovering the Power of Collaboration.

This morning, I had a long overdue catch-up with Helen Myatt, a former colleague from over 15 years ago. We recently reconnected after she commented on a post I shared about using a product categorisation framework to make better inventory decisions, a topic that clearly struck a chord.

Helen’s been at an interesting crossroads. After leaving her last company and spending some valuable time with family, she’s now considering her next step. In the meantime, she’s been involved in a project that reminded her why she loves what she does, and reminded me why collaboration across functions is so powerful.

The project was simple in concept but transformational in impact: introducing a Sales & Operations Planning (S&OP) process to tackle growing inventory issues.

What stood out wasn’t just the tools or process. It was the way Helen and the team worked. They didn’t treat inventory as a “supply chain problem”, they made it everyone’s problem.

Week by week, they shared dashboards, walked teams through the data, and explained what those numbers meant for the business, in language that mattered to each function.

They connected SKU counts and stock levels to real-world implications: cash flow, customer service, and product availability.

That shift in understanding turned the company’s mindset upside down.

Over a few months, the business reduced its SKU count from 1,800 to 600, and inventory levels dropped by half. But the real success was cultural, the business began to value inventory management as a shared responsibility, not an operational chore.

Helen spoke passionately about how S&OP brought people together, and how much she enjoyed bridging the gap between commercial and operational teams. She’s a rare salesperson who truly understands people and the role inventory costs play in business success.

It was a timely reminder for me too: that the best improvements come when we connect people to purpose, data to decisions, and insights to action.

Reflections

Too often, we separate commercial and supply chain goals, one chasing revenue, the other efficiency. But when teams understand each other’s pressures and motivations, amazing things happen.

Helen’s story is proof that collaboration, transparency and empathy can drive measurable business results.

And sometimes, reconnecting with an old colleague reminds you just how much impact good teamwork, and good people, can have.