Public Agency Customer Case Study

Early Childhood Development Program Entrusted to ALOM for Omnichannel Supply Chain Management.

The first five years of a child’s life are vital to their future emotional and physical well-being. This is when the foundation of health, behavior, and learning are established.

A highly-visible statewide public agency is improving the lives of young children and ensuring their future success by supporting early childhood development with a program that provides educational kits to parents. For more than 15 years, the agency has relied on ALOM to expertly manage this complex and constantly advancing program – to the delight of all its stakeholders and caregivers across the state.

ALOM’s combined operational and technology expertise seamlessly supports the complexities of this high-visibility omnichannel supply chain New Parent Kit program. The company takes care of material sourcing, inventory management, online order intake/administration, production and kitting, same day fulfillment, and back-end reporting.

ALOM excels at successfully bridging the physical and digital supply chain. The company solved a primary challenge by developing a customized order management solution consisting of two seamlessly integrated online portals – one for government agencies and approved organizations (B2B), and one for parents or caregivers (B2C).

This solution has performed beyond expectation, enabling individuals, counties, and government agencies to securely order Kits, and where required, set up subscriptions to receive regular shipments.

Through its work supporting this statewide program, ALOM has produced and shipped more than 5 million Kits, contributing to the development and well-being of an entire generation of children across the state.

Customized SKU configuration

Because of regional customization requirements and ethnic diversity across the state, county administrators utilize proprietary ALOM technology to customize Kit contents from more than 65 different SKUs including location-specific information such as local WIC facilities and community services. Additionally, multilingual Kit materials are offered in English, Spanish, Chinese, Korean, and Vietnamese.

Each Kit is presented in a colorful, reusable bag containing: a health handbook; a baby board book; a WIC (Women, Infants, and Children) mobile website flyer; a poison control brochure and magnet; and other important information ranging from paid family leave to literacy and learning.

It also features a Parent Guide that includes tips for parents on keeping their children healthy and safe, developmental milestones, handling emotional and behavioral challenges, finding quality childcare, and much more.

Complex inventory management and on-time shipping

Prior to working with ALOM, the agency had experienced significant fulfillment problems with late and lost orders. To ensure adequate inventory is always in stock, ALOM monitors every item in real-time with its digital warehouse management system. The result: 99.9% on-time shipping and the virtual elimination of backorders.

With orders ranging from individual Kits shipped to a single household to thousands of Kits shipped in pallets to counties across the state, ALOM expertly monitors and ensures correct Kit configuration, order quantities, and same-day fulfillment.

Responsible and sustainable sourcing

ALOM’s commitment to supplier diversity, coupled with its proven record sourcing only sustainable and ethically manufactured materials, gives the public agency an added layer of comfort and confidence that Kit materials are responsibly sourced and safe for infants and young children.

All materials must meet stringent safety and sustainability standards to ensure no parts pose a choking hazard and no toxic materials are used. Additionally, they must be manufactured by organizations that comply with international labor standards and utilize environmentally-sustainable materials.

Protecting end-user safety and data privacy

ALOM developed its first B2B online order management portals in 1998. The e-commerce technology platform deployed for this statewide program provides the highest possible levels of privacy and data protection with SSL encryption and PCI DSS compliance. For added security, ALOM is SOC 2 Type II certified, demonstrating the highest level of process and system online e-commerce data protection and privacy.