Listen to the full podcast segment on ”Mon Carnet” by Bruno Guglielminetti
Duration: 6 minutes 45 seconds
Liette Lamonde, CEO of Prompt, talks with Thomas Régnier, partner at NordiQ Capital and co-owner and CFO at Métalico, one of NordiQ Capital’s projects.
Métalico is a company specializing in the manufacture of ventilation ducts and accessories. They have undertaken a complete digital transformation to not only improve productivity but also optimize all aspects of this company founded in 2001.
Discover the key points of the interview
Liette: First, what is NordiQ Capital? Why did it acquire Métalico?
Thomas: NordiQ Capital is an investment platform that brings together entrepreneurs and financial partners with the aim of acquiring small and medium-sized businesses in Quebec to give them a new lease on life, ensure their sustainability, accelerate their growth, etc.
And Métalico is one of our projects in which we are investing heavily at the moment.
A digital transformation to solve a problem
Liette: And what exactly was the problem that Métalico’s digital transformation was intended to solve?
Thomas: We took over Métalico to give it a new lease of life with a fairly ambitious growth plan. The digital environment was hindering growth, so we had no choice but to go down that route.
Liette: And what exactly did you do?
Thomas: The first step was digitization, the digitalization of all processes. It was a traditional business, an SME, paper-based and manual. So, from the order lifecycle, from order taking to invoicing, scheduling, all modules, support, admin, HR, accounting. Now, everything resides in a digital environment.
The challenges
Liette: So, tell me, a digital productivity project in the manufacturing sector does come with its challenges. Tell me, what went well? What did you learn? Because, on top of that, it will be useful for NordiQ Capital with all its upcoming acquisitions.
Thomas: Any change is always a big challenge. So, of course, we are working with people. There is always some resistance to change. There are ways of doing things. Métalico had been around since 2001 with employees who had been there practically since the beginning and who had always worked the same way.
So, of course, when we introduce these major changes, it can cause irritation. Communication is key. And of course, with hindsight, we could say that we should have communicated better at certain times and made different choices. But we wanted to move quickly. We needed to get it done quickly. And especially with the second plant coming online, we didn’t have a choice. So, some choices allowed us to move very, very quickly and worked right away. Others, we got some aspects wrong. But, at the end of the day, I think we did a good job.
The impacts
Liette: Well done. Honestly, it’s a wonderful, ambitious project. What is the concrete impact of this first phase on Métalico?
Thomas: We have almost doubled production capacity with very few administrative hires. We have mainly focused our hiring on production employees. This would not have been possible in the environment in which Métalico operated in its early days. So, a real gain in productivity.
Liette: Have you measured it, or do you have an idea?
Thomas: The administrative environment has increased very little. So, with the same fixed cost structure, we have doubled production capacity. […]
Motivation in innovators
Liette: […] I find the very principle, the very concept behind NordiQ Capital, which aims to identify companies and work on their productivity to drive them towards innovation, really interesting.
What motivates you?
Thomas: First, it’s the professional challenge, that’s for sure. We all come from the world of finance and consulting. So, we’re seeking a professional challenge. To take the company into a second phase, this requires innovation and the digitization of processes. We have no choice. We know that Canada and Quebec are lagging behind in terms of productivity. So, it must be done.
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