The company implemented the Imaginera software system in May 2000. By July, Rose City knew how to make money on its sales, and by the end of the year, the company had grown 20 percent; this after three years of flat earnings. What's more, since the implementation, Rose City has reduced production lead times from six weeks to less than 10 days. Said Lobis,"That kind of dramatic change isn't possible without a strong information systems program like Amtech's Imaginera."

Involved Employees
     To maintain that kind of productivity momentum, Lobis said the company is offering its employees incentives. On a quarterly basis, Rose City gives bonuses to each employee for achieving certain productivity goals in their departments. "While the software gives us the tools to achieve our goals," Lobis added, "we recognize that it's our employees who make that happen, and they deserve to be rewarded. "
     Training for the new system was another critical component of successful implementation. "In a small company like ours," said parsons, "everyone plays a critical role, so we can't afford to have all our employees gone at the same time to attend training." Amtech offered a unique solution to training called Optasia Distance Learning, a set of proprietary e-learning processes and software tools. Training classes were conducted simultaneously with four other companies by videoconference. Employees attended classes four hours a day, four days a week, for a total of 10 weeks. Quizzes were given online, and competitions were held among the participating companies to reinforce the material presented. At the conclusion of the training, employees received training certificates.
     "It was the most effective training I have ever seen for an information systems product, or for that matter, an equipment or software purchase of any kind," commented Parsons.