AI Advisory in Action/AI Roadmap & Business Case Sprint
CASE STUDY , PE-OWNED FOOD & BEVERAGE

Building an AI roadmap that drives revenue growth and EBITDA expansion.

How a private equity-owned food and beverage company identified, prioritized, and sequenced AI investments to accelerate sales growth, improve commercial execution, and increase enterprise value.

Revenue GrowthSales ProductivityTrade Promotion OptimizationForecast AccuracyEBITDA Expansion
Revenue Growth , Channels
YTD
RetailDistributorFoodserviceDTC
Customer Growth Signals
Whitespace accounts72
Cross-sell ready58
Churn risk24
Expansion intent81
Sales Productivity
+18%
copilot-enabled reps
Forecast Accuracy
94%
▲ from 78%
EBITDA Expansion
+180bps
modeled across roadmap
The Challenge

Growth through acquisition, but organic revenue stalling , and no structured AI investment strategy.

The company sold across national retailers, regional grocery chains, foodservice distributors, and direct-to-consumer channels. The product portfolio was strong, but commercial pressure was mounting.

Sales teams lacked visibility into growth opportunities. Marketing effectiveness was difficult to measure. Forecast accuracy was inconsistent. Customer acquisition costs were rising.

Leadership believed AI could accelerate growth , but needed a structured investment strategy before committing capital.

Business Challenge Dashboard
Organic Growth
Slowing
Below acquisition-fueled run-rate
Sales Productivity
Inconsistent
Account coverage uneven
Forecast Accuracy
Below Target
Demand signal noise
Customer Acquisition Cost
Increasing
Channel efficiency declining
Trade Promotion ROI
Limited Visibility
Spend not tied to lift
Customer Data
Fragmented
CRM, retail, distributor siloed
Our Approach

How MAD Advisory conducted the AI Roadmap & Business Case Sprint.

01

Commercial Operations Assessment

  • Sales processes
  • Account planning
  • Forecasting
  • Revenue management
  • Customer analytics
02

Customer Data Assessment

  • CRM platforms
  • Customer master data
  • Distributor data
  • Retail sales data
  • Marketing systems
03

Executive AI Opportunity Workshops

  • CEO
  • CRO & CMO
  • VP Sales
  • Revenue Management
  • PE Operating Partner
04

Business Case Development

  • Revenue growth modeling
  • Margin expansion
  • Productivity improvements
  • Investment requirements
  • Payback analysis
05

Roadmap Prioritization

  • EBITDA impact
  • Speed to value
  • Complexity
  • Data readiness
  • Sequencing & governance
Commercial AI Opportunities Identified

High-impact commercial AI opportunities, scoped for value creation.

01
COMMERCIAL AI

AI Sales Copilot

Provides account managers with real-time customer insights, buying patterns, opportunity alerts, and recommended next-best actions.

Potential Benefits
  • Increased sales productivity
  • Improved account penetration
  • Faster onboarding
02
COMMERCIAL AI

AI Customer Growth Predictor

Identifies growth opportunities, churn risks, cross-sell signals, and whitespace accounts across the customer base.

Potential Benefits
  • Revenue acceleration
  • Better customer targeting
  • Improved retention
03
COMMERCIAL AI

AI Demand Forecasting Engine

Combines retail data, distributor data, market trends, and promotional activity into a unified demand signal.

Potential Benefits
  • Improved forecast accuracy
  • Reduced stockouts
  • Better inventory management
04
COMMERCIAL AI

AI Trade Promotion Optimizer

Analyzes promotional spend, retail performance, and historical results to recommend optimal trade investments.

Potential Benefits
  • Improved ROI
  • Better promotion effectiveness
  • Increased profitability
05
COMMERCIAL AI

AI Pricing & Margin Intelligence

Provides pricing recommendations, margin insights, and competitive intelligence at the SKU, account, and channel level.

Potential Benefits
  • Improved margins
  • Faster pricing decisions
  • Increased profitability
Investment Committee View

Every opportunity backed by a business case.

01

AI Sales Copilot

Current State

Account managers spend hours preparing for calls; coverage uneven across the book.

Future State

Pre-call briefs, alerts, and next-best actions delivered in the seller's workflow.

Investment
Low–Mid
Payback <12 months
Expected Impact
  • Sales productivity ↑
  • Win-rate ↑
  • Ramp time ↓
02

AI Demand Forecasting

Current State

Forecasts built bottoms-up in spreadsheets; accuracy below target.

Future State

Unified demand signal across retail, distributor, and promo data.

Investment
Mid
Payback 12–18 months
Expected Impact
  • Forecast accuracy ↑
  • Working capital ↓
  • Service level ↑
03

AI Trade Promotion Optimizer

Current State

Trade spend allocated by precedent; ROI hard to attribute.

Future State

Promo mix optimized by predicted lift and retailer economics.

Investment
Mid
Payback 12–18 months
Expected Impact
  • Trade ROI ↑
  • Margin ↑
  • Retail compliance ↑
Value Creation Roadmap

24-month AI value creation roadmap, sequenced by EBITDA impact.

Wave 1
0–6 Months

Quick Wins

Focus , Revenue acceleration
  • AI Sales Copilot
  • AI Customer Growth Predictor
Wave 2
6–12 Months

Scale Initiatives

Focus , Commercial effectiveness
  • AI Demand Forecasting
  • AI Trade Promotion Optimization
Wave 3
12–24 Months

Transformational Capabilities

Focus , Enterprise value creation
  • AI Pricing & Margin Intelligence
  • Revenue Growth Platform
  • Advanced Customer Segmentation
Outcomes

What the engagement produced.

0
AI Opportunities Identified
0 Top
Prioritized for Execution
0 mo
AI Roadmap Developed
Multiple
Revenue Growth Opportunities Identified
Enterprise
Governance Model Established
Deliverables

What the client received.

AI Opportunity Inventory
AI Business Case Workbook
24-Month AI Roadmap
Governance & Operating Model
Build / Buy / Partner Assessment
Investment Prioritization Framework
Value Realization Tracking Model
Executive Insight
"Every initiative was linked directly to revenue growth, margin expansion, customer acquisition, sales productivity, and EBITDA improvement. The result was an AI investment roadmap management could execute , and private equity sponsors could confidently support."

Do you have AI ideas , or an AI investment strategy?

Most organizations have AI opportunities. Few have a roadmap leadership can fund, govern, and execute. MAD Advisory helps private equity firms and portfolio companies build AI roadmaps tied directly to enterprise value creation.