It may be easy for young companies to jump into new technologies for real time analytics and hybrid cloud solutions, but what about companies with a little more tenure? How does a company that existed before the computer stay innovative? Welch’s IT department answers that question, and many more.

Mukesh Sharma, senior manager of IT, Database and ERP Infrastructure, at Welch Foods, Inc., talked with Dave Vellante (@dvellante) and Stu Miniman (@stu), cohosts of theCUBE, from the SiliconANGLE Media team, during IBM Edge 2016 about how Welch Foods uses its data effectively.

Understand the consumer

Welch Foods has been in business for more than 150 years, and to this day has as a co-op run and owned by farmers. They are effectively the “marketing arm for farmers,” said Sharma. Welch Foods uses data to understand what its consumers want, and to connect with businesses on what they need.

In a way, Welch Foods “connects the real need with the technology,” said Sharma. The data received from farms only helps to create a better and more effective ecosystem.

Juicing the data

To be most effective, Welch Foods strives to use services that will always be a value add. And its partnership with IBM has not only yielded a high value, but has also given it added time in its supply chain.

Thanks to its initial adoption of IBM’s XIV high-end, grid-scale storage system, Welch Foods was able to reduce the number of people needed to manage its storage. This reduction allowed them to more effectively “redistribute their assets,” said Sharma.

Data has now become an asset for all businesses. The key is in how that data is utilized and how partnerships are leveraged that will help manage it, according to Sharma.

Amidst so much change, the key to sustainability is innovation, and Welch Foods “gets the most out of every dollar,” said Sharma. The company  constantly reviews its processes and find means of improvement. In fact it has created such a refined process that “every three years we find a better and cheaper way to do things,” said Sharma.

Innovation and partnerships are pillars of Welch Foods success, and IBM has helped the company move swiftly into the future.

Watch the complete video interview below, and be sure to check out more of SiliconANGLE and theCUBE’s coverage of IBM Edge 2016.

Photo by SiliconANGLE