Kerry secures US$7.83M from Enterprise Ireland for new Digital Centre of Excellence
IRELAND – Kerry has secured € 7.5 million (US$7.83 million) from Enterprise Ireland to build a new Digital Centre of Excellence, which is designed to increase operational efficiencies and enhance customer connectivity.
The new centre continues Kerry’s successful approach to investing in technology and process enhancements to improve operational efficiency and capability.
Jenny Melia, Executive Director at Enterprise Ireland, said: “This investment is proof of Kerry Group’s commitment to innovation and commercial excellence.
“Enterprise Ireland has supported this development under the Research, Development and Innovation Fund, which supports investment in large-scale transformation projects to increase company competitiveness and further places Ireland as a market leader in innovation.”
She added that Enterprise Ireland was proud to support the new Centre of Excellence at the Kerry Global Innovation Centre in Kildare and would remain committed to supporting Irish companies like Kerry on their innovation agenda, further enhancing the resilience and competitiveness of the Irish food sector.
It will enhance business performance and productivity through digital enablement initiatives in operations, R&D, commercial activities, and global business services.
Advanced generative AI solutions will be utilised to improve business processes and further enhance customer partnerships.
Kerry has piloted several digital initiatives over the past 12 to 18 months and will upscale its deployment and commence a range of further digital excellence enablement initiatives over the next two years.
The pilot initiatives have included the launch of services such as the KerryNow customer portal, which streamlines and enhances a range of activities, from order tracking and the management of product portfolios to value-added services, such as new product development powered by AI and Kerry’s proprietary data.
Shane McGibney, Chief Business Transformation Officer at Kerry, said: “The Digital Centre of Excellence creates exciting opportunities to accelerate our business. The initiative represents a new aspect of transformation at Kerry. We appreciate Enterprise Ireland’s support and the agency’s ongoing engagement with Kerry over many years”.
Recently, Kerry Group announced the appointment of three senior executives, marking a shift toward enhancing its focus on taste and nutrition solutions.
Oliver Kelly was appointed as the group’s chief commercial officer, taking global responsibility for commercial strategies and customer relations.
John Cahalane succeeded Kelly as president and CEO of Kerry North America, while Peter Dillane became president and CEO of Kerry APMEA.
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