AG5

"Cracking the puzzle of Excel sheets marked the start of AG5,” begins Rick Van Echtelt, the founder and CEO of AG5, as he explains the challenges of data aggregation witnessed in production environments. “When a production floor has 300-400 people with more than 200 tasks at hand, maintaining the results in excel sheets invariably becomes cumbersome. That is where AG5 comes in; we help companies manage their data for efficient employability and risk-free operability.” AG5 has designed a plug and play ‘skills management software’ to reduce the clutter of excel documented worksheets. It enables production managers to ‘speak a single language’ in terms of collecting and managing the data associated with the manufacturing floor, thereby introducing uniformity into various data-driven operations.

AG5’s unique value proposition can be better described with an example of its recent engagement with a food manufacturer. The client was a producer of everyday salads, whose demands would drastically increase periodically. As the production demands scaled, the manufacturer was required to hire temporary workers and train them on specific tasks needed to get on the operational floor. The manufacturer had to consolidate data from 450 operations along 15 productions lines, in turn, ensuring that each employee was skilled and authorized to operate the machinery. All of this was documented on excel sheets, increasing the complexity of data management. When AG5 stepped in, it not only aggregated the data correlating with these processes but also helped the client comprehend the diverse skill sets of employees and detailed them in an organized manner using its skills management software. The collaboration also helped the food manufacturer in resolving problems pertaining to industrial audits by managing the workforce effectively, thereby structuring the authorization of tasks and competencies of employees against various operations carried out on the industrial floor.

We help companies manage their data for efficient employability and risk-free operability

AG5 was also the first organization to collaborate with the Ministerie van Defensie (Dutch defense), an association that cemented AG5’s credibility in skill management. The Dutch defense trusted AG5 with confidential data—something that hardly happens with military organizations—and adopted the company’s software for their use cases. “If our software is safe enough for defense, is it safe for your company?” is a tagline that AG5 upholds with pride, showcasing the sophistication of its skills management software.

“As an extension to our software, we are working on a skills passport for employees. It aims at helping workers connect with companies and showcase their skill sets,” explains Van Echtelt. The skills passport is being designed with several filters to help workers engage with employers of their choice. It interlinks with e-learning and human resource systems, where workers using the application can list multiple skills and match with suitable employers. Such a tool proves vital for employees that stay with an organization on a temporary basis and work on contracts. “Our software assists manufacturing organizations and workers connect with one another, inter-relating the skills required by an employer with the skills listed by the workers. We thrive in enabling workers to engage with multiple such companies based on our skill matrices,” elaborates Van Echtelt.

AG5’s skill management software functions as the bridge that connects manufacturing companies with suitable workers, deriving maximum value out of the workforce. It empowers production environments with agility and flexibility of data-driven operations to ensure that clients transition from excel documented operations to a more nimble and efficient work culture.