The Client
Lakeshore Learning is a leading provider of educational materials and classroom furniture for schools and early childhood programs across North America.
The Project
Agentic AI Solution for Sales Enablement
Overview
Improving embarked on a project to innovate and streamline the sales enablement process for Lakeshore Learning by deploying an Agentic AI solution. The initiative involved automating the manual, labor-intensive processes that their sales team faced, particularly in sourcing and capitalizing on various educational bonds and funding opportunities. Leveraging generative AI and agentic technologies, we developed a system to enhance efficiency and effectiveness in identifying potential leads, ultimately driving better business outcomes.
The Business Challenge
Lakeshore Learning, a manufacturer of educational materials and furniture, faced significant challenges in enabling their sales team to identify and act on funding opportunities. The process was highly manual, relying on individuals to scour various websites and input data into Excel sheets. This method was not only time-consuming but also prone to delays and inaccuracies, jeopardizing their ability to capitalize on timely opportunities, especially as the government funds they had relied on during COVID were dwindling.
Our Solution
To tackle this problem, we introduced the Agentic AI framework, designed to automate redundant and time-consuming tasks performed by the sales team. Our backend solution comprised three main components: crawling the web for relevant URLs using AI agents, scraping the necessary data, and mapping it to Lakeshore's new application. This AIpowered system mimicked the actions of a business development representative, streamlining the process of identifying and capitalizing on funding opportunities. Additionally, we developed a user-friendly interface that allowed the sales team to vet and assign leads efficiently.
Technologies & Methodologies Used
Microservices Architecture: Utilized to ensure a scalable and resilient system.
AWS ECS Fargate: Deployed to host various components, ensuring efficient resource management.
Crew AI: Leveraged for building and managing AI agents to perform data crawling and scraping.
React: Used for developing the user interface, enabling an intuitive experience for the sales team.
Python: Implemented in the backend to handle data processing and integration tasks.
Supabase: Used for structured data storage, adhering to client preferences.
AWS Bedrock: Employed to host large language models, providing the intelligence behind the AI agents.
The Business Benefits
Enhanced Efficiency: Automated data gathering and processing significantly reduced the time sales teams spent on manual tasks.
Timely Information: The AI system ensured that information was gathered and processed more quickly, reducing the risk of acting on outdated data.
Scalability: The solution allowed for scaling up the lead identification process without increasing the workload on the sales team.
Improved Lead Quality: By expanding the scope of their searches beyond the limits of Google News and manual entries, Lakeshore Learning was able to uncover new and more relevant funding opportunities.
Resource Optimization: Sales personnel were able to focus more on high-value activities rather than data collection, improving overall productivity.
Enhanced Decision-Making: The system's ability to provide timely and relevant data allowed for more informed and strategic business decisions.
Partnerships
Our collaboration with AWS was pivotal to the project's success. AWS played a significant role by reviewing architectures, providing technical assistance, and advising on tooling. Furthermore, our partnership with AWS facilitated additional funding opportunities for Lakeshore Learning, underscoring the value of collaborative efforts in driving innovation and achieving business goals.
Lessons Learned
Internal Application: The generative AI solution developed for Lakeshore Learning presents an opportunity for Improving to implement a similar system internally, enhancing our lead generation and business development processes.
Generative AI Expertise: This project reinforced our growing expertise in deploying generative AI technologies to solve complex business problems.
Client-Centric Solutions: Engaging in regular meetings and refining requirements based on client feedback is crucial for developing solutions that align with business needs.
Agile Methodology: An agile approach enabled us to adapt to changing requirements and continuously deliver value throughout the project lifecycle.
Scalability Considerations: The importance of designing solutions that can scale with business growth was evident in ensuring the system could handle increasing volumes of data without compromising performance.
Human-AI Collaboration: While AI can automate many tasks, human oversight remains essential to ensure the accuracy and relevance of the data processed by AI systems.
Why Choose Improving For AI Solutions?
Improving took an innovative approach to solving Lakeshore Learning's sales enablement challenges by deploying an Agentic AI solution. By automating manual processes, delivering timely information, and enhancing scalability, we provided a robust solution that significantly improved their sales operations. Our partnership with AWS and our expertise in generative AI positioned us uniquely to deliver cutting-edge solutions that drive real business value. This project not only benefited Lakeshore Learning but also reinforced Improving’s capabilities to implement advanced AI solutions across various industries.
