Cargill: FGV master’s students carry out case study on agricultural multinational

At the beginning of May, students taking FGV’s Professional Master’s in International Management Program (MPGI) took part in a skills seminar focusing on a case study involving innovation at Cargill. The event featured guest speaker Danillo Sciumbata, a former innovation transformation officer at the agricultural multinational. He is currently strategy andtransformation vice president at Quanttar.

In a rapidly changing world, companies need to adapt to these transformations, especially in complex environments such as trade and commodities. South America plays a vital role in feeding the world and Cargill supplies products to 50 countries. The challenge lies in effectively managing this vast business while cutting costs and implementing innovative improvements. The multinational underwent a global transformation movement in 2021, aided by consulting firm McKinsey & Co., called Reset, Transform, Sustain (RTS), with the aim of restructuring internal operations and developing new capabilities for efficiency and growth.

Sciumbata explained that through a diagnosis, they identified the absence of performance problems, which might discourage some companies from restructuring if everything seemed to be working well. However, they realized that they weren’t maximizing their performance potential either. Identifying five main areas for improvement, they tackled the challenge of carrying out necessary transformations after the diagnosis, confronting the fear of failure inherent to innovation. Accordingly, Cargill set up a “Transformation Office,” adopting a strengthened and reinvented model for change.

The goal was to improve the organization’s work metabolism, modernize operations, improve customer relationships and address sustainability concerns. Effective communication was crucial to ensure internal understanding and alignment with the proposed changes.

During the skills seminar, Sciumbata presented various innovation tools and concepts, and called on the students to propose solutions adapted to this case. He highlighted the challenges of initiating change without full confidence among company stakeholders, established processes or adequate funding, while emphasizing the importance of effective change management.

Find out more about MPGC here.