Technical Consultant - CPG SaaS

How Twinings collaborates with UpClear to unlock continuous commercial growth. * June 22nd, 2026 Twinings is one of the world's most recognized tea brands, leaving its mark on the industry since its founding in 1706. But longevity in the beverage industry doesn't happen by accident; it takes continuous investment in the systems, processes, and partnerships that keep commercial operations running at a high level. In this conversation, Lizzy, Finance Transformation Head at Twinings UK, shares how the company has leveraged an 11-year partnership with UpClear to build a fully integrated commercial system. She talks about how they've invested in initiatives to level up across departments, including trade promotion management, accruals, volume forecasting, and promotional analytics. Finally, she explores how deep integration and collaborative partnership have been central to their success. A conversation with Twinings UK. Table of contents. 0:04 - What's your role and priorities at Twinings UK? 1:27 - Which departments use the Blue platform and how? 2:39 - How has your partnership with UpClear evolved over time? 4:24 - Where does the Blue platform help you with financial management and control? 6:45 - How would you describe your partnership with UpClear? 8:21 - What value have you gained from UpClear industry events? 10:25 - What advice would you give to someone in your position? Inside Twinings UK's approach to operational excellence. With over three centuries of heritage in the beverage industry, Twinings could hardly be considered an insurgent brand. But that doesn't stop the established tea house from continuously innovating on multiple fronts, from product development to trade promotions. Today, Twinings has expanded its presence to over 100 countries. And in the UK, where it all began, the brand has continued to grow its lead. In 2019, Twinings overtook PG Tips to become the best-selling tea brand in the UK, a milestone driven not through high-quality products, but by a deliberate strategic pivot. Behind every new launch, promotion, and retailer negotiation are finance and commercial teams managing a complex web of trade spend, forecasting, and performance data. At Twinings - in the USA and UK - those teams rely on the BlueRGM platform - and the partnership behind it - as a crucial part of that equation. Even through significant internal transformation, including ERP migrations, new integrations, and an expanding product range, Twinings has found that the partnership and platform it invested in over a decade ago has only become more central to how the business operates. Driving efficiency through connected systems. As a long-time international leader in the beverage industry, Twinings UK stands out for its commercial rigor and willingness to adapt to the changing landscape. From breaking into canned drinks to launching new channels that appeal to Gen Z, the brand has taken bold steps to secure and maintain its place as a leading tea manufacturer. Like in most high-performing consumer goods companies, underpinning this ambitious culture is a strong internal system to manage their complex workflows and data. Integration has been an imperative piece in that puzzle. "It has been transformational having that amount of integration and having one data source as the source of truth, rather than sort of making an industry about maintaining separate systems," said Lizzy Walker, Finance Transformation Head at Twinings UK. Beyond just reducing friction day-to-day, building integrations has unlocked new capabilities and insights on a company level. "We're using BluePlanner not just for certain channels of the business - we're using it across every channel," said Walker. "There isn't a customer that isn't in BluePlanner, which is great because it gives us massive visibility." Because data from multiple sources - EPOS, ERP sales-in, promotional plans - flows into one place, Twinings can extract more from it. Their commercial and RGM teams use analytics to evaluate promotional performance. Finance tracks KPIs on spend and debt. Demand planning runs volume forecasts. And with an authority matrix embedded directly in the system, spend control is built into the workflow rather than managed separately - allowing teams to collaborate more easily. "It has been transformational having that amount of integration and having one data source as the source of truth." Lizzy Walker, Twinings UK Pursuing continuous improvement. Twinings' approach to internal operations demonstrates that established doesn't have to mean archaic. Despite its leading position in the tea business since 1706, the company is always looking for new and better ways to operate, from ERP migration to machine learning initiatives. Through these undertakings, the team at Twinings leans on partnerships like that with UpClear to see complex projects through, without disruption to the business. When there's a major project in full swing, like the ERP migration, the teams meet on a weekly basis to check in on progress. So far, this has proven effective. "On the ERP project, the TPM workstream was called out as best in class because we had so little problems at go-live," said Walker. Building partnerships you can rely on. In a complex commercial environment, having a team you can count on is a crucial competitive advantage. But partnerships like Twinings and UpClear's aren't necessarily automatic. Over the 11 years that the companies have worked together, their collaboration has deepened. "One of the things that really works for us is probably how well we know each other," said Lizzy. "We're working with the same people that we've worked with for a really long time." That continuity has not just made it easier to work together day-to-day. It's also helped push the teams to grow together over time. "If we have feedback, we always feel comfortable giving it to you guys, and vice versa," said Walker. "Feedback is a gift, and it's always good to have that two-way relationship." This collaboration isn't just confined to weekly meetings, as vital as those touch-bases can be. The Twinings team is also proactive in taking opportunities to see the UpClear team in person - whether that's at industry trade shows or user conferences. "It's not only great to see the team in person rather than talking to a head on a screen... it's also great to talk to the other businesses," said Walker. "It's always interesting to me how different businesses are using the system." Lizzy and her team have also used some learnings from these sessions to guide their own roadmap. "At the moment, we're looking at our OCR technology to leverage something that we heard about at one of those events," Walker said. Lessons from Twinings. Building best-in-class commercial systems isn't a one-time project. It's an ongoing investment - in technology, in processes, and in the relationships that help you navigate change. Twinings hasn't achieved their level of integration by spending the most on software or by tripling their team. Instead, they've focused on committing to a partnership, contributing to the product roadmap, and incrementally improving their systems year over year. The lesson, in Lizzy's own words: integrate, integrate, integrate - and work collaboratively. Follow UpClear on LinkedIn. See blueplanner in action.

UpClear announces "Blue" - A redefined Platform for the future of RGM. Jun 03, 2026, 09:00 ET UpClear, a leading provider of Gross-to-Net Revenue Management technology, has launched Blue, a reimagined RGM Intelligence Platform that advances its flagship BluePlanner product into a comprehensive, AI-powered solution for CPG/FMCG brands. Built on years of practitioner input and expertise, Blue combines AI capabilities with a flexible new delivery model that allows companies to adopt the full platform or individual apps based on their needs. Alongside the platform launch, UpClear continues to deepen its commitment to client and industry engagement through its "RGM Picture of Success" framework, "Academy" series, Elevate conferences, and Summit events - while also publishing benchmark research on key Consumer Goods activities. Together, these initiatives mark a pivotal moment for UpClear as it redefines what's possible in commercial planning, execution, and performance management for consumer goods teams. NEW YORK, June 3, 2026 /PRNewswire/ - UpClear, leading provider of Gross-to-Net Revenue Growth Management (RGM) software, unveils Blue, the evolution of BluePlanner into a complete RGM Intelligence Platform for CPG/FMCG brands. Blue combines years of industry-tested software with an AI-native engineering model and a new flexible delivery model offering individual apps to clients for specific needs - giving commercial teams unprecedented speed, intelligence, and coverage. A TRUSTED PLATFORM ENHANCED FOR WHAT'S NEXT The Blue platform was shaped by thousands of real-world use-cases. It is now supercharged by artificial intelligence creating a holistic utility for CPG/FMCG brands. "The name 'BluePlanner' no longer fully represents the platform's capabilities," says Thierry Soudee, Founder & CEO of UpClear. "Blue is a integrated RGM intelligence platform used for account planning (TPM), but it has also been extended into annual planning and forecasting use cases, and we've significantly enhanced what we do in execution activities like deduction management and consensus forecasting. The Blue platform gives our clients a unified, single source of truth across every function that touches customer performance. We've added AI - both enhancing what we already have and creating native AI apps. This expands our process coverage while also providing point solutions that can be rolled out independently." NEW AI-POWERED APPS Within BlueRGM, BluePlanner continues to deliver comprehensive coverage across bottom-up account planning activities traditionally associated with Trade Promotion Management (TPM). Building on this strong foundation, UpClear has introduced a new wave of innovations and product enhancements. Notably, UpClear is setting a new standard in Revenue Growth Management (RGM) by going beyond conventional SaaS capabilities - seamlessly integrating advanced AI into existing workflows while also developing entirely new, purpose-built AI-native applications. In Annual Planning, a group of Blue apps act like a "Compass," guiding CPG/FMCG brands as they plan company-wide initiatives and goals. Here are ways UpClear has embedded AI in Blue Compass apps: * Scenario Planning. Account scenarios use optimization agents to automatically create plans. Orchestration agents move promotions to BluePlanner for execution. * Promo Guidelines. Promo mix, depth of discounts, and frequency guardrails are created with AI assistance. Orchestration agents generate alerts to exceptions. * Funds. Redesigned Funds module with orchestration agents generating alerts to exceptions and workflow engine controls on status and approvals. * Risks & Opportunities. Its newest module is now enhanced with optimization agents to predict volume impact of price changes. For gross-to-net execution work, another group of Blue apps act like a "Bridge", connecting sales activities with other functions in the order-to-cash process: Finance & Supply Chain. Here's are UpClear's new AI-native development in that area: * Deduction Management. Automated acquisition and processing of remittances, deduction invoices, invoices, and carrier documentation. Automated alignment between documents and BluePlanner promotions for validation, closing or dispute. * Data Studio. Data originating in different systems often uses different dimensional definitions. UpClear uses AI to create mappings that tie these different datasets together for use in Blue or any other system where this is needed. The Blue platform is complemented by utilities that cut across and operate across all applications, including Blue Analytics delivered through Power BI. FLEXIBLE ACCESS: INDIVIDUAL APP SUBSCRIPTIONS While all Blue apps work together seamlessly, some companies need only elements of the platform. Blue is delivered as true SaaS and clients or even individual practitioners can adopt individual apps, lowering the barrier to entry and enabling teams to start capturing value immediately. WHY BLUE CHANGES THE COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE Blue gives consumer goods brands something the market has never offered in a single platform: the most complete edge case coverage of any SaaS Gross-to-Net RGM solution, AI-native capabilities that accelerate planning and surface insight at scale, a unified source of customer performance truth, and flexible adoption - enterprise-wide or app-by-app. COMMITMENT TO CLIENT & INDUSTRY ENGAGEMENT UpClear continues to deepen client relationships through its "RGM Picture of Success" outcomes framework, Academy educational series, and in-person Elevate conferences held in Dallas, New York, and London. Industry Summit events in 2026 have included the Deduction Summit, London Spring RGM Summit, and NYC Data Summit, with additional Summits planned in London and Los Angeles. UpClear Research has also published two benchmark studies this year - on account forecasting and deduction management practices - with a full RGM Practices Benchmark report to follow. ABOUT UPCLEAR At UpClear, its mission is to empower Consumer Goods brands to maximize revenue performance and trade investment returns through intelligent, collaborative software - providing a single source of truth, streamlined automation, and actionable insights. Its Blue Revenue Management platform supports end-to-end processes from Annual Operating Planning to Account Planning and Execution. It is used by brands globally at various stages of growth. Client partners include Beyond Meat, Blue Buffalo, Blue Diamond Growers, Community Coffee, Coty, Danone, Ferrero, Godiva, Jelly Belly, Hovis, King Arthur Baking Company, King's Hawaiian, Kodiak Cakes, KP Snacks, Kraft-Heinz, LALA, Martinelli's, Nissin, Perfetti Van Melle, Reckitt Benckiser, Spindrift, Twinings, Vita Coco, Warburtons and Yoplait. UpClear services its clients with teams in New York, London, Paris and Singapore. Media Contact SOURCE UpClear