Petrochem
Akanksha Neeraj on Building a Data-First Sales Organisation at Shell
In this episode of Masters of Change: Conversations with Changemakers, Akanksha Neeraj, Head of E-commerce and Digital Transformation at Shell Lubricants India, shares how a legacy energy business is rethinking sales, data, and customer engagement in a rapidly evolving market. With over a decade at Shell, she brings a sharp perspective on balancing global strategy with local execution, and on turning digital from a buzzword into a real business driver. The conversation explores how Shell India moved from fragmented systems to a single source of truth, tackled change management at scale, and is now building towards assisted and inspired selling.
Also available on:
1. Selecting the Right RTM Digitisation Partner
Shell and Bizom have worked together for a while. What were you looking for in an RTM digitisation partner?
Akanksha Neeraj: One key factor was the solution depth. While Bizom’s roots are in FMCG, which is ahead in digitisation, there were clear learnings we could adapt to our business. Beyond technology, what stood out was the real market understanding—the ability to solve for actual pain points across distributors, sales teams, and retailers. That combination made it the right fit for us.
2. The Role of Digital in Shell’s Strategy
What role does digital transformation play for a global brand like Shell?
Akanksha Neeraj: At Shell, digital plays three roles. First, it drives efficiency in existing operations. Second, it helps create differentiated value propositions. And third, it opens up new revenue streams. It’s not just about technology adoption. It’s about using digital to fundamentally improve how we operate and grow.
What challenges did you face before this transformation?
Akanksha Neeraj: The biggest challenge was mindset and capability. As a traditional oil and gas company transitioning into an energy player, digital maturity was still evolving. Initially, the focus was more on deploying solutions rather than solving problems. This led to multiple disconnected systems, poor data hygiene, and low adoption. The shift we drove was towards starting with the business problem first, not the tool.
3. Cracking Change Management
Change management is often seen as complex. How did you approach it?
Akanksha Neeraj: It is complex, and rightly so. We focused on aligning everything to a clear business objective. The sales team played a critical role as change agents. We also identified early adopters and turned them into internal champions.
Equally important was ensuring a seamless user experience. We spent months working closely with distributors, understanding their challenges, and continuously improving the platform. Adoption followed once users started seeing real value.
What are your criteria or filters for technology success?
Akanksha Neeraj: Every solution we deploy is evaluated on three parameters:
- Does it solve a clear business objective?
- Does it address a real customer pain point?
- Is it simple and intuitive for the end user?
If any of these fail, the solution will not sustain.
4. From Fragmented Data to a Single Source of Truth
How did you build a single source of truth?
Akanksha Neeraj: Earlier, decisions were based on fragmented data and often on instinct. Today, Bizom acts as our single source of truth. All reviews—daily, weekly, and monthly—are driven by one unified platform.
Even distributor incentives and sales variable pay are linked to this data. That level of integration ensures both accuracy and accountability.
What changes have you seen in the day-to-day lives of stakeholders as a result of these initiatives, from distributors to sales leadership?
Akanksha Neeraj: The shift has been significant. Sales teams now start their day with live dashboards, tracking performance across metrics like MTD, YTD, and secondary sales.
For distributors, the biggest change is real-time visibility into field operations—where their sales reps are, how productive they are, and which outlets need attention.
One powerful use case was the Skill-Will Matrix for field teams. By mapping sales reps based on capability and motivation, we identified gaps and took targeted actions.
In one year, we reduced the low-skill, low-will segment by one-third, significantly improving overall productivity. This is a clear example of how data can directly drive performance improvement.
5. Responding to COVID with Tele-DSR
How did you adapt during COVID?
Akanksha Neeraj: The Tele-DSR model was a game changer. When field visits stopped, we enabled sales reps to virtually connect with retailers through structured call plans integrated into their daily workflow.
This ensured continuity and helped us double our coverage, with 25% driven through virtual engagement. It also strengthened long-term customer relationships.
6. Achievements
Akanksha, you and your team have accomplished a lot. What is the one achievement you are most proud of?
Akanksha Neeraj: What I’m most proud of is that India has become a benchmark within Shell globally. Whether it is data hygiene, innovation, or speed of execution, we are ahead in many areas. More importantly, digital is now seen as a business enabler, not just a technology layer.
7. Moving to Assisted and Inspired Selling
What’s next for Shell India with respect to your sales transformation journey?
Akanksha Neeraj: We are now moving beyond the basics into assisted and inspired selling. This includes:
- Data-driven recommendations
- Dynamic beat planning
- Merchandising intelligence
- Auto-replenishment systems
The focus is to augment frontline productivity and make decision-making more intelligent and proactive.