How Dole streamlined agri-security, logistics, and compliance with an end-to-end ERP built on Zoho Creator

The company

Dole Asia Holdings Pte. Ltd. is a global leader in fresh fruit production and distribution, best known for its pineapples and bananas. With major operations in the Philippines, Dole serves key markets across the United States, Europe, and Asia, while upholding strong commitments to quality, sustainability, and community impact.

Supporting over 60,000 employees globally, including 1,000 security personnel across 20,000 hectares of plantation, the company runs end-to-end supply chain operations and upholds international standards such as ISO 28000 and TAPA (Transported Asset Protection Association) for security.

The challenge

When Tyron joined Dole, he encountered outdated, fragmented processes. Despite the company using SAP as their ERP system, most workflows, particularly in security and logistics, were still manual. This left the business vulnerable to losses, fraud, and delays.

Three core issues stood out:

• Lack of visibility: Delayed incident reporting and no trend analysis meant risks were addressed only after the fact.
• Manual workflows: Data had to be entered manually into the ERP, adding unnecessary workload for the team and slowing down operations.
• High costs of traditional TMS solutions: Commercial-grade transport management systems range from $300,000 to $1 million, which made them impractical for security-focused needs.

Recognizing the need for a custom-built solution, Tyron reached out to Omar Khamam, CEO of The Techno Set, a Zoho Partner. Together, they began developing a modular ERP system on Zoho Creator, purpose-built to meet Dole’s unique security and operational needs.

The solution

What began as a simple incident reporting tool has evolved into a comprehensive ERP framework built entirely on Zoho Creator. Today, the system features over 20 custom modules, offering mobile-first capabilities, role-based dashboards, and powerful analytics that deliver end-to-end visibility across sites, assets, and personnel.

Incident management system

One of the first modules built, the incident management system gives Dole instant visibility into thefts, safety issues, and disruptions. Reports are now logged on mobile with photos and context, routed immediately to relevant teams, and analyzed via Zoho Analytics to flag high-risk areas. The system supports multi-language inputs from local guards, with English summaries auto-generated for global teams.

Drone surveillance integration: In a groundbreaking move, Dole also integrated its drone surveillance program into Creator.

These drones, managed through partners like FlytBase, are used not only for aerial monitoring but also to trigger incident reports and capture field-level anomalies. The Creator app syncs with the drone operators’ workflows, and AI-generated data from flights feed directly into Zoho Analytics, providing management with an unprecedented view of field operations, security breaches, and compliance gaps.

Transport management system

Designed to manage truck dispatch, vehicle inspections, and field scheduling, the TMS is one of the most comprehensive modules built. It includes a queuing system where trucks are tracked in real time—from arrival, inspection, and loading to exit. Creator’s Blueprint feature guides this flow, with the system preventing unauthorized truck selection and even tying in planned fields with available trucks.

ARTIS (Agricultural Research and Technical Information System)

This module supports scientific teams with data on soil sampling, field trials, and lab submissions. ARTIS helps connect agronomic planning with operational execution, bridging the gap between research and commercial farming. Data flows into the broader ERP, allowing planting schedules to be aligned with scientific insights. The module is still expanding and designed to flexibly accommodate research requirements across regions and crop types.

Other modules built into the ERP cover critical areas, such as:

• Task management, audits, and security projects: These modules connect daily operations, like container inspections, vehicle checks, and CCTV audits, via a unified interface, with records linked to people, sites, and checklists.
• Guard tour: This module ensures on-ground compliance using QR codes and GPS to verify guard presence at checkpoints. Guards receive location-specific instructions and must submit photo evidence to complete tasks, enabling supervisors to track performance in real time.
• Crisis management and business continuity: These modules keep Dole’s emergency response teams up to date by prompting monthly roster reviews and supporting scenario-based protocols, ensuring crisis plans remain accurate and ready to deploy.
• Advanced analytics: Across all modules, dashboards power decision-making. Whether it’s a queuing dashboard for transport, incident trends, or recovery reports, every segment is equipped with analytics customized to its function. Admins see system-wide reports, while security and transport personnel have restricted views based on roles. This ensures both operational control and data security across Dole’s ecosystem.

Benefits and ROI

Dole’s adoption of Zoho Creator signalled a strategic shift in how the company manages its operations. It marked a move toward real-time visibility, improved process control, and faster response to risks and inefficiencies across the supply chain.

Here are some of the most significant improvements they've seen:

• Instant reporting and faster response times: Incident reports that once took three to four days are now submitted and accessed in real time, allowing teams across regions to respond immediately and take corrective action.
• Data-driven decisions with real-time analytics: Interactive dashboards, built using Zoho Analytics, surface critical trends around theft, attempted theft, and process delays.
• Rapid deployment: Instead of the typical multi-year ERP rollout, Dole built and deployed its transport management system in just two months, accelerating time to value and setting the foundation for future modules.
• Significant cost efficiency: By building a customized system on Zoho Creator, Dole avoided the hefty licensing fees of commercial-grade TMS platforms.

Looking forward

Dole’s long-term vision is clear: a single, custom-built Zoho ERP that spans everything from planting and production to warehousing, transport, and export. With Creator at its core, the system is growing organically, one module at a time, guided by real business needs.

Dole plans to continue enhancing the ERP by:

• Adding WhatsApp-based truck notifications with GPS feedback.
• Improving crisis management, business continuity, and risk modules.
• Fully integrating ARTIS with drone and soil science operations.
• Expanding the system to more countries and user bases.