|
Join
Craig Bailey for Seminar in
Malaysia
If you are considering
embarking on the journey to becoming customer centric, join Customer
Centricity president
Craig Bailey as he delivers a 2-day seminar entitled
Customer
Centricity - Leveraging the Voice of the Customer to Maximize Business
Results on 17-18 April, 2006, in
Kuala Lumpur,
Malaysia. The seminar, organized in conjunction with Global Intelligence
Networks, will cover strategic and tactical approaches to becoming
customer centric. Stay tuned for more details.
Partnering with your Outsourcer
by
Craig Bailey
In today's business
world, outsourcing is a common practice enabling a firm to focus on its
core competencies, reach new markets and reduce costs. Business areas that
can be outsourced include customer service, technical support,
telemarketing and fulfillment, just to name a few. In all cases, your
outsourcer is performing as the face of your company to the customer and
marketplace. We've all heard the debacles associated with outsourcing. The
objective of this newsletter series is to help you to achieve the
anticipated benefits from outsourcing.
We will cover this topic in the following segments:
·
Partner or vendor?
·
Executive ownership and tactical direction
·
Establishing and managing to policy
·
Creating realistic, aligned and measurable goals
·
Inclusion within the inner circle
Partner or Vendor?
So, how is your outsourcer representing your firm to your customer base
and market? To a great degree, the answer to this question directly
relates to how you manage, even treat, your outsourcer. Do you treat your
outsourcer as a vendor or partner? Let's look at the definition of the two
terms:
-
Vendor: A supplier of goods or services, such as a
printer or a service bureau.
-
Partner: A collaborator; an associate who works with
others toward a common goal.
If
you consider the outsourcer an extension of your team, with the
expectation that they will effectively represent your firm to the
customer, then I'd suggest you want to develop a strong partner
relationship. While this may be the intention, the reality may be quite
different. For example, does your outsourcer take a beating about the head
and neck on a monthly, weekly even daily basis from your firm? To be
clear, there may be very good reason for concern. However, I'd suggest
that beating up your outsourcer will NEVER lead to a partner relationship.
Do you apply significant pressure to get the most out of the outsourcer at
the least possible cost? Getting the best value for your investment is
definitely important. However, are you forcing your outsourcer into an
unprofitable relationship with your firm? If all of their customers were
like you could they sustain their business operations?
In the upcoming articles we will share approaches for you to establish:
-
clear ownership of the outsourced relationship, with
consistent direction provided on both a strategic and tactical level
-
clear policies and procedures, with measurable goals
that you can manage to, and that are aligned with the achievement of a
common objective (of the relationship)
-
an intimate working relationship by bringing the
outsourcer into your inner circle vs. keeping them at arms-length
distance
These are just some of
the important aspects of an effective partnership that we look forward to
sharing with you. In the meantime, I'd suggest that instead of beating on
your vendor, focus on the common objectives of the relationship (what is
good) and put plans in place to achieve those objectives. Emphasizing the
positive rather than just the negative will yield a healthier partnership.
In closing, if you'd like an objective perspective on how effectively you
are managing your outsourcer relationships, give us a call. We would be
happy to perform a situational assessment, providing you a read-out of
what is working well (to keep doing), opportunities for improvement and a
pragmatic road-map for closing the gap between where you are and where you
want to be. |
Contents
+ Partnering with your Outsourcer
+ Recommended Reading
If you have received this newsletter from a friend
and would like to subscribe:
Click
here to subscribe
View previous newsletters
Article in CRM Today
Is there a Governor on your Telemarketing Program? by Craig Bailey has
been published in CRM Today magazine. Go ahead and check it out!
Recommended Reading
CRMGuru
article
The Trust Equation by Michael Lowenstein focuses on the importance of
trust in achieving staff loyalty, commitment and productivity, which
ultimately leads to a better customer experience. Mr. Lowenstein suggests
changing the mantra from "focus on the customer" to "focus on your
employees because of your customers." And instilling a sense of trust will
empower your employees to focus on your customers.
About Customer Centricity, Inc.
We strengthen overall company performance through
better service delivery and management.
We boost efficiencies in front-line customer service and technical support
teams, order processing, fulfillment, field service, logistics and other
key operations functions.
In short, we align the resources of your organization to exceed your
customers' expectations in the most effective and efficient manner
possible.
See What Our Customers Say
Quick Links
About Us
Contact Us
Testimonials
Previous Newsletters |
