We have recently seen a number of banking sector boards admit to receiving no customer information at board level. So there is no precedent set in those organisations with respect to how important it is to understand and address customer issues.
Do you, your owners, directors, board and senior executives all receive customer feedback for regular review at meetings? Does your organisation believe that receiving this feedback from customers will create value? Do you model this at every opportunity? Yes, great, No, why not – what are you afraid of? When was the last time you received feedback from your customers on your products or services? Be honest. This morning, yesterday, a week ago, a month ago or never? Where did you get this feedback? From a real live customer or second or third hand? From a survey where it’s been sliced and diced and the info is now weeks old?In what form did you receive this feedback? Word of mouth, highly actionable form, summarised and censored?
What was done with the feedback? Passed along the line, up or down, acted on, something unknown? Partly resolved, nothing?
Is this good enough? – Remember the reason you are in business is to serve your customers, and you need to do this in a way that meets your stakeholder expectations, that’s employees, customers, suppliers and environment
Did the feedback allow you into your customers world, did it allow you to experience a day in the life of your customer and how your products or services are being used to make this customers life better?
If you received more and better/more relevant customer feedback would you be better able to address the issues that your customers are experiencing?
So what do we do if you are not receiving this information and you feel you need it?
#1. Awareness of the current situation and that it needs to improve with respect to availability of useful customer feedback!
This is one of those times where one person can make a difference! You need to speak directly, and confidently to your manager. Make an appointment and ask him/her for the information you need to do your job better.
In the interim think about:
- Who in your business does actually speak to customers regularly, say sales? Can they assist you?
- Who in your business is actually responsible for knowing and driving marketing and innovation for this customer base, say marketing and R&D? Can they assist you?
- Who else in your business is in a position to gather customer feedback and is your organisation doing this at every opportunity?
Perhaps when you speak to your manager you could suggest that they contact their colleagues in the above departments. Perhaps even set up a cross functional team to address the issue? Make a start somewhere and continuously improve. It won’t be perfect but it will be progress and that’s OK!
Now, let’s just consider for a moment why it might be up to you to work through this and why hasn’t someone done this before you?
A crippling effect of silo mentality on an organisation is the stifling of information between your sales and marketing department and those in charge of the supply chain. Often the result is both groups having radically different ideas on what will draw in more customers and rather than try to resolve these positions to meet everyone’s needs in terms of customer information, the battle lines are drawn and then before you know it, The silo mentality has won again!
On the surface, the marketing department might have the edge. They are the ones who analyze customer behaviour and receive their feedback. However, the resistance on the supply side can be understandable. Some customer expectations can be too high for delivery in the immediate future and it just seems pointless to be told that customers want and need something that supply cannot provide in the short term,(or ever if they have no strategy or strategic thinkers or continuous improvement initiatives in place.)
So how do we get over all of this? We implement strong feedback loops at every opportunity. We install fact based decision making as our way of life, so we are basing our innovations on what is required, not simply our perception of that. We ensure there are ground rules in place, the feedback wont always be wonderful, however we will prioritise the issues and address them as best we can, maintaining our focus on continuous improvement. And to do this, we need to customer feedback.
Consider for a moment, what does your supply chain manager/leader imagine when they hear the words ‘customer feedback?’
Chances are, the first things that come to mind are a paper surveys and tiny little focus groups. These, however, are relics of a bygone age as far as marketing is concerned. There is more to feedback than just focus groups just as there is more to “Same Day Delivery” as delivery at the click of a button.
It is time to tear down the silos and start the process of integrating feedback loops in all areas of your business. It will take time and new technologies may have to be introduced to your business but key concepts can already be exercised with what you have. It doesn’t have to be expensive and it can be real time. Is someone in your business actively calling customers every day? You might be surprised to find out that there often is, where they are and what they know?
#2. Customer engagement is also feedback!
Companies like Amazon and Facebook do a good job of showing just how much you can accomplish by merely analyzing clicks. Rather than waiting for official survey results, they work closely with marketers on getting the latest information from direct engagement with their target market.
For example, suppose you have an upcoming item that can be purchased on your website. Your marketing department has generated a substantial amount of interest and excitement about it. What metric would you use to determine just how many people will order the product once it’s available?
One option is to simply give customers an option to pre-order it. This, in turn, generates a wealth of data that can be then transmitted back to the rest of the supply chain to help manage production to optimally meet expectations.
#3. Start utilizing all your data – yes it might be big data and predictive analytics but get on with it!
There is a risk that your company will simply have too much information to handle at any given time. You not only have to manage the data from the marketing front but also from information on multiple sources in a vast supply chain network. (This includes visibility on the status of transport as well as inventory.)
To keep it manageable, one need only start opting for software solutions that have a high capacity for big data analytics. If you cannot do it, outsource it to someone who can. There are plenty of really good people who have studied advanced mathematics, statistics and analytics for many years wondering why you haven’t used their skills as yet? They are out there just waiting to assist you, and make you look truly great!
#4. Connect the people who need connecting!
The information of the feedback loop should find itself to the people who make the most impactful decisions and allow them to directly coordinate. You will know this is not the case if your most important decision makers are taking days to simply reach other. The same goes if it takes hours upon hours of board meetings to what should be day-to-day decisions.(This is the topic of another blog!)
It is not just enough to know that information is on the network. Silo policies have an almost insidious way of enabling inaction simply because the information required is still not visible to the right people. Hence, strong and direct communication between key decision makers should be the new norm, even before any technology solution is implemented.
#5. Make it ‘Good News’ when customer feedback has been used to drive change which has added value to the organisation!
Collect and communicate these examples as case studies! Use your MD, CEO or hi level supporters from your guiding coalition. (How to lead extraordinary change!)
By all accounts, everyone should understand the amount of information that needs to flow in and out of the business. It is not just about listening to what a little focus group has to say or whether logistics will prove the real factor in your company’s success. Having solid feedback loop will ensure everyone is on the same page and you will all be closer to the actual answers and this means you are closer to adding extraordinary value to your organisation!
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Or, maybe you would like to better understand how you can more fully leverage todays’ technology in your supply chain? Click HERE for a FREE ebook. You just might discover the missing piece to get your business back in the lead where it belongs!.
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