Case Study: ICD004: Field Operations Assessment
Drivers
- Maintain market leadership through improved relationship management strategy
- Gain operational efficiency within field operations & marketing support
- Achieve customer service consistency in all field operations
- Improve customer satisfaction through better relationships
The client, a market leader in banking and financial services, suspected their success was due more to brand strength than the activity of the field operations. It was also suspected that, in order to maintain the position of leadership, it would be necessary to develop consistent and improved sales and customer service techniques to add significant revenues to the bottom line. Alongside this the client was seeking to develop a relational approach to its customers rather than its historic sales-led approach.
Inputs
- Reviewed all strategic and operational documents
- Accompanied calls with all sales staff to different types of customers
- Reviewed all HR and training programmes
- Met with a select number of customers with different degrees of complexity
- Audit of sales and support process using appropriate tools
The ICD Sales Force Assessment process was utilised working closely with sales personnel, the senior sales management team and the executives of the business. The study examined all sales procedures and processes in the existing business model and reviewed them against good practice highlighting the ‘gap’ areas and prioritising them for review. The study took a very pragmatic approach delivering strategic recommendations as well as more tactical improvements which could be addressed immediately.
Deliverables
- Report on the audit, pinpointing priority areas to be addressed
- Review of forthcoming training requirements with suggested improvements
- Account management framework and new operating model for field operations
- Recommendations on new marketing materials to support sales function
- Workshops for staff and senior management on audit findings
- Identified work streams to facilitate change
A relational business framework was developed and business requirements incorporated into the two-year training programme. Staff was fully involved throughout the development process with the ICD consultants guiding and advising.
Outputs
- Complete specification of customer data requirements inputted to new IT systems
- Comprehensive 2 year training programme to support “relational” change in sales force
- New methods of considering portfolio management
- New escalation procedures for different customers
- New sales management measurements established to ensure adoption
- Enhanced customer satisfaction and increased sales
Over the following 18 months, the client demonstrated a measurable business improvement of 15% alongside an increase in customer satisfaction, internal job satisfaction levels amongst the sales team and its support staff. Specific business development projects also benefited from improved specification enabling more accurate development and project management. This was hailed as one of the best projects the division had undertaken and its outputs are still being utilised to this day.