Compressed Air Best Practices - May 2008 - (Page 38)

| 05/08 Compressed Air Indus mpressed Industry AUTOMOTIVE ASSEM TOMOTIVE ASSEMBLY | BEYOND THE “CUSTOMER-CENTRIC” BUZZWORD: Six Truths You Need to Know about Really Putting the Customer First BY DAVID GIANNETTO AND ANTHONY ZECCA Who does your company exist to please? In your daily business operations, who ultimately determines whether you and your people get paychecks or pink slips? Who does the mission and vision statements place at the center of your employees’ universe? If your answer to all three questions is “the customer,” you're not alone. Most leaders wake up each morning hoping to live up to their company’s promise to maximize customer value and deliver the best possible customer experience. Unfortunately, good intentions don’t always translate to success. Despite its new buzzword status, “customer-centric” is an ideal that most companies fail to uphold. “Creating a customer-centric company is a classic case of easier said than done,” says Giannetto, coauthor along with Anthony Zecca of The Performance Power Grid: The Proven Method to Create and Sustain Superior Organizational Performance (Wiley, 2006, ISBN: 0-470-05144-2, $27.95). “It’s a concept that every business leader at any level wants to think he has a grasp onto, but more times than not, he doesn’t.” “And here’s a sobering reality check,” he adds. “Tough economic times are coming, and if you aren’t giving your customers the most for their money right now, they won't think twice about dropping you when times get tough. And that will be when you need them most.” No wonder “customer-centric” is thrown about so freely at most executive planning sessions. (Giannetto says it’s replaced “innovative” as the new, mandatory strategic language). It describes a way of doing business that is no longer optional — and most leaders are finding that living up to the phrase requires more than changing a few words around in the company’s vision statement. “Becoming a customer-centric organization requires a departure from years of tradition, a clear look at who and what your organization is and a deeper understanding of what motivates your customers to buy from you, or from your competitor, than you may be used to having,” says Giannetto. “Fortunately, the cost to make this change is surprisingly low, while the benefits and the returns are shockingly high. And that’s why I think every company should make an effort to make the switch.” 38 www.airbestpractices.com http://www.airbestpractices.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Compressed Air Best Practices - May 2008

Compressed Air Best Practices - May 2008 Contents From the Editor Utility-Air News The Compressed Air Audit of the Month Pneumatics Real World Best Practices Delta Industries: Doing What is Right for Customers Delta Industries: Six Truths You Need to Know about Really Putting the Customer First Power Supply Industries Resources for Energy Engineers Wall Street Watch Advertiser Index Job Market

Compressed Air Best Practices - May 2008

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