For this assignment, analyze the mini-case study provided in the following one-page article found in the Business Source Complete database in the Waldorf Online Library:
Driggs, W., & Holland, R. (2014). Putting customers before politics. Customer Relationship Management, 18(1), 5. Retrieved from
https://libraryresources.waldorf.edu/login?auth=CAS&url=http://search.ebscohost.com.libraryresources.waldorf.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bth&AN=93401587&site=ehost-live&scope=site
Specifically, examine how the organizational culture changed within the company featured in the mini-case study. Describe the organizational culture both before and after the change. Within your discussion, integrate concepts from the Unit I readings in your textbook as well as concepts presented in the Unit I lesson. Apply the socio-cultural learning model to explain how the chief operating officer (COO) led the organization to change its culture.
Your case study analysis must have a minimum of Three full pages in length and be in APA Style. As with all your work at Waldorf University, be sure to cite all your sources and follow Waldorf’s Academic Integrity Policy.
Reference: DRIGGS, W., & HOLLAND, R. (2014). Putting Customers Before Politics. CRM Magazine, 18(1), 5.
The Article is Below.
THE TIPPING POINT I
BY WOODY DRIGGS AND ROB HOLLAND
Putting Customers Before Politics
COOs struggle to navigate a siloed culture
TO TRULY ADDRESS
BUSINESS
CHALLENGES,
ORGANIZATIONS NEED
TO VIEW CUSTOMER
OPERATIONS AS
A WHOLE.
T
H E C H I E F operating officer of a global
HR and payroll services provider threw up
her hands in despair. Month after month, she
received reports indicating that more than half
of the company’s sales orders had errors. Sometimes it
was bad customer data; other times, the service options
offered to the customer had been bundled or priced incor-
rectly. For every error, the salesperson would return to the
customer to redo the order. This was incredibly inefficient
and eroded customers’ confi-
dence in the company, some-
times to the point of canceling
orders altogether.
The COO had twice attempted
to implement a technology solu-
tion that would reduce the error
rate. Both times, the effort failed
because the business allowed
for inconsistent processes. Sales
processes and IT infrastructure
were slightly different from one business unit to the next,
and business unit leaders jostled to prioritize pet projects
over what was in the best interest of the organization as
a whole.
Navigating a culture built on silos, and challenging fief-
doms that ultimately hamper productivity and profitable
growth is an experience many COOs face. The key is to
involve the right stakeholders and eliminate the politics
by focusing on what is of most value to the organization.
To truly address business challenges, organizations
need to view customer operations as a whole.
An integrated customer operations approach
requires representation from across the func-
tional silos. By fostering collaboration among
sales, operations, legal, finance, internal audit,
and marketing, organizations can make deci-
sions knowing the compromises that both the
front and back office need to make.
With the right stakeholders involved, the
next key element is getting them focused on
the right issues. Using an outside-in perspec-
tive, focusing directly on customer experience through
the use of personas and scenarios, is particularly help-
ful. Personas capture what both internal and external
customers care about most and the key issues that the
organization must resolve. Scenarios establish a common
understanding of the capabilities needed to optimize an
end-to-end process or transaction.
Once the organization knows what the customer wants
and which processes to focus on, it needs to enable them.
Business input can result in hundreds, or even thousands, of
requirements. Perhaps it’s too expensive, takes too long, or
is unnecessary. Instead, organizations can use a value-driver
model to determine which requirements have high value
(e.g., reduce cost, improve performance) and prioritize
them based on which v̂ill have the
most impact on the organizafion’s
bottom line. This approach offers
an objective view of how to enact
the transformation—and succeed.
An integrated customer oper-
ations approach also requires a
change management component.
This includes using iterative pilot
programs that gather relevant
stakeholders in conference rooms
and solicit their input. Identifying gaps earlier in the program
makes them easier and less expensive to address. At the same
time, early and frequent stakeholder involvement wül drive
greater adoption as the improvement effort moves forward.
In the case of the HR and payi-oU services organization,
by using an integrated customer operations approach, the
COO was able to successfully implement a scenario-based,
value-driven, technology-enabled process transformation
that resulted in lasting change throughout the organiza-
tion. The new fully automated sales order processes fun-
damentally changed the organization’s relationship with
its customers. Customers had greater confidence in the
organization, resulting in an increase in sales.
An integrated customer operations approach gives orga-
nizations the framework they need to create a culture that
makes transformation programs feasible. By making the
effort objective, while still making affected stakeholders
feel as if they are an integral part of the outcome, organi-
zations can design and implement programs that optimize
operations, reduce costs, improve productivity, make the
most of IT investments, and ultimately drive value that
directly and positively affects the bottom line. (R?
Woody Driggs is the global advisory customer leader for Ernst & Young He is a
principal in the company’s Advisory Services Performance Improvement practice
and is based in Washington, f)C. Rob Holland is a principal in Ernst & Young’s
Advisory Services Customer practice and is based in Houston.
www.destinationCRM.com CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT | JANUARY 2014 S
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