In my last blog, we explored the Customer Service Pillar of being Responsive in the context of what customers are expecting from the IT Solution providers today.  As a reminder, I am writing from a customer service roadmap called CustomerFIRST where the word FIRST is an acrostic.
This week I am addressing the 4^th Pillar of successful customer service – being Strategic.
When I was a young IT sales professional in my 20’s, I learned a very important lesson from a wise Chief Information Officer (CIO) who decided to invest in my development. The story I am about to tell is true, but the names have been omitted to protect the innocent. After 2 years of hard work, we had established our company as a strategic provider of IT Solutions for one of the largest railroads in America. I had developed a strong trust-based relationship with the CIO and she was an outspoken positive reference for our work.
I took my hard fought experiences and reached out to the CIO of another large railroad.  After an exhaustive “never give up” cold calling campaign, I wore the poor CIO down and he agreed to meet with me. As my airplane touched down in the city where this railroad was headquartered, I could feel my excitement building. You see, I had so much to share with this CIO. I arrived 30 minutes early wearing a dark suit and my power tie. As I waited outside his office, I reviewed in my mind what I had rehearsed and prepared. Promptly at 11 a.m., I was escorted in to a large office where Mr. CIO sat behind his desk looking very professional and somewhat intimidating.
We exchanged some pleasantries about the weather and a recent football game, and then I began my pitch. My confidence level was at an all-time high, and the words flowed from my mouth like a beautiful river. The CIO seemed to be listening to everything I said; and he would occasionally nod and say, “You don’t say.” I ended my discussion with my closing statement, “As you can see, we have proven technical expertise in all of these important areas; and we could do the same magic for you!”
For the first time in 30 minutes, I was silent. The CIO looked at me and said “Steve, I really appreciate you taking the time to come all the way out here to meet with me and tell me about all the wonderful things you are doing for another railroad. To be candid, we don’t have a need for any of the technologies or solutions you just presented.” With that, he walked me to the door and said, “My assistant will show you out.” I was dumbfounded and in a state of shock. My delivery was perfect and my discussions focused on the railroad industry. What the heck?
Two days later, back in Colorado, I picked up the phone and called Mr. Railroad CIO who graciously agreed to talk with me. I simply wanted to know what happened. Mr. Railroad CIO shared with me that he purposely showed me the door to teach me a lesson that he hoped would benefit me throughout my future life in business. He explained that my focus should always be on first seeking to understand the needs, desires and priorities of the client. He said, “It doesn’t matter what you have done, how you have done it or what you have accomplished, if it isn’t relevant to the needs of the client sitting in front of you.” He followed this with, “Never sell before you understand.” That experience has stuck with me since, and I thank Mr. Railroad CIO for his willingness to teach me an important lesson.
Being strategic means being relevant; and being relevant can only happen if a customer’s needs, requirements, and business are clearly understood. Today, clients expect that their IT Solution Providers are investing in the process of learning their business, their culture, and their operations. Without this investment in knowledge, IT Solution Providers are throwing things against the proverbial wall and hoping something sticks. Too often, IT Solution Providers wait for their clients to request technology – hardware, software, solutions – and then they react and respond to those requests. This is a reactive model of service, and most IT Solution Providers fall into this bucket.
While being responsive is important, as I discussed in my last blog, being proactive can lead to true customer service and loyalty. Imagine a conversation with a client that goes something like this:
“Mrs. Client, based on your key initiatives for the coming year and your focus on getting your IT staff up to speed on technology X, I thought you would benefit from this written case study of an implementation of this solution we recently did for another client. Let me know if you would like to talk about how we could help you in the same way.”
This proactive type of value can create huge separation between yourself and your competition and the sales process advances much more smoothly. All of this sounds like common sense, doesn’t it? Then why in the world are we, as an industry, not doing it more consistently?
Perhaps because it takes time. Being Strategic requires an investment of time and effort to learn about your customer in many areas:

• Current IT infrastructure, operations, and applications
• Key initiatives and priorities
• IT vision & strategy looking forward (future)
• Procurement, budgeting, approval process
• Current IT staff (expertise and experience)
• Culture

If an IT Solution Provider can share ideas, solutions, and technologies based on the actual needs and operational realities of a client, those ideas and solutions have a much greater chance of adding value to the client.Don’t make the mistake I made by “showing up and throwing up” without first doing your homework and investing in learning what really matters to the client. Your investment will separate you for the competition and create an opportunity to add relevant value to your client.
Next week we will explore the importance of being Trusted by our clients and the process to create the opportunity for a trust-based relationship.
Until we meet again, I wish you the very best in your efforts to serve customers in the ways they wish to be served.

In my last blog, we explored the Customer Service Pillar of being Invested, emphasizing the importance of focus and being great in only a few things. I discussed how clients expect greatness on the very first engagement and how leveraging professional partnerships to broaden our ability to serve clients is critical in today’s rapidly changing IT landscape. As a reminder, I am writing from a customer service roadmap called CustomerFIRST where the word FIRST is an acrostic.
 

This week I am addressing the 3rd pillar of successful customer service – being Responsive.
 

Only a few years ago, being responsive as an IT Solution Provider was all about getting quotes delivered to a client within a reasonable amount of time. In most cases, getting quotes delivered in 2-3 days was the norm. Major investments in online ordering and configuration systems have upped the ante; and getting quotes is now measured in minutes and hours, not days. In fact, if a customer already knows what he wants to buy, IT solution providers and Value Added Resellers (VARs) likely won’t be in a business very long if they can’t respond with a same-day quote and precise information on the availability of the product. I believe this level of responsiveness is considered “table stakes” by customers today.
 

More complex solutions involving sizing, engineering, demonstrations, testing, proof-of-concepts, etc., are different; and clients understand that these non-commodity solutions require time and additional layers of expertise. What is fascinating is that these “value solutions” are viewed by clients as being a smaller and smaller percentage of their IT buying experience. To make matters more challenging, larger clients are also interested in their IT partners being able to ship product the same or next day to meet real-time demands and changing business requirements. If a vendor is able to provide this near real-time service, the client is able to respond even faster to the business needs. It is clear that both speed and expectations continue to increase.
 

Because we are focused in this discussion around building and maintaining the highest levels of customer service, I would argue that operating at hyper-responsiveness is required to have a seat at the table; but it doesn’t necessarily buy loyalty. Instead, I believe that responsiveness is most valuable when a client needs immediate technical support or help. This help may take the form of a system or application being down, a service that is operating too slowly, or a project that must be completed by a certain date. Being able to pull a client out of the fire creates the most lasting and meaningful relationship opportunities. While none of us hope for our clients to have emergencies, most of us have been in the IT game long enough to know that emergencies will happen; it is just a matter of when.
 

The reality today is that clients demand operational speed and agility from IT vendors who hope to even have seat at the table, but true relationship and loyalty is earned by stepping up when the chips are down. These are the moments that clients remember and hold on to when loyalty is called into question. To do this requires more than an online ordering or configuration system. Indeed, this type of responsiveness is provided through technical experts who are ready and willing to jump into the fire. I would further argue that the organization providing the “jumpers” must also align with this philosophy because there is often insufficient time to put in place another contract or a Statement of Work (SOW). In most cases, the paperwork is done after the emergency has passed. While these words are likely heresy to many CEOs, COOs, and especially CFOs, it is the price (I believe) that is required to earn that coveted position of a true partner in the eyes of our clients.
 

Assuming this is all true, how do we, as leaders, ensure that our organizations are ready to respond when our clients really need our help? How do we guarantee that we are responsive in the way that our clients need us to be? I suppose those are questions that each of us must answer for ourselves, but the challenge and the opportunity exist to be a difference maker by being responsive.
 

Next week we will explore the importance of being Strategic with our clients and the priority of seeking first to understand before we attempt to solve.
 

Until we meet again, I wish you the very best in your efforts to serve customers in the ways they wish to be served.

Investing in core competencies

Today’s clientele are savvy and smart, and most of them wear x-ray glasses that can see right through inexperience from a mile away. In the world of Information Technology (IT), no organization can possibly know it all or be an expert in everything. Technology today is too complex, ever changing, and moving at a very high rate of speed. For these reasons, clients expect us to say, “No, we don’t specialize in that,” more than we have ever said it before. Furthermore, organizations that specialize and invest in being great in a few things have the best chance of securing long-term relationships with clients built on proven performance.
In my last blog, we explored the customer service pillar of flexibility in the context of what customers are expecting from IT Solution providers today. As a reminder, I am writing from a customer service roadmap called CustomerFIRST where the word FIRST is an acrostic:

• • Flexible
  • Invested
  • Responsive
  • Strategic
  • Trusted

 

This week I am addressing the 2^nd pillar of successful customer service: Invested.
I recognize how difficult it can be to get a meeting with a prospect in the first place and the last thing any of us want to do is walk out of her office without something to pursue. At the same time, a discovery discussion about needs and challenges followed by a crisp, clear description of what your organization is great at, creates the foundation for a future partnership, even if that partnership does not start right now. On the flip side, selling beyond our headlights creates a very likely “one and done” experience with a lot of potential risk. Clients just aren’t willing to put up with this type of experience today. They demand quality and success on the first engagement – period.
The winning Customer Service approach is to be crystal clear about what your organization is great at and stick to what is right in the center of your wheelhouse. Only expand your offerings when you can invest in those areas of expertise in a meaningful way.
The second key component of this new customer service approach requires all of us to be highly networked so that we can refer other organizations or partners to serve the immediate needs of the client. Above all else, a true IT Solution Provider desires to make the lives of their clients better. Therefore, if an IT Solution Provider knows of a company that can do what a client needs, he is obliged to refer the client to that organization. The development of an IT-Solution ecosystem is essential to being a true IT Solution partner today.
Current Social Media tools like LinkedIn provide a simple and fast way to establish meaningful IT Solution ecosystems. I personally have seen the power of this connected ecosystem in recent months in helping client of ours find new jobs, find new employees, and get solutions to IT challenges that my organization was not able to provide. I sincerely believe that this approach of “making the lives of our client better,” even when we don’t cash the check, creates strong client relationships.
Many organizations will see this approach as a way to help their competition and will shy away from embracing the IT Solution ecosystem approach. While I completely understand this line of thinking, I believe it is short sighted and very 1990’s.
In summary, the successful organizations know what their strengths are and they invest heavily in their success, evolution, and maturation. Investing includes training, focus, intentionality, and limitations on scope and expertise. To provide additional services and areas of expertise, today’s IT Solution Providers are encouraged to reach outside the walls of their own organization to partner with other companies that do what they do not. This is the best way to serve customers in 2015.
Next week we will explore the importance of being Responsive and how speed of action has expanded into many other facets of business.
Until we meet again, I wish you the very best in your efforts to serve customers in the ways they wish to be served.

Why Flexibility Builds Credibility with Your Clients

In my previous blog on the topic of Customer Service in 2015, we explored the five pillars of serving customers today:

• Flexible
• Invested
• Responsive
• Strategic
• Trusted

This week, we will tackle the pillar of customer service: Flexibility.
Webster defined “flexibility” as, “the quality of being adaptable or variable.”  As businesses motivated to produce a profit, we are all looking for ways to create consistency and efficiency in the projects we deliver.  To do this, we seek to create templates, consistent deliverables, and a common set of steps and processes to arrive at our outcomes.  Ideally, we want all types of fruit to look and taste like apples.  The less variety we experience, the greater opportunity we have for customer and project success.
On the flip side, today’s customers expect us to be flexible in how we deliver projects because they believe their business requirements are unique and their internal culture, current technology, and political issues are anything but an apple.
All of us in the IT business relish those moments when a customer’s need intersects with one of our core competencies.  We all have been in those meetings when a client says, “Hey, we really need help in this area,” and that area just so happens to be right in our wheelhouse.  We puff up like a frog and say, “This is your lucky day! We have implemented 10 projects just like yours in the past 12 months.”  Inevitably, the client’s response is, “Sure you have, but you’ve never implemented that project here!”
The bottom line is that all clients believe their situation is unique and likely more challenging than the situation of other organizations for a variety of reasons.  What clients are telling us in 2015 is that they need their IT solution partners to be pliable and moldable to support the unique requirements of their business and culture.  Customers do not want us walking into their environment wearing blinders.  They want us to understand and appreciate the nuances and uniqueness of their world.
Clients do not want their IT solution partners to force fit any of these without first understanding what makes their needs different:

• • Methodology
  • Time frame
  • Budget
  • Other constraints

 

One client said to me, “The reason flexibility is important is because I want to know that you are marching to my agenda, not yours.”  Perhaps that quote says it best.  The expectation of clients today is that their solution providers will engage every project or situation with an attitude of flexibility.  The client will absolutely demand expertise and experience in a particular area, but they also want the solution provider to deliver a project with their unique requirements in mind.
The other element of flexibility, in the spirit of customer service, that is different today than in the past is client expectations in terms of how changes in scope are managed.  Years ago it was a common and somewhat accepted practice for many IT Solution Providers to “buy in” to a project, believing they were going to get well through change management tied to modifications in project scope.  The idea was to manage every word of the contract / Statement of Work (SOW) and quickly pounce on any minute change in scope, fleecing the customer as quickly as possible for additional revenue.
In 2015, this approach does not work; and customers are quick to identify this behavior as “non-partner like.”  The relationship can’t devolve into an “Us vs. Them” battle where change is a dreaded event.  We have all heard it said many times that the only constant is constant change.  In the IT world, this is especially true; and customers need Solution Providers to understand that change is a natural part of doing business today.
This is a challenging dilemma because, as IT Solution Providers, we need to define boundaries, limitations, rules of engagement, and ways to deal with changes in scope.  Without these guiding principles, we will find ourselves defined by our clients as great partners; but we will also likely find ourselves out of business.  The skills embodied in a seasoned Project Manager create the best opportunity to navigate these tricky waters:

• • Planning
  • Expectations
  • Consistent and rich communications
  • Schedule management
  • Immediately addressing changes in scope

 

Most clients are reasonable when it comes to managing changes in scope, but the key is to operate with an attitude of flexibility and empathy.  Clients despise surprises and being “nickeled & dimed” at every turn.  In today’s world of customer service, clients truly desire a partnership; and to achieve that, a spirit of flexibility is essential.
Next week we will explore the importance of being invested and focused on what you provide as a Solution Provider.  Gone are the days of, “We do everything for everyone.”
Until we meet again, I wish you the very best in your efforts to serve customers in the ways they wish to be served.