FOSS GETTING FOCUS BACK ON THE CUSTOMER THE CHALLENGE In 2008 FOSS experienced sagging sales, not only due to the global economic downturn leading to the financial crisis, but also due to a lack of robust understanding of the customer. Alongside this, lower priced competitors were slowly closing the technology gap. FOSS lacked both sufficient knowledge regarding customer behaviour and loyalty, as well as knowledge on how customer facing staff should address the customers’ requirements in a strategic, value-adding context. In addition, there was a lack of cross-sharing of knowledge, as well as disparate sales and methodologies within each sales subsidiary. This made the desire to compare performance across the sales subsidiaries a difficult task. The overall challenge was therefore to regain and secure its competitive position as a world leading player within its key markets. THE SOLUTION The overall task was to provide guidance on how to improve sales performance by focusing on re-aligning marketing, sales and service, comprising both headquarters and the sales subsidiaries. A complete rethinking of the value proposition and transformation of the sales and marketing organisation was started in 2009. This included a multiphased programme involving analysis, design and implementation of a new “operating model”. The initial task was to map the customer journey at FOSS in order to uncover the customer loyalty drivers and to put the findings into concrete value creating solutions. This included creating or raising customer-focused activities that were missing, but also the elimination and/or reduction of activities that did not add value to the customers. When the value-adding activities and non-value adding activities were identified, time spent by staff could be subsequently be allocated more effectively. Furthermore, an analysis of the profitability of each product group, customer segment and sales subsidiary would lead to transparency in revenue and costs. ABOUT FOSS FOSS is a fully family owned company with headquarters in Denmark and more than 1,155 employees. FOSS is a world-leading B2B industrial company within development, manufacturing, marketing, sales and service of advanced industrial solutions for a range of sectors. FOSS has sales channels throughout its world-wide network of wholly owned sales subsidiaries, as well as an established network of distributors.
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