
Welcome to a Tacticware Resource Group educational white paper. Our topics in this white paper include growing sales revenue and customer satisfaction, as well as leadership and culture management!
This white paper is available for free download on tacticware.com.
Speaking Professionally
At Tacticware, we discuss the most difficult subjects for today’s leaders. We suggest that leadership, company culture, and brand perception are the source of most business challenges, rather than a symptom.
The proverbial Silver Bullet for people-related challenges simply do not exist. Every customer transaction is impacted by the quality of the organization. But keep in mind our dialogue is not about basic business mechanics; it’s about communication and the quality of both our customers and employees.
White Paper Introduction
In this white paper, we discuss “Disrupters to Sales Revenue, The Impact of Leadership and Culture Management.”
Customers are perceptive of supplier flaws. They recognize suppliers with consistent performance are predictable contributors to their financial health.
It’s pretty simple; when customers don’t trust suppliers they limit exposure. Why trust a company or sales person who fails to deliver. Leadership and cultural challenges eventually impact customer retention.
Pivot Your Thinking
Leadership and company culture determine brand value. Effective leadership is constantly verifying and enforcing company culture and customer satisfaction standards.
Effective leaders focus on top-to-top customer relationships in addition to sales department staff.
The fact is leaders and companies can’t code their way to strategic customer relationships. They can code their way to efficiencies.
Personal visits, phone calls, and emails from senior leadership to customers send a message of commitment and trust.
Disruptors of Customer Satisfaction
Effective leaders consistently verify compliance of these Customer Satisfaction Conditions. When company culture is aligned to these conditions the company becomes a preferred supplier.
Disruption to sales revenue growth occurs when these conditions are not top of mind by leadership.
- Quality: products/service exactly as promised
- Relationships: consistent and professional relationships
- Service: timely, actionable, and friendly solutions resolving challenges
- Innovation: true innovation that contributes to growth
- Value: fair and predictable pricing
So many times we hear clients have lost a strategic customer over price. After investigation we often find price is not responsible. It’s company failure in customer satisfaction.
Questions:
- Is company culture truly centered on customer satisfaction?
- Does your company measure customer satisfaction?
- What is the customer attrition rate?
- What Innovation has the company introduced in the last year?
Organizational Culture Definition
“Organizational Culture is a system of shared values, beliefs, and business practices.” – Investopedia
The Cultural Management System governs how people behave, communicate, plan, engage, and perform within the organization. Company vision, mission, and core values establish cultural expectations.
Tip: Does company Vision and Mission Statements reflect the importance of customer satisfaction?
Growing Revenue, it’s about Customer Perception
Excessive customer attrition has a profound impact on sales departments. Sometimes just as a new customer is on-boarded, an existing customer departs.
Customer retention is key to the financial stability of the company. It’s the foundation of predictable revenue.
Consider this planning guide for managing customer attrition.
Sales Planning |
Units |
Percentage |
(A) New period sales goal |
106,000 |
106% |
(B) Base period sales actual |
100,000 |
100% |
(C) Base units required to meet goal (A-B) |
6,000 |
6.0% |
(D) Projected customer attrition |
8,000 |
8.0% |
(E) Projected units to meet plan (C+D) |
14,000 |
14.0% |
- Line A is the new period sales goal of 106,000 units.
- Line B is last year sales of 100,000 units.
- Line C is a new sales goal of plus 6% or 6000 units.
- Line D is the customer attrition rate of 8% or 8000 units.
- Line E is the total of both sales growth of 6%, plus the attrition rate of 8%. To achieve plan, the company will require a total of 14%, or 14,000 units.
Often times companies fail to plan or manage for customer attrition. Even a single point improvement in customer attrition has dramatic impact on goals.
When we effectively manage disruptors to sales revenue growth, we also influence company culture.
Downstream Consequences
Companies embracing a “Customer Centric Culture” live differently. They have a collaborative relationship with customers, management, and employees. The difference is communication, accountability, and achievement. All parties are striving for achievement.
Sometimes companies experience excessive sales employee turnover because of toxic or poorly managed cultures. The fact is sales employees struggle to achieve goals when customers fail to trust the company.
What’s My Culture?
Bench-marking your company culture is the first step in increasing revenue growth. The 360 Organizational Assessment identifies areas of opportunity. The assessment is an excellent indicator of why financial growth and attrition could be challenged in your organization.
After one understands cultural key indicators, plans can be made for improvement. Cultural change is not a quick fix. It requires commitment, engagement, and accountability.
Final Thoughts
You may have noticed there are overarching approaches to solve each need. Some may be solved internally – with focus groups or by management actions. The other approach recommends bringing in an unbiased, outside source for knowledge transfer or analysis. Both have their merits.
What We’ve Learned
Leadership and cultural governance is the single greatest responsibility of the management team. Without superior culture, customer value erodes and attrition invades.
Objectivity
Objectively speaking, it can be helpful to employ an unbiased observer to help your organization when considering cultural analysis and improvement. Oftentimes an outside, objective ally can assist in determining all sides and pieces of the puzzle, giving a honest view of culture with no play of politics.
White Paper Author
Paul Fournier is President of Tacticware Resource Group. Tacticware is a organizational management consultancy firm offering cultural management systems, strategic planning, upSkill management/sales training, and 360 Cultural Assessments. We assist clients nationally. Learn more about transforming your business by contacting us.
Diversity
Quality people do not have a color, gender, or age. We are committed to diversity and equal opportunity. We do not discriminate against racial, ethnic, and/or religious groups, older workers, women, veterans, and people with disabilities. As a matter of policy, we remain apolitical, religion neutral, and respectful of local customs.
Contact Tacticware – Tacticware Resource Group, LLC
- Web: https://tacticware.com
- Email: contact@tacticware.com