Technology Impact - Assignment Example

Information technology, globalization and internationalization have changed the way people think, react and take decisions. Increase in then use of information technology contributes extensively to nearly all of the corporate service activities. Different functions require increasing amount of information and capitalization of knowledge. This paper will examine how technology is used to introduce new products to customers, how technology adds value to a service or product including enhanced customer experiences. It would also discuss partnerships with technology partners. Information today is the key to business success and information accessibility in the delivery of service leads to enhanced customer experience. In traditional organization structures coordination and sharing of information was not possible. Customer contact management, on the other hand, collects, records and assesses relevant information about a customer in real time. This leads to customized customer contact service at every interaction. Thus an organization can keep building relationship by adding value to service at each encounter. Spencer-Matthews and Lawley (2006) cite that information is a component of communication channels such as face-to-face, email, phone and web – each of which impacts how a customer interacts with business. Information should be recorded of whenever and wherever the customer makes a contact. Companies are moving closer to their customers and customer relationship management has become imperative. Technology has helped to add value to the service that General Motors (GM) was giving to its customers. GM stands out in its application of technology when it applied Digital Loyalty Network (DLN) which enabled the company to constantly monitor, product and supply chain data apart from adjusting engineering, production, sales and distribution activities (Koudal & Wellener, 2003). The name itself suggests that it is high technology enabled, while promoting customer loyalty and networking helps to leverage the supply and distribution chain partners for better customer service. The data collected helps them to enhance their partnership with suppliers. GM has implemented an integrated network through which they have been able to connect the company with suppliers, customers, alliances, dealers and partners. It has launched web portals for customers and suppliers and its OnStar System allows the drivers to communicate while on road with the support staff and vendors. The OnStar System allows them to interact daily with all customers and since the launch of the system they report having 10 million customer interactions with 5000 new customers starting to use the system daily. This has helped in better service and closer relationship with the customer. The data collected through the OnStar is fed back through the system to the supply chain. In collaboration with the dealers, GM launched GM BuyPower, a web-based channel that allows customers to choose the vehicle they want. Their input helps the company with valuable information. Customers can identify the nearest preferred dealer, browse through third part comparisons, get incentive information, get the best dealer price and apply for finance online. The system also allows the dealer to respond with their best personalized offers. GM also has a web-based tool for post purchase customer care where the customer can create a personal profile of all vehicles they owned. This triggers maintenance reminders and tracks service history, thereby providing online support for customers. GM also has an order-to-delivery (OTD) department which has three functions – order fulfillment, supply chain and logistics. Delivery lead times were reduced to 60 percent and delivery reliability increased to 90% from 68%. Technology has led to innovative strategy in collaborations and partnerships too. Companies like Pfizer are partnering with technology firms to enhance customer experience. Due to increased demand from customers, companies are opting for customer relationship management (CRM) which is a strategic relationship management process that combines the best business practices, resources, knowledge and appropriate CRM software to serve personalized customer needs and to increase customer loyalty (Smith, 2006). Customer data analysis is a key part of CRM. Pfizer, one of the world’s leading pharmaceutical companies is utilizing the services of a leading IT solutions company to manage its sales force globally. Using a popular CRM tool, Pfizer plans to integrate data from over 10,000 sales persons spread across Europe. The tool captures data regarding each salesman’s hospital visits, visits to the doctors, distribution of free samples, and their feedback. This data is then integrated, analyzed, and presented in a format to help the higher management take strategic decisions. To encourage a health culture and offer preventive services, diagnosis, treatment information, and follow-ups, to support both doctors and patients in Mexico, Pfizer launched a three-pronged CRM program (Descombes, n.d.). They set up mobile Pfizer Diagnostic Units (PDU) to diagnose patients free of charge, after which the potential are encouraged to visit physicians and start treatment. The third step involves a follow-up program to cement relationships and provide measurement of key performance indicators. By earning the respect of patients they were able to expand their patient base and build long-term relationships. They could do this through CRM and compliance programs and that too without alienating the physicians. People were also weighed and measured to calculate their body mass index. Blood pressure and cholesterol levels were checked and while the patients waited for the results, they were encouraged to fill out survey forms. In a customer satisfaction survey conducted by Pfizer, 99 percent of the people who had visited or used the PDU in 2004 rated the service as ‘good’ or ‘excellent’. Those who did not have a regular physician were referred to physicians. These physicians who received referrals from the PDU doctors were more receptive to Pfizer products. The data collected by Pfizer through this program was the first of its kind in Mexico and is being used by the Ministry of Health to determine the prevalence of certain diseases in the country. Partnering with technology, Pfizer is able to provide customer satisfaction, enhance customer experience, and reap benefits for the company and for the nations as well. KLM Royal Dutch Airlines uses CRM to review its passenger list that contains its frequent-flyer status (Smith). This information is transformed into a warm greeting by the flight attendants when the passenger walks in. This small greeting goes a long way in attaining customer delight and retaining customers. Such support system becomes a source of revenue apart from gaining customer loyalty. Launching a new product is always a challenging task and requires strategic decisions. It also calls for risk management especially in the field of e-commerce when websites can be duplicated and there are constant threats from competitors. Amidst all these challenges Amazon.com rose from the traditional brick and mortar industry and made a name for itself, today it being one of the five most recognizable brands on the internet. In fact, Amazon.com is now synonymous with e-commerce. It was the first company to move book retailing online. In less than a decade, it has become one of the most recognizable brands on earth. It expanded from being a book retailer to a virtual marketplace where all sorts of buyers and sellers of rare, used, and collectible items found a platform. Today it offers even online auctions including toys, music, DVDs, house ware, and a variety of other products and it is the world’s most customer-centric company. It sells virtually anything to more than 38 million customers (SS, 2002). Amazon.com is renowned for its customer experience and overall satisfaction. They used technology to constantly improvise and innovate. It uses the SAS technology to analyze the results of their ongoing efforts to improve personalization. Multi-threading allows Amazon.com to apply multiple processors to complex analytic tasks. They constantly evaluate the new product page layouts and new search technology. Amazon.com has one of the world’s largest data warehouses, which allows it to personalize customer satisfaction. Their goal has always been customer satisfaction and hence any technology that they incorporate is to help the customer find what he finds easily and enable a simple and convenient purchase process. Data warehousing allows them to manage growth. Their data includes order data, inventory data, and customer data. The data warehouse is connected to almost every system in the company. The very name of the company suggests a continuous flow like the river after which it has been named. The very nature of the company too is being available 24x7. This remains a major concern. It produces and uses data round the clock. Amazon.com was also the first company to allow customers to search for and order hard-to-find books (Mellahi & Johnson, 2000). They further innovated by offering the customers one-click program, which streamlines the buying process. Detailed customer information including the credit card number could be stored. Amazon.com adopted the collaborative-filtering technology through which they could analyze the customer’s purchase and suggest other books purchased by others with similar tastes. This led to mass customization and increased their online market manifold. Thus technology has pervaded every aspect of life and is used by almost any product or service to enhance customer satisfaction. Globalization has indeed made the market product and customer oriented where technology has a great contribution, be it to launch a new product, to enhance customer service, or to add value to an existing product. Partnering with technology not just enhances customer experience, in the long run, the companies benefit too. References: Descombes, E. (n.d.), Prevention is Lifetime Value, 25 Sep 2006 Koudal, P. & Wellener, P. (2003), Digital Loyalty Networks, Strategy & Leadership, Vol. 31 No. 2 2003, pp. 4-11 Mellahi, K. & Johnson, M. (2000), The case of Amazon.com, Management Decision, Volume: 38 Issue: 7 Page: 445 – 452 SS (2002), Success Story, 25 Sep 2006 Smith, A. (2006), CRM and Customer Service: strategic asset or corporate overhead? Handbook of Business Strategy, pp. 87-93 Spencer-Matthews, S & Lawley, M. (2006) Improving customer service: issues in customer contact management, European Journal of Marketing Vol. 40 No. 1/2, 2006 pp. 218-232 Read More