A large proportion of the attractive customers of a medium-sized company had disappeared within a very short space of time due to increasing globalization. The sales team was not prepared for this. The interim manager took on the task of restructuring and managing the sales team - without interrupting operations.
Personnel realignment and reorientation of key accounts
After analysing and evaluating the current structure, the interim manager identified weaknesses in the organization and staffing of the sales team. By hiring a new sales manager and reorganizing the key account management, it was possible to set an important course for the future. The key account managers are now concentrating on attractive customers with high capacity utilization potential for production. The uneconomical customer relationships were significantly reduced.
Market research for expansion into new targets
In addition, the interim manager identified new markets and customer bases. Using detailed fact finding, he collected information in a market research study to decide on expansions in Europe, Taiwan, Japan, Iran and the Middle East.
Introduction of new tools for CRM and supply chain management
When reorganizing the internal sales processes, the main focus was on customer relationship management and supply chain management. The interim manager introduced a CRM tool for all office and field sales staff as well as for the CFO and CEO. This made it possible for the first time to reliably generate a rolling forecast of incoming orders. The professionalization of supply chain management also contributes to the optimization of the value chain, from customer requirements to production capacities and the procurement of raw materials and packaging.
Liquidity-driven sales management and customer surveys introduced
In a further step, the interim manager implemented liquidity-driven sales management. This involves coordinating the acquisition, delivery of customer orders, procurement and production capacities with the liquidity potential. Priority was therefore given to processing well-paid orders. Less profitable orders were given lower priority. The delivery deadlines had to be met. This enabled the interim manager to ensure that cost-intensive interim financing for orders with banks was not necessary.
In order to better assess the needs of the customers, the interim manager initiated annual analyses of customer satisfaction and customer requirements. This helped to identify further potential for improvement - and ultimately to increase customer loyalty.
Incoming orders in the interim mandate increased by 10 percent
At the end of the interim mandate, incoming orders had increased by 10 percent. The company had acquired new customers from other European countries and the Middle East. Thanks to the improved coordination of processes in Customer Relation Management, Supply Chain Management and Production, the company management now has a better overview of the expected order intake. As a result, procurement processes and capacity planning can be better controlled - and all orders can be delivered on time.
