There was an internal request in my company-- that I write on topic- 'what's on my mind?'
I ended up writing a piece on customer support. After writing- I felt it was very preachy.
Some colleagues took trouble and time to good comments. I am still doubtful about the quality- but before i lose it ( like i have lost my other poems, short stories, and essays!!- let me try to preserve from now on). Thanks to Hannah for helping to edit and my Amrita to say as always ' bhaloi hoeche!!' (Bengali-- 'it is nice').
Thanks always to my organisation for letting me flourish in so many ways. Avnet is truly a great place to work. So here I go--- ================================================================================================================================================ It was a mildly hot May afternoon as I pulled up in my car to a customer’s premises. I signed my name in the visitor registry (while taking a glance at who had called recently) and exchanged a few pleasantries with the receptionist. Both actions assured me that the other guys had still not called, and perhaps were not yet aware of the opportunity.
Good for me. Bad for them.
I then sat in that familiar sofa and even after so many years in the field – the familiar adrenaline rush. Am I prepared? Did I miss something while doing my homework? Quickly revisiting in my mind the pending (and burning) issues and my main point – I kept thinking, can I ask for that next step for that new project? Or will the fire-fighting issues take over? In due time, I was in front of the technical director and new product manager. The meeting was scheduled for 30 minutes, but after an hour and a half, we reached an impressive conclusion: eight action points, two great words of appreciation and yes, the “go ahead” for the next project. The customer agreed to work on all four proposals that my team gave the previous week.
Success! Small, but significant.
I am sure the above scenario is very familiar with most field representatives. It’s the same routine which keeps people like me looking forward to jumping out of bed and just doing it. Each day when I wake up with a plan in my mind, it is for our customers. Each day is different and comes with so many problems to solve. One customer at a time, one supplier at a time.
It has been 12 years and counting in the field for me representing Avnet India. I began as a key account manager in Sales. From there, it was on to serving as a product manager for two key line cards before working as an FAE manager for the past few years. I feel privileged that I work for a company which has given me an opportunity to exceed the budgets and expectations in different roles. I doubt any other job can give me the satisfaction of working like a business owner, as a leader with ample scopes to make a difference to society. Customers and suppliers always ask me about our transformation. They ask whether they will see better turn-around timed, more technical support, more effective solutions. Suppliers ask if we will bring more value than the others. With a smile, we answer them, “Yes!” We then effectively demonstrate it again and again. Avnet is the true bridge between different technology providers and innovators. A true-blue Avnet field representative must balance both. Both are very important for us because, in crude terms, “customers give us resale, while suppliers give us the margin.” The customer, however, is the most important piece in this entire journey. It gets very cloudy when it comes to execution in real-time. Often there are days when we are challenged by suppliers to push a particular product at a particular price. Project timelines are often very fuzzy and it can be very easy to forget the basics. Being in a high-tech world, many projects do not realise their full potential. We all need help during those times and the beautiful teamwork at Avnet helps us through them.
Here are a few practices which have helped myself and my team keep the basics in focus daily:
1) Be responsible and responsive :-
Customers are loyal to us (even in our typical B2B business environment) because we own the project and problems. Proactive calling, informing and responding helps a lot. There will be many problems, delays in samples (stuck in some documentation), longer than expected lead times, price errors, delayed order loading and AR issues. But, all these issues can be resolved and we should own up and tell them the what and why of it. It may not be good news every time, but we must tell them fast.
2) Ask for referrals:-
Customer contacts are for life. Nurturing key relationships is very important. If we bring value to customers, I see them coming back to us even when their roles or responsibilities change. It is always easier to get incremental business when we apply ourselves and do our jobs with a lot of love and passion.
3) Always advocate for our customers:-
When we advocate for our customers and get them the best possible solutions – whether it’s the most economical choice of components, a better way of doing things, or a new lead – they become ours for the long-term. This is the simplest technique and we should use it more often. Last year, when we faced a sudden drop in revenue due to a few suppliers taking different paths, I found many customers supporting us. When we told them we couldn’t further service these parts, customers asked what can we offer instead? And, can we help them change in new projects? Many new customers, such as independent design houses, love to work with Avnet because we help them when it matters most.
4) Respect competition but leverage their weakness:-
I personally feel that when fear and mindless negativity gets to us, it is stronger competition than any one of them out there. Some other electronic component distributers may have better services, better prices, or a better sales system, but none have it all. In each customer situation, we must find their weaknesses. When we find it, we should be quick to leverage them. It is always sweet to win, but when we lose we cannot go into excuse mode. Instead, we must quickly learn from the mistakes and make sure not to repeat them.
We at Avnet India pride ourselves that for 23 years Avnet has been number one in our region. We recognise that our success is due to our customers, as well as our supplier partners. We have grown with our old friend – the customer – because our success is mutual.
I ended up writing a piece on customer support. After writing- I felt it was very preachy.
Some colleagues took trouble and time to good comments. I am still doubtful about the quality- but before i lose it ( like i have lost my other poems, short stories, and essays!!- let me try to preserve from now on). Thanks to Hannah for helping to edit and my Amrita to say as always ' bhaloi hoeche!!' (Bengali-- 'it is nice').
Thanks always to my organisation for letting me flourish in so many ways. Avnet is truly a great place to work. So here I go--- ================================================================================================================================================ It was a mildly hot May afternoon as I pulled up in my car to a customer’s premises. I signed my name in the visitor registry (while taking a glance at who had called recently) and exchanged a few pleasantries with the receptionist. Both actions assured me that the other guys had still not called, and perhaps were not yet aware of the opportunity.
Good for me. Bad for them.
I then sat in that familiar sofa and even after so many years in the field – the familiar adrenaline rush. Am I prepared? Did I miss something while doing my homework? Quickly revisiting in my mind the pending (and burning) issues and my main point – I kept thinking, can I ask for that next step for that new project? Or will the fire-fighting issues take over? In due time, I was in front of the technical director and new product manager. The meeting was scheduled for 30 minutes, but after an hour and a half, we reached an impressive conclusion: eight action points, two great words of appreciation and yes, the “go ahead” for the next project. The customer agreed to work on all four proposals that my team gave the previous week.
Success! Small, but significant.
I am sure the above scenario is very familiar with most field representatives. It’s the same routine which keeps people like me looking forward to jumping out of bed and just doing it. Each day when I wake up with a plan in my mind, it is for our customers. Each day is different and comes with so many problems to solve. One customer at a time, one supplier at a time.
It has been 12 years and counting in the field for me representing Avnet India. I began as a key account manager in Sales. From there, it was on to serving as a product manager for two key line cards before working as an FAE manager for the past few years. I feel privileged that I work for a company which has given me an opportunity to exceed the budgets and expectations in different roles. I doubt any other job can give me the satisfaction of working like a business owner, as a leader with ample scopes to make a difference to society. Customers and suppliers always ask me about our transformation. They ask whether they will see better turn-around timed, more technical support, more effective solutions. Suppliers ask if we will bring more value than the others. With a smile, we answer them, “Yes!” We then effectively demonstrate it again and again. Avnet is the true bridge between different technology providers and innovators. A true-blue Avnet field representative must balance both. Both are very important for us because, in crude terms, “customers give us resale, while suppliers give us the margin.” The customer, however, is the most important piece in this entire journey. It gets very cloudy when it comes to execution in real-time. Often there are days when we are challenged by suppliers to push a particular product at a particular price. Project timelines are often very fuzzy and it can be very easy to forget the basics. Being in a high-tech world, many projects do not realise their full potential. We all need help during those times and the beautiful teamwork at Avnet helps us through them.
Here are a few practices which have helped myself and my team keep the basics in focus daily:
1) Be responsible and responsive :-
Customers are loyal to us (even in our typical B2B business environment) because we own the project and problems. Proactive calling, informing and responding helps a lot. There will be many problems, delays in samples (stuck in some documentation), longer than expected lead times, price errors, delayed order loading and AR issues. But, all these issues can be resolved and we should own up and tell them the what and why of it. It may not be good news every time, but we must tell them fast.
2) Ask for referrals:-
Customer contacts are for life. Nurturing key relationships is very important. If we bring value to customers, I see them coming back to us even when their roles or responsibilities change. It is always easier to get incremental business when we apply ourselves and do our jobs with a lot of love and passion.
3) Always advocate for our customers:-
When we advocate for our customers and get them the best possible solutions – whether it’s the most economical choice of components, a better way of doing things, or a new lead – they become ours for the long-term. This is the simplest technique and we should use it more often. Last year, when we faced a sudden drop in revenue due to a few suppliers taking different paths, I found many customers supporting us. When we told them we couldn’t further service these parts, customers asked what can we offer instead? And, can we help them change in new projects? Many new customers, such as independent design houses, love to work with Avnet because we help them when it matters most.
4) Respect competition but leverage their weakness:-
I personally feel that when fear and mindless negativity gets to us, it is stronger competition than any one of them out there. Some other electronic component distributers may have better services, better prices, or a better sales system, but none have it all. In each customer situation, we must find their weaknesses. When we find it, we should be quick to leverage them. It is always sweet to win, but when we lose we cannot go into excuse mode. Instead, we must quickly learn from the mistakes and make sure not to repeat them.
We at Avnet India pride ourselves that for 23 years Avnet has been number one in our region. We recognise that our success is due to our customers, as well as our supplier partners. We have grown with our old friend – the customer – because our success is mutual.
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