Value-add necessary to survive in bear market

The global financial crisis has rewritten the way we do business. The economy will turn, but - like the “depression kids” from the big depression who still save empty containers - business will never be conducted in the same manner again.

The sad part is that what business is doing now; demanding return on investment and value-add, focusing on lean manufacturing, giving attention to productivity and efficiency and cost saving, is what should have been done at all times. It would have been interesting if scenario planning could have been executed to see whether a financial crisis would have hit if all business sectors were as prudent during a bullish market as they are now. The effect of businesses acting pre-emptively, as opposed to reactively, may have had an immense effect on their business success or failure throughout the recession.

The ICT sector in particular is under careful watch by the business community. Investment in technology is substantial and the time for dumping a system on a client, whether such system is a success of failure, and collecting money for it regardless of return on investment to the client, is forever gone.

Intellient, a member of the EOH group, addressed this problem by hosting the 2009 Solutions Africa Conference. According to Bruckner de Villiers, sales director of Intellient, the conference was about sharing and learning. It is a time afforded clients to learn about the various Oracle Hyperion offerings and new releases, ask questions and iron out any problems experienced in general. “Special attention is necessary to ensure that clients reap maximum benefits from investment in Hyperion systems,” concludes de Villiers.

Andrew Krause, Managing Director of EOH, a speaker at the conference, explained that end-user training has become important to ensure return on investment on systems implementation. As a result of its alliance with EOH Oracle Services, Oracle has gained access to 260 qualified consultants to provide Oracle training. “It has become necessary for ICT vendors to provide a complete architecture design, with implementation and support.”

Graham Mansfield, a director of Oracle, agrees that it has become necessary to provide a complete solution. ICT strategy has to be relevant per industry and a turnkey solution has to be developed for customers, and such a turnkey solution can be developed through in-house development or by acquisition. The Oracle solution has been developed through 30 years of research and development, as well as through acquisitions (such as JD Edwards and PeopleSoft) and by partnering with organisations such as EOH. Mansfield concludes that the partnering strategy is important for Oracle: “More than 100 000 transactions per year are concluded through relationships with our global partners.”

Brian Gubbins, group sales director at EOH, places emphasis on client retention through superior service. “Our first ever customer is still a customer. This has been achieved through providing consulting, technology and outsourcing services, thus becoming a partner for life with our customers. The philosophy that systems make it possible, while people make it happen, combined with a 'right first time' culture is what provides customers with tangible return on investment.”

Frank Buytendijk, Vice-President of the Oracle Group, says in today's business culture it is necessary to provide customers with solutions, not problems. “If you're not part of the solution, you are part of the problem. If there is a focus on the solution and there is a clear understanding of the problem or challenge, it is possible to get to the bottom of a problem, where often a dilemma can be found. In this market, there are three ways to stay in business: provide excellent service, be a cost leader or have the best relationships with your clients. To be a leader in a high performance company, it is necessary to have the tools available to make quick accurate decisions in line with market requirements and moving in line with market movements. Clear goals are necessary, no matter what the economy.

“However, how to get to the goal is not predetermined. It is necessary to evaluate and adapt continuously. In today's market, technology has to provide the data to take an angle on a problem. A lack of communication and knowledge sharing is what causes dilemmas to appear.”

Dilemmas that are most often seen in business include: financial, customer, process and human resources problems. All of these areas need correct data to ensure accurate decision-making processes are followed.

Gaining from the insights of successful businesses and market specialists, providing customers with the correct solution to problems, providing real return on investment and support and making the correct decisions according to accurate, relevant and accessible data is what it takes to survive in the current market. By gathering your customers together at a conference and providing them with the necessary information, learning and insight, your customers are empowered to, in turn, provide similar service levels to their customers and ultimately to the end-user. This is customer relationship management at its best, which results in a positive effect on the economy as a whole.