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Every business should consider implementing and executing growth strategies as part of its future plans. Companies must grow to build value and attract continued interest from stakeholders, including owners, potential investors, customers, suppliers and employees in order to survive and thrive. The combination of global competition, spending and investment, and economic and geopolitical considerations are key parts of the economic landscape. Executives are challenged to drive growth while considering a multitude of factors that result in a dynamic environment for businesses to operate within.  There are numerous opportunities to drive growth in today's environment. Growth can be achieved through new customers, new products and new geographies, especially in global markets. Advancements in enterprise technology are providing a revolutionary new platform for enabling growth strategies and connecting with customers. Read the full article for practical approaches and capabilities that focus on addressing common growth themes and opportunities facing most enterprises today.  Read the full article here >

Achieving success through defined growth strategies

Developing a growth strategy doesn’t need to be a paralyzing exercise. Apply a practical approach using the right thinking and dialogue to cut through the complexity and drive organizational growth. Get the ebook >

Stop Overthinking Strategy: Two Simple Questions That Lead to Growth

Client A Fortune 500 insurance company and one of the largest providers of insurance related products for individual homeowners. The Business Challenge The organization was experiencing its position in the market as a leading provider of insurance related products slip in comparison to its competitors. The marketing department was challenged with coming up with new ways to engage with customers and win their leading position back. They realized that one potential contributor to the problem was that they had not updated their customer segmentation model in over 5 years. They were currently only segmenting based on demographic data and not using the customer behavior and persona data they had available. Because of this they felt that they were not able to provide differentiated experiences to the customer micro-segments or consistent customer experiences across channels and geographies.     The Baker Tilly Approach In an effort to regain their leading market position, the company engaged with Baker Tilly to develop an updated customer segmentation model that took all of their available customer data into consideration. The new analytics-based segmentation model would then be used as a foundation to market, engage and sell to each micro-segment of their customer base in different ways.

The Baker Tilly Analytics team used an advanced analytic approach to:   Develop an analytics driven customer segmentation model that leveraged customer demographic, product, and behavioral data to identify ten customer segments and unique customer personas.    Conduct a data assessment of existing internal data sources to determine what data was useable, what was not reliable, what could be leveraged to improve the existing segmentation model and what was missing. Identify a data collection plan to fill in gaps related to their understanding of the customer, helping them gain a more complete understanding of their customers. Utilize statistical techniques to:  analyze hundreds of customer attributes; narrow down those that are most important for grouping customers into segments; and understand the key drivers of each group’s behavior.    Value to the Customer Gave the organization a solid basis on which to raise questions that challenged previous beliefs based on the old customer segmentation model.      Creation of ten unique customer segments allows them to then make different tactical decisions on how to deliver a unique customer experience for each individual group. This segmentation process helped the company identify not only gaps in their customer data collection processes, but additional, valuable, customer information data collection points as well.  They have a plan in place to capture customer data at these critical interaction points. Business Impact Providing unique visibility of customer needs, trends, and similarities, the new segmentation model is expected to serve as the foundation for follow on initiatives targeted to increase conversions, increase spend, maintain loyalty and reduce churn. Highlights of the before and after impact of the segmentation model: Before After Losing market share Positioned to gain market share and an expected $3M annual sales revenue increase Gut feeling customer treatment strategies Consistent, repeatable customer treatment strategies based on data and insights on that data Demographic data driven segmentation models Behavioral and demographic data driven segmentation models Inability to monitor customer behaviors over time Ability to monitor customer behaviors over time and get ahead of emerging customer trends more quickly. Inconsistent customer experiences across geographies, products, and sales territories 10 micro treatment strategies enable consistent forms of engagement with customers from each identified segment Customer segmentation is not a onetime event. Customer segmentation models that include customer buying behavior data over time provide the foundation for increasing the overall customer life time value. Download this case study > For more information on this topic, or to learn how Baker Tilly specialists can help, contact our team.

Customer segmentation provides foundation to increase customer life time value

Growth is top of mind for every business executive, but what’s the best way to achieve it? Here are three areas some executives are considering to spark their organization's growth. Read the article.

Three ways your competitors are fueling growth

Client Background A large credit union based in the Midwest with over $1 billion in assets under management. The Business Challenge The credit union was concerned that they were not differentiating themselves from their competitors; and competing on price and rates. This issue was particularly apparent with the auto loan process, where their closure rate for pre-approved loans was less than 25%. The member would end the pre-approval process with an agreement for a loan up to a certain limit. After they negotiated the final sale price of the car with the auto dealer, they would have to return to the credit union to close on the loan. The customer could not take possession of their car until they closed on the loan. The credit union wanted to: understand where their current member experience process was failing  when and why members abandoned the process enhance the process to drive members to close on pre-approved auto loans improve closure rates The Baker Tilly Approach Improve understanding of the current member experience – Knowing that the credit union was seeking to form a stronger, more personal bond with its members, Baker Tilly surveyed the credit union members who had recently gone through the auto loan pre-approval process, both those  who closed on a loan and those who did not. Baker Tilly identified the moment of truth in the loan process - when the member makes the choice of continuing with the process or abandoning it and why. Members abandoned the process because they never felt as though they had secured a loan at the end of the pre-approval and lacked a sense of emotional closure on the process. When auto dealers offered a loan through their lenders, the member secured a loan at the end of the pre-approval process and had no issue accepting the offer. Baker Tilly conducted a workshop with the credit union’s leadership team to brainstorm potential solutions. Through a proven methodology, Baker Tilly helped them identify and test multiple potential solutions with credit union members and select which to implement. Business Impact Identify and develop a strategy to enhance the member experience: Baker Tilly proposed a strategy to enhance the member experience. The member now ends the pre-approval process with a blank check for up to their pre-approved lending limit, allowing the member to feel that they had completed the auto loan process and committed to borrowing from the credit union. The member can now drive their new car off the dealer’s lot on the day of the purchase, without delay. Any necessary follow ups with the credit union can be done after the member has taken possession of their new car. Members feel more emotional closure at the end of the pre-approval process, resulting in a substantial increase in the credit union’s auto loan portfolio. Baker Tilly’s involvement in this project helped accelerate an actionable successful strategy, with an emphasis on member experience. The credit union’s closure rate for pre-approved loans has increased from 25% to 83%. Download the case study in pdf format > For more information on this topic, or to learn how Baker Tilly specialists can help, contact our team.

Credit union uses member experience design to increase its auto lending portfolio

Client background A Fortune 500 agriculture corporation and leader in the global fertilizer industry with a largely commoditized product set. The business challenge The client had a strong track record of success, but was looking to elevate its competitive advantage by introducing a premium fertilizer product to the marketplace. The introduction of this type of premium product set was a first for the entire industry. It prompted a major shift in the client’s corporate strategy and presented a number of strategic challenges for their sales organization. This shift was particularly challenging for the Argentina and Chile or “Southern Cone” sales team where commodity-based selling was deeply imbedded in the sales culture. Specifically: After decades of selling commodities and building client relationships, Southern Cone sales leadership quickly realized that their current sales strategies would be significantly less effective in an environment that required selling the value of a premium product. The sales team needed to learn how to sell value to their client base; a premium product in a commoditized market. With a lack of experience in value selling, sales managers also needed to adopt the skills in order to coach their teams on value selling. The new country manager established significant growth targets for the sales of this new premium product set. The Baker Tilly solution The Baker Tilly sales effectiveness consulting team used the following methods to position the Southern Cone sales team to sell the premium product more effectively in a commoditized market. Methods included: Competency study and gap analysis: A proprietary sales competency assessment exercise was conducted to identify trends and competency gaps amongst sales team members. The results showed that while each sales rep had a different set of competencies to focus on for improvement, a few common themes across the entire sales team surfaced. Personal assessment reports: Personal assessment reports for each of the client’s sales reps provided visibility into individual opportunities for improvement. Each rep worked with their manager to create personal development plans with distinct competency areas to focus on along with specific metrics and actions steps to work toward improving those competencies. Sales competency training: On-demand, electronic training materials were developed to facilitate the personalized learning process.  Robust in-person training sessions were also conducted on value selling, pre-call planning and demand forecasting to address larger, organizational competency gaps identified in the gap analysis. Sales manager coaching clinic: Sales manager training was conducted to help managers learn how to be more effective coaches as well as how to develop team members’ value selling competencies. A coaching “toolkit” was developed that included specific talking points for sales managers to utilize in future meetings with team members. Sales team plans and metrics were also defined to measure progress. Business Impacts The training materials and clinics have facilitated sustainable, long term sales performance improvements within the Southern Cone sales team. The client was able to exceed growth targets in the specific regions of the Southern Cone, where the premium product set was launched. Post-completion of the sales competency analysis and training, the client’s sales team is not only positioned for continued success in value-based selling, but is also more agile and able to adapt to future strategic shifts. “Customers are seeing a change—they are seeing a different level of professionalism. The larger the customer, the better it is received.” – David Lee, Country Manager, Southern Cone Download this case study > For more information on this topic, or to learn how Baker Tilly growth strategies specialists can help, contact our team.

Sales assessment and enablement helps exceed growth targets and improve performance

Download the whitepaper >> The future is knocking at our doorstep in 2016 with smart virtual assistants that will help us find information and accomplish tasks, intelligent reasoning technology interfaces that will provide relevant information based on our use history, and customer service reps responding to our questions with streaming video rather than over the phone. These experience innovations are the next generation of an increasingly fast-paced race to delight consumers. Though much of this activity has occurred in the business-to-consumer (B2C) environment, it has raised expectations for the entire marketplace, including for business-to-business (B2B) buyers. In 2016 and beyond, B2B organizations will have to work harder than ever to find, keep, and win more customers. By reimagining the ways that they interact with customers, customer experience innovators are replacing a one-directional exchange of goods and services with a two-way collaboration with customers to define where, when,  and how value is created. For more information on this topic, or to learn how Baker Tilly growth strategies specialists can help, contact our team.

Innovating on customer experience – is it an art or a science?

Client background Our client is a mid-sized manufacturer of innovative residential and commercial kitchen products including leading cabinetry brands, sinks, faucets, foodservice fixtures, water coolers, drinking fountains, and award-winning rapid bottle filling stations. The business challenge Our client was focused on maintaining and growing market share and faced competitive pressures from low cost manufacturers. It operated in a complex sales ecosystem and had limited ability to control interactions with its customers. In order to continue to manufacture and sell high quality, premium-priced products, our client needed to address these key issues: Shifting customer expectations: Competitors had made fundamental changes in how they conducted business with customers. This was creating pain points and new expectations for how our client should engage with its customers. Lack of control of the experience: With multiple sales channels, our client had limited visibility into and control of the customer journey. Lack of understanding of the customer buying journey: Customers were looking for a great online experience with trustworthy vendors that were easy to do business with. The need to re-evaluate how our client engaged with the market in order to “get in the engineering specification and stay in the engineering specification” was top of mind. The Baker Tilly approach Our client realized that it needed to create a differentiated customer experience, uniquely targeting each player in the value chain, in order to retain its current customers and grow their business. To drive toward the goal of making customer experience “effortless, exceptional, and personal,” Baker Tilly used the following methods: Voice of Customer Research: Collaborated with our client to identify key stakeholders, decision makers, and influencers in the value chain - architects, engineers, wholesalers, contractors, and rep agencies - and conducted interviews to understand their expectations. Innovation Workshops: A series of collaborative brainstorming sessions were conducted to innovate around the customer experience - starting with how to create awareness of the brand all the way through providing customer support after purchase. Experience Survey Assessment: An electronic survey was sent to customers and prospects to capture primary data about their customer experience journey. The data was plotted against the Kano Model to determine experience “delighters” that could provide differentiation for our client. Current and Future State Customer Journey Mapping: The Baker Tilly team developed a current state customer journey map and an actionable future state journey map.  Business impact Our client now has a solid understanding of expected/desired experiences and attributes that its customers are looking for. The workshops identified new delighters in customer experience, such as offering “spec packages” for common solutions and proactively meeting with architects in the early stages of a new project. Kano Model data identified the need for more product support from our client, as well as training tools in conjunction with new product launches. Six key customer experience initiatives along an 18 month actionable roadmap designed to create a differentiated experience and drive growth. Upon implementation of its CX Roadmap, our client will be positioned to achieve significant growth as it improves the customer experience in a way that is “effortless, exceptional, and personal” for a variety of its stakeholders. “Baker Tilly helped us understand our customers and customer journey at a level that we hadn’t gotten to before, which helped our organization think about customer experience in a more meaningful way.”– Director of Customer Experience Download this case study > For more information on this topic, or to learn how Baker Tilly growth strategies specialists can help, contact our team.

Understanding the customer journey improves experience and growth

Organization: A global leader in crop nutrition Focus: Pricing Business challenge: How to effectively price a new premium product and understand price sensitivity How Baker Tilly helped: Baker Tilly conducted conjoint survey to 1,000 farmers in the primary target states. Through the conjoint analysis Baker Tilly was able to determine the combination of product attributes including yield results that drove the optimal price point for the product. Baker Tilly then worked with the company’s product line, marketing and sales organizations to internalize the findings and develop appropriate marketing and sales support material and messages. Finally Baker Tilly developed models to allow the product line analysts to predict volume needs based on price point. Specifically Baker Tilly: Designed market place conjoint analysis to determine combinations of product attributes that drove the optimal pricing Executed the conjoint analysis with over 1,000 large farmers, (Those with over 5,000 acres) Analyzed the results of the conjoint analysis Worked with the internal functions to internalize the findings Helped develop appropriate marketing and sales materials to support the market findings Worked with product line to refine their volume forecasts based on pricing models Results: The organization has realized premium pricing for this product. It maintains a market leadership position in this product space and is increasing its market share for the product.

Intelligent pricing case study: Crop nutrition

Download the whitepaper >  Cross-selling to existing customers is known to be a more profitable route to expand revenues than acquiring new customers, yet many organizations struggle to cross-sell effectively.  To become an effective cross-selling organization, your cross-selling efforts must be tightly aligned with the experience that your customers desire. In this paper, you will learn: Why organizations struggle to cross-sell effectively How focusing on the customer experience will help improve your cross-selling performance 4 steps you need to take to align your cross-selling strategy with the experience your customers expect Cross-selling can be difficult. Focus on the customer experience – make it easy for your sales team and your customers. For more information on this topic, or to learn how Baker Tilly sales effectiveness specialists can help, contact our team.

Solve the cross-selling puzzle – customer experience is the missing piece

Download the whitepaper>  Successful companies create positive and rewarding experiences around how their products or services are sold and delivered. They put the customer experience at the center of their operations and as a result, enjoy competitive positioning and a premium pricing advantage.  But for many organizations, the challenges to differentiate on customer experience are numerous and ever-changing. In the 'Differentiating on customer experience' whitepaper, we will help you learn how to differentiate based on customer experience.  We discuss: the challenges of aligning an organization around the customer experience 3 capabilities needed to compete in an experience economy an outline of the activities necessary to develop and operationalize a customer-centric strategy Start the journey to create emotional relationships with your customers and put the customer experience at the center of your operations. For more information on this topic, or to learn how Baker Tilly e-commerce specialists can help, contact our team.

Differentiating on customer experience – your key to success

Building Your Organization’s Future Years ago, we sensed that a number of impending disruptive technologies would materially affect our clients. These technologies would have a profound impact on the way organizations conduct work, hire employees, collaborate, serve customers and more. We were challenged to imagine any business processes or assets that wouldn’t be impacted by these new technologies. It is the simultaneous convergence of multiple significant technological changes that will bring major challenges for today’s organizations.  While each new innovation can add incremental business value, the combination of several of these creates the opportunity for game-changing strategies for organizations globally. We recognized this and changed our technology consulting practice - to be the enabler of tomorrow’s businesses. 

  Many technologies are coming to clients, large and small. 

A mid-market manufacturing client was drowning in point of sale data sent to them by their largest customer. This firm was not only able to marry this big data feed with their ERP solution, they later added mobile and cloud capabilities to create a powerful analytic application. The result is a set of capabilities that are helping this organization re-imagine customer intimacy, redefine competition in their sector and create a new line of business. 
The Cloud is the organizing influence Today’s newest innovations are being served up via cloud computing.  Mobile devices are pulling and sending data and applications via cloud technology.  Social networks are connecting businesses, workers, prospects and more via cloud infrastructures. Businesses are now utilizing financial, HR and manufacturing applications via the cloud. New applications and huge software ecosystems are springing up around Apple®, salesforce.com and Android™ platforms. Smart phones and tablets are being used to create interactive videos that are more than personal entertainment.  Businesses are creating and delivering just-in-time training through cloud enabled devices. Cloud technology is enabling 

these innovations.   Cloud is part of almost all of the new innovations. Cloud capabilities are the delivery mechanism, the collaboration platform and the information broker for business. Businesses now also possess a workforce that has a portable, always-on Internet capability. Work is no longer tethered to a desktop computer in a cubicle. It’s mobile. It’s cloud-based. Today’s business leaders need to assess the implications. They need to incorporate the cloud into their business strategy to create and maintain an advantage and stay competitive in their market. The cloud has become an essential element in a business strategy, but cloud can mean many different things to many businesses. Are You Ready For the Next Wave of Innovation? Knowing about the new innovative technologies and being able to exploit them are often two different things. We believe most organizations will likely follow a fairly common roadmap - a roadmap that will guide them to a better operating model for their modernized firm. There are three major steps in this roadmap:   Step one:  Build Core Cloud Capabilities The first step puts the core cloud capabilities in place to exploit today’s innovations. We assist clients in implementing new cloud ERP, HR, Financial and CRM solutions like Plex Manufacturing Cloud, NetSuite®, Oracle Sales Cloud, Oracle Commerce, and Taleo® to effectively lower the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) and increase business agility. We also develop integration capabilities that permit cloud-to-on-premise, cloud-to-cloud and other connections through Dell Boomi Atomsphere® and Cast Iron and devise strategies to use new Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) architectures. Most importantly, we work through the security issues and concerns clients have with cloud solutions.        Step two:  Create Value through the Cloud The next step creates value beyond the core capabilities through corporate performance management and business intelligence solutions such as Host Analytics® and IBM® analytic applications. We devise growth strategies to strengthen top line revenue and help build a workforce of the future through our talent management programs. We leverage leading business intelligence and cloud solutions to help business leaders make better management decisions.  Step three: Rewrite the Rules of Competition Finally, some of our best clients are looking to rewrite the rules of competition in their industry. They want to use new sources of information, within and external to their ERP software to better understand their markets and make decisions substantially faster (and more accurately) than their competition. It is here we see interest in pricing optimization, strategic market assessments, category management, and portfolio management. Wherever your organization is in this maturity model, Baker Tilly has the management consulting and modern technology expertise to help. As Valued Business Advisors, we can move you through this progression with candor, insight and proven results. Baker Tilly is a full-service accounting and consulting firm with a focus on cloud solutions. Our significant experience in implementing cloud technologies, combined with our strategic management consulting approach, enable businesses to realize benefits in much shorter time frames. When your organization is ready to take full advantage of today’s converging and powerful technologies, connect with us.

ERP Design & Implementation

Cloud computing and other strategy enabling technologies

Download the whitepaper >  Technology and the interactive online, mobile, and social user experience Credit unions such as yours are facing intensive competition. Traditional and non-traditional financial providers are leveraging a trio of technologies to redefine their offerings and provide a consistent interactive user experience for their customers. Credit unions need to adopt these technologies to keep pace with their rivals, become more responsive to their members’ needs, and provide a consistent interactive member experience. In this whitepaper, discover through our research how credit unions can: Use big data and analytics to shape/drive their member and growth strategies Reimagine the end-to-end member experience with mobile technology Attract new members and service existing members via social media channels, while reducing servicing costs. For more information on this topic, or to learn how Baker Tilly growth strategy specialists can help, contact our team.

Top three credit union game changers: The challenges and opportunities for growth, Part 2

Download this whitepaper >  Business leaders spend billions of dollars every year investing in their sales forces, with the hope that their investments will drive meaningful top-line revenue growth. However, the gains from their investments tend to be short lived and do not translate into sustainable and predictable growth.  In this paper, we will discuss: Four common sales effectiveness investment mistakes The benefits of identifying sales competencies that are unique to your organization The importance of investing in mid-level sales management Optimizing your investment in sales tools and technology Improving sales performance with a holistic sales effectiveness strategy  For more information on this topic, or to learn how Baker Tilly sales effectiveness specialists can help, contact our team.

Sales effectiveness – Four ways to unlock your sales team’s potential for growth

Developing a strategy for sustainable growth may seem like a daunting undertaking, but starting with the basics — where and how — can help you jumpstart the process and accelerate growth. Read the article.

How these two simple questions can drive growth

Download the whitepaper >  B2B e-commerce is more than just a channel for companies, it is a way to shift their offline businesses into high gear online and provide a world class multichannel customer experience that B2B customers now expect. The potential of the B2B channel is significant, yet organizations continue to fall short of their e-commerce objectives and their customers’ expectations. Why is it so difficult to get e-commerce right?  At Baker Tilly, we see a lack of focus on getting the fundamental strategies as the root cause for B2B e-commerce initiatives not meeting objectives. Organizations that focus on aligning their e-commerce strategy with their overall customer experience strategy, specifically customer acquisition, retention and growth, can turn the pressures of increased customer expectations, competition, channel, and technology complexity into opportunities for their organization. In this three-part whitepaper series, you will learn: The importance of aligning your e-commerce strategy with your customer strategy Key considerations when defining your e-commerce strategy How e-commerce can support your primary customer strategy How to win in the growing B2B e-commerce channel For more information on this topic, or to learn how Baker Tilly growth strategy specialists can help, contact our team.

Getting e-commerce strategy right

Download the whitepaper >  B2B organizations are rapidly building their web presence in an attempt to take advantage of the opportunities of the e-commerce channel. But the investment in e-commerce is more than developing a website. It is imperative that organizations take a comprehensive look at the capabilities required to execute their strategy and enable the ideal customer experience in their e-commerce channel. In this whitepaper you will learn: Where and how to target your B2B e-commerce investment to get the biggest impact and provide the experience customers expect. The holistic approach to aligning the cross-functional and technical capabilities required to execute an e-commerce strategy. Why customer experience strategies must guide the capability investment decisions. For more information on this topic, or to learn how Baker Tilly e-commerce specialists can help, contact our team.

Market Research & Alignment

Sales, Marketing & Service

CRM

Marketing Effectiveness

Marketing Technology

Sales Effectiveness

Sales Technology

Service Effectiveness

Service Technology

Achieving success through defined growth strategies

Stop Overthinking Strategy: Two Simple Questions That Lead to Growth

Customer segmentation provides foundation to increase customer life time value

Three ways your competitors are fueling growth

Credit union uses member experience design to increase its auto lending portfolio

Sales assessment and enablement helps exceed growth targets and improve performance

Innovating on customer experience – is it an art or a science?

Understanding the customer journey improves experience and growth

Intelligent pricing case study: Crop nutrition

Solve the cross-selling puzzle – customer experience is the missing piece

Differentiating on customer experience – your key to success

Cloud computing and other strategy enabling technologies

Top three credit union game changers: The challenges and opportunities for growth, Part 2

Sales effectiveness – Four ways to unlock your sales team’s potential for growth

How these two simple questions can drive growth

Getting e-commerce strategy right

Building e-commerce capabilities to achieve success

It takes more than just performing market research to answer these questions. Too many organizations conduct market research, but never take action on it. The research results need to ”make sense” and be actionable.

Our solutions

How to improve the ROI on your long-term investment strategy

Stop Overthinking Strategy: Two Simple Questions That Lead to Growth

Achieving success through defined growth strategies

What are three imperatives B2B companies looking to achieve sustainable growth should consider?

How these two simple questions can drive growth

Our professionals