Surveys Questions

How well does your company optimize profit on each transaction at the point of sale?

How well do you use big data to know customers?

We know things about customers that they do not themselves know yet

We know customers as well as their friends know them

We segment our customers using psychograph profiles

We segment our customers demographically

We have some idea of individual customers’ preferences and like

How effective is the pricing strategy within your company?

I know we are maximizing revenue from each customer for each transaction within the legal framework

We know customers as well as their friends know them

Our pricing strategy is based on a deep understanding of each of our key customer segments

Our pricing strategy is based on cost + margin

How well do your front line customer facing staff know individual customers prior to the interaction?

We have loyalty cards and staff can see the key profile characteristics during interaction

We have technology that identifies customers prior to interaction and presents appropriate offers

We have priority queues for our best customers that streamlines the interaction

If a customer believes they deserve special treatment, they must tell us

How well is the customer requirement known and responded by SCM?

Supply Chain staff knows the key order parameters – quantity, quality, delivery time – and make sure these are met

In addition to key order parameters, the supply chain staff also know key customer characteristics and deliver a customer experience designed to delight them

The entire supply chain is modularized and configured to customer profile

One generic supply chain should serve everyone

How well do you bundle modules of products and services to design a customized offering to each customer as per his or her preference?

We provide homogenous product and service to all customers

We have multiple levels of products – one for each customer segment

We have multiple level of products and match it will customer experience and service level that would appeal to the customer segment

Due to modular nature of the supply chain, we can create product and service customized to each customers’ preference

How well does your company optimize profit on each transaction at the point of sale?

How modular is your Supply Chain Management, to enable minimization of cost and maximization of flexibility in product and service offering?

Product design is modular, but associated service is customized for each customer

Both product design and associated service is modular

Neither product design, not associated service is modular

Product design, associate service, as well as supply chain is modular

Are the supply chain planning and control processes in your company centralized or decentralized to the right level?

Mainly centralized, to the right level

Mainly decentralised, and to the right level

Too much centralization

Too much decentralization

Do not know

How far do you trust your front line employees with pricing and service decisions? Does adequate training exists to enable them do their job properly. What verification mechanisms exist?

Our front line staff have all the training and information to make the decisions, and we have verification mechanisms to test their decisions

Our frontline staff have most of the information and can use their own judgement to make the decisions, and we trust them to do the best

We set the policies and our frontline staff execute as per their judgment

We set the prices and service parameters. Frontline staff cannot deviate from these

When and how do you make information available to the front line decision makers?

Information is available prior to making the decision in an easily to absorb manner, thus facilitating decisions

Information can be accessed and absorbed with effort

Information is only vague, inaccurate or outdated so the employee has to use his own judgement in addition to the information

Information is too aggregate – so employees make decisions based on policy and their judgement

10.

When does the profit information become available to key decision makers?

Between 1 to 3 months after the transaction period ends

Between 2 weeks to 6 weeks after the transaction period ends

Between 1 days and 2 weeks after the transaction ends

Just before the transaction happens so that the decision maker can decide yes/no

How well does your company optimize profit on each transaction at the point of sale?

11.

How aggregated is the most accurate profit information when it becomes available?

Aggregated to product family level, or division level and sometimes even company level

Aggregated to SKU level or product family level – based on activity profile

Agregated to customer level, or SKU level – based on SKU/customer profile

Transaction level – for each transaction

12.

What is the key question that is top of the mind of personnel at each level?

How much money did we make in the last accounting cycle?

Which activities eroded profitability?

Which customers and SKUs are not profitable enough?

How do we optimize profitability on every transaction?

13.

What are the typical IT Systems deployed within your company and what kind of Business Intelligence Level built into these IT systems?

None or Mainframe computers with limited query ability

Client server systems with MRP II type of application for transaction data storage; Some – activities wise analytical capability

Distributed Network systems with ERP or enhanced ERP systems for transaction storage and decision support; Medium – SKU and customer wise analytical ability and time-based forecast ability

Cloud servers with best-of-breed dynamic flexible applications for data storage and decision support; High – transaction wise analytical ability and time and trigger based predictive ability with appreciation of sources of potential errors

14.

What are the outcomes from your set-up?

No real time ability to improve profitability – a bit like navigating in the open ocean without any electronic equipment

Very limited real time ability to improve profitability – a bit like navigating from lighthouse to lighthouse

Some real time ability to improve profitability – a bit like navigating with electronic instruments but no GPS

Continuous real time ability to monitor profitability and optimize it – similar to using GPS for navigation in narrow and shallow waters

15.

Who are the key decision makers influencing profitability of the transactions?

CFOs and CEOs responsible for aggregated decision making; akin to a well trained sea captain who can use sextants and chronometers to ‘fix’ the ship’s position in open sea

Cost accountants and the process re-engineers - responsible for activities rationalisation; Narrow focused navigating officers trained in terrestrial navigation

Marketing strategists and analysts - responsible for SKU rationalisation; Generalists with good knowledge of modern equipment

Front line employee – salesman or purchasing officer – responsible for each transaction; minimal trained navigator who can read the co-ordinates off the GPS and plot it on the map

How well does your company optimize profit on each transaction at the point of sale?

16.

Role of the Apex decision makers

Day-to-day decisions because they need experienced persons in the absence of fact based data

Monitor day-to-day decisions because the decision makers lack full perspective on all the facts

Guidance and exceptions based involvement in day-to-day decisions and some direction setting and leadership

Direction setting and leadership – because day to day decisions are made and monitored at lower levels

17.

Is systematic market intelligence available for purchase and sale decisions?

We systematically collect and disseminate in a usable format market intelligence for both buy side and sell side to augment our people’s own market knowledge

We subscribe to several market intelligence reports which are available to our personnel to make up their views on the market positions

We have many trade journals floating around our premises and our people are constantly in touch with the marketplace

We systematically collect one side market intelligence – either buy side, or sell side

We rely on our people to find their own information

18.

Impact of product or service decisions that add features and/or activities on the cost and profits are clear to decision makers?

Staff make promises to customers without knowing full cost implications of those promises

Staff have analytical capability and data to quickly assess the impact of the promise, before making it and adjusting the price accordingly

Staff have some capability to assess the cost implications

Staff are not authorized to deviate from the policy

19.

Value-in-use to the customer of the total product/service offering decisions that add benefits and/or facilitation is clear to the decision makers?

Staff have adequate knowledge about, and/or means of assessing, what value each customer puts of the product in use

Staff have segment-wise indication of value of a product to the customer segment

Staff know where the product is deployed, and do not care about the value in use

Staff are primarily sellers who know the price and transaction process

20.

We could not increase profits on a single transaction during the last financial year without it adversely impacting the overall company profits.

True

False

Don’t know

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Assess Your Capabilities To Squeeze BEST PROFITS from Every Deal

How well does your company optimize profit on each transaction at the point of sale?

How well does your company optimize profit on each transaction at the point of sale?

How well does your company optimize profit on each transaction at the point of sale?

How well does your company optimize profit on each transaction at the point of sale?