Building the business connection

Building the Business Connection

Seeing Ourselves Through the Eyes of Our Customers
Accurate or not, perception is reality .
Has the history and past performance of the workforce system influenced what business thinks of us today?
Do they see a seamless, integrated One Stop system designed to meet the demands of business?
Do they see that we continually adapt and change the way we work with business?

Who does business think we are?
Who do they think we serve?
What do they think we are good at doing?
What makes us different from others providing similar services?

Who would we like to be known as?
What businesses would we like to serve?
What would we like to be good at doing?
What would make us different from others providing similar services?

Improving the Business Connection
When serving business we need to . . .
Be aware of the challenges our business customers face.
Relate our services to the solutions they need.

An Overall Strategy for Improving the Business Connection
Study & understand the business environment.
Identify customers and identify their needs, expectations & preferences.
Analyze current product/service offerings.
Identify gaps between customer needs and current products or services.
Improve or create new product and service offerings.

How well do we know the general business environment?
How well do we know our local business customers, both current and future?
How can we learn more?

What issues affect businesses today?
Technology change & growth
Skills mismatches
Aging/retiring workforce
Immigration
Shift to the knowledge economy
Generational differences in the workforce
Globalization
Others . . .

What issues affect the industries and businesses in our local community?
Changing sales volume or market share?
New products or services?
Changing workforce demographics?
Understaffed Human Resource functions?
New companies or industries
Others?

Conduct an Environmental Scan
Identify and discuss the issues, events, gaps, circumstances, etc. that affect the general business environment .
Identify the issues, events, gaps, circumstances, etc. that are affecting your local business community .

How Can We Educate Ourselves About Business Concerns?
Local Business Community
Association and industry journals
Industry directories
Business section of newspaper
Feature articles and classified ads
Chambers of Commerce & economic development entities
Business and industry organizations
Trade shows, industry/association meetings

Learning More About Our Business Customers
Focus groups
Customer interviews
Point of service customer feedback surveys
Exit surveys
Analysis of customer inquiries, comments and complaints
Shared information among staff, partner agencies

Service/Product Inventory
What services/products do we offer now?
How well do the current products and services available to employers address the business needs and issues we just discussed?
Are there services needed but not offered?

Business Services should be…
Comprehensive & System-wide
Consultative HR Services that address:
Information and research needs
Recruitment
Retention
Training
Business growth
Engaging key business sectors and local employers in program design

A Portfolio of Solutions
Reduce recruitment costs and increase retention through screening and referral of job-ready candidates
Develop a more competitive workforce by connecting to customized training
Use real-time information about local wages and economic trends to inform your business decisions
Increase profitability through an analysis of available tax credits and business incentives
http://www.doleta.gov/business/pdf/Employers%20and%20the%20Public%20Workforce%20System_final.pdf

Customer Relationship Management
More than job development
Not just “selling “ product and services
Helping customers solve problems
Providing help even when there may be no immediate gain
Creates a long-term relationship
Builds credibility, confidence and trust

Customer Relationship Management
Workforce systems with very active business services operations:
Have a passion for resolving the employer’s need.
Go to great lengths to find or develop the help needed.
Broker a wide array of business services, even when outside the scope of job matching and training.
Build partner relationships with other providers (public and private) who can provide needed services.
Make it easy for customers to use their services!

Lessons Learned
In studies of local workforce areas, several successful key factors emerge in the design of business services:
Make business services a priority.
Embrace a “Never Say No” attitude.
Unified team of account representatives.
Strategically choosing businesses to serve.
Involve customers in service design.
Consider fee-supported services as part of service mix.

Lessons Learned
Develop knowledge base on key industries and businesses.
One-on-one relationships with business accounts.
Define your market niche in the community.
Solicit customer satisfaction feedback.
Use performance data to make changes.
Pay attention to what others are doing.

You Can’t Improve What You Don’t Measure
Measures of Successful Performance
Customer Satisfaction
Numbers of new customers
Employer Awareness
Business Customer Retention
Employee Retention Rate
Service cycle time
Retention of employees hired
Market share/market penetration
Others?

You Can’t Improve What You Don’t Measure
How do we know we are doing the right things and doing them well?
Measure performance at the One Stop Center level.
Document trends over time.
Measure processes as well as outcomes.
Differentiate results among industries and various sizes of employers.
Ask businesses what is most critical.
Use a variety of touch points and methodologies to gather feedback.

You Never Get a Second Chance… To Make a First Impression
In Person or By Phone:
Listen for indication of the needs of the employer.
Specific and descriptive language to describe business solutions.
Describe features, advantages, and benefits ( FAB’s ) -- Not services, programs, or funding sources.
Avoid acronyms & workforce jargon at all cost!
Professional appearance and manner, concise delivery.
Expedite service delivery.

Brochures, flyers, advertisements:
Know who your target audience is.
Focus on the audience, not on your agency.
Choose only key points to highlight the organization.
If there are other important elements, list them in simple bullet points or in a chart.
Define and focus on key benefits of using the service. Use “You get” language, not “We offer”.
Promote the benefits to business, not the features of the programs.

Brochures, flyers, advertisements:
Use customer quotes to demonstrate customer’s value & appreciation.
Don’t cram everything in; make it easy on the eye by using plenty of blank/white space.
Use professional photographs to enhance the look-and-feel of the brochure.
Include a contact name, number, and website address.
Don’t list every system partner. Businesses don’t care.
Use the language of your customers. Review brochures, ads and other marketing tools from local businesses to ensure compatible language.

Do these words speak “business”?
Dislocated
At-risk
Case Manager
Employer
Job Order
Support Services
What terms would be more “business-friendly”?

Challenges to consider - but not hold us back!
Limited resources: Thousands of businesses for each Business Services Staff Person
Can’t be all things to all customers
Spread too thin without focus reduces effectiveness
Existing resources are divided among different organizations with different cultures and missions

Carol Wargo
Workforce Dimensions
614-565-5902
[email_address]
Thank you for your participation!

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Building the business connection

by GSETA on Sep 21, 2011

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Building the business connection — Presentation Transcript