1. Brownbag University
“Improving Your Business
Through VOC and VSM”
VOC Focus Session
Mike Pircer Dan Walker
MAP Business Solutions, River’s End Consulting
Inc. (248) 770-2554
(248) 379-8344 www.riversendconsulting.co
www.mapbizsolutions.com m

2. Today’s Agenda
• Introductions
• Voice of Customer
– Background and theory
– Observation skills
– The process
– Outcome
– Next steps
• Questions and Answers
• Brown Bag Series

3. Can We Agree?
We are unaware of many of our customer expectations?
Our customers are unaware of many of our capabilities?
It would be nice to:
•Match our customers unknown expectations
•With our unknown capabilities
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4. © River’s End

5. © River’s End

6. What We Will Do
We are going to ask our Stakeholders about:
•Experiences with our products and services
•Experiences with competitor products and services
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7. The Process
1. Build a small team of internal experts
2. Identify what we already know
3. Identify what we do not know
4. Develop specific topics of conversation and generate questions
5. Interview select individuals
6. Sort and analyze the interview responses
7. Take the information forward to future state mapping
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8. The Team
Cross Functional
Cooperative
Focused
Committed
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9. Scope and Focus
Purpose: Why interview people
To Learn What Services and Resources
Should Be Available to Maximize Alumni
Involvement.
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10. What Do We Already Know?
Textual Analysis (What we already know)
Functions
Current Events Previous Events Services
Wine Tastings Campus Tours Resume Writing
Interview Skills
Networking events Career Fairs training
Business
Seminars
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11. What We Do Not Know?
Unknown, for further investigation
1 How are stats used??
2 Impact of cost of events
3 What events "work"?
4 What is event "value"?
5 What does "invite" mean?
6 How to market to alumni?
7 What advertising works?
8 Why do grads choose level of involvement with college Post Grad?
9 Level of involvement with other university grads?
10 What makes the Alumni feel connected to community?
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12. What Are We Going To Learn?
Objectives: What we want to know
1 Define alumni perception of value.
2 Define most effective method for communicating value to alumni.
3 Understand population definition of "involvement".
4 Define what Alumni desire in a community.
5 Understand the impact of online classes on the alumni community.
6 Understand the perception of event value.
7 Understand graduate concept of "giving back" to the college.
8
9
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13. Selecting People To Interview
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14. What We Going To Ask?
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Define most Understand the
Understand
Define alumni effective method Understand Define what Alumni impact of online Understand the
Objectives: graduate concept
perception of for population definition desire in a classes on the perception of
of "giving back"
value. communicating of "involvement". community. alumni event value.
to .
value to alumni. community.
Tell me why you
How do online
Tell me what your Describe the most Describe a charity, Please describe a feel compelled to
How would you define classes hinder
understanding of efficient way to church, group, team good Alumni event give back to
Question 1 a community of your participation
what the Alumni communicate info that you've been that you've college.
alumni? in the alumni
Assoc. does. to you. involved with. attended.
association?
Tell me why you
How would an
Describe to me What compels How frequently would Please describe a don't feel
What would you like established social
what the Alumni you to act on the you like to be involved bad Alumni event compelled to give
Question 2 to see in a Alumni networking back to college.
Association info you with the Alumni that you've
community? community
should do for you. received? Association? attended.
benefit you?
How would you
To you, what How well was the
would be the value of Tell me the value define your
Tell me about your What is your desire to Describe the responsibility to
value of being a participating in of regularly
Question 3 involvement in other be part of a online class
member of the the Alumni scheduled Alumni post graduation?
organizations. community? community.
Alumni communicated to meetings.
Association? you?
Describe your
How would an
Tell me about how "connectivity" to
What does being established social What types of What does being a
you are involved with How do you define a the College based
Question 4 a Graduate mean networking events are Graduate mean to
virtual/social community? on the amount of
to you? community valuable to you? you?
networks. online classes
benefit you?
you have taken.
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15. The Interview Guide?
Interviewee/Objectives: _Full Time Faculty Member (5,6,7,1,2,3,4)
Questions Interview Team (___)
1
What does being a Graduate mean to you?
2
Tell me about your involvement in other organizations. (other alumni associations)
3
Describe to me what the Alumni Association should do. (generically)
4
Tell me what your understanding of what the Alumni Assoc. does.
5
How do online classes hinder the student's participation in the alumni association?
6
Please describe a good Alumni event that you've attended. Please describe a bad
Alumni event.
7
What types of events are valuable to you?
8
What compels you to donate money and/or time to the College?
9
Describe the most efficient way to communicate info to you.
10
What compels you to act on the info you received?
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16. The Interviews
O n e in t e r v ie w
O n e f o r ilit a t n o t e
a c tw o o r
ta k e rs
W r it e n , v e r b a t im
Ve r y s
n o te
c o n v e r s a t io n a l
fo rm a t
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17. Red Dot Reduction and KJ Analysis
This group reduced from 387
down to 29 individual
comments/observations

18. Ways to Connect
Reasons for The Alumni
Getting Involved Community
Community Business Event
Motivation to Involvement
Building Networking Characteristics
Giveback Barriers
Valuable events would
To contribute back to Walsh, An alumni association holds A Walsh grad needs to help
It’s difficult for graduate include information and
the college would have to go a body of memories and another Walsh Grad. That’s
students to get involved . contacts to build a sense of
back to its roots foundation
, builds relationships the connection.
Undergrad is a better fit. community.
and ideals
I liked that Stephanie
I feel compelled to contribute to Walsh An alumni association Everyone expects
With online learning there is
, Bergeron took the time to
because I wrote the college something should hold regular monthly networking to be part of
on a personal level – I got good PR no way to build deep visit the networking event in
from the college for business
meetings events
relationships. Novi.
purposes via a publication /newsletter .
Has liked all events he has
You need a come-to-Jesus
He feels the WCAA could attended but does notice
,
I think the Alumni meeting. Most people don’t
bring new contacts and the that many of the same
association is for fund know you’re trying to do
chance to make sales. people attend the same
raising. something.
events.
Reaching Out with
Alumni Feeling
Lack of Visibility Effective
Disconnected
Communication
Consistent and
Methods of Traditional
Regular Updates
Communication Methods of
on Relevant
2.0 Communication
Insights
He also feels it is important to be part
I was disconnected for10
Once they pass by on of an institution of higher learning . He Email and paper are good ways to In print, I’d like to see a
years then got reconnected wants to be on the cutting edge of communicate with me . Email is easy
graduation day there’s no
, information and feels Walsh to get, paper can be shared easily and longer-term calendar of
to my Alumni association at
further connection. community should provide that to put on the table for reference . upcoming events .
MSU. him .
As a member of the Walsh I can’t recall exactly what
Not involved with other I have NO IDEA what the community, I would like to brought me into WCAA but , Print, email are best ways to
alumni associations all ask
, Alumni Assoc. does hear about cutting edge after I started my business I communicate with me.
for money or I felt no stuff. got Walsh email newsletters .
connection when in school .
He wants to get involved or For me, staying involved in an LinkeIn or Facebook page
institution of higher learning is
at least learn his options but would be a good social I’ll discard more email than
important because I want stimulating
has no idea how to get conversations , banter, politics, cutting networking tool for Walsh to paper mail.
started. edge discussions . use.

19. Questions and Answers
Mike Pircer Dan Walker
MAP Business Solutions, River’s End Consulting
Inc. (248) 770-2554
(248) 379-8344 www.riversendconsulting.co
www.mapbizsolutions.com m

20. Brown Bag Webinar Series
Friday, July 24
(11:30am – 12:15pm)
Linking VOC and VSM

21. Recommended References
Books Websites
• Learning to See, Mike Rother and John • The Lean Enterprise Institute (eVSM
Shook software can be purchased from this
site)
www.lean.org
• Value Stream Management for the Lean
Office, Don Tapping and Tom Shuker
Training:
• Voices into Choices, Gary Burchill and • cpd.engin.umich.edu: University of
Christina Hepner Brodie Michigan Lean Certification Program.
• Synchronous Management, • www.villanovau.com: Villanova
Mokshagundam Srikanth and Michael University Lean Six Sigma Certification
Umble Program
• Throughput Accounting, Thomas
Corbett