realize the upside in your business
TRANSCRIPT
Realize the Upside in Your Business
Amelia Young, CFAPrincipal
Market Analysis | Performance Management | Strategic Planning | Investor Relations
Do you have innovative ideas about how to grow your business, but lack resources who can draw the roadmap to bring them to fruition?
Are you a new leader in need of a unbiased assessment of the resources and strategy you have inherited?
Is it becoming more difficult to differentiate your firm in the face of ever-greater competition?
Is there a lack of consensus among your senior team about the causes of slowing growth, its implications for the business or the actions required?
If you answer “yes” to any of these questions, you have unrealized Upside in your business…
Grow your business…• we work with your team to integrate data and insight across functions and develop
action plans that will extract more profit from existing customers
• our frameworks help identify and prioritize the best new market opportunities based on their size, needs, risk profile and fit with existing capabilities
Keep ahead of the competition…• we apply a rigorous approach to competitive analysis that looks at all aspects of a
firm`s position, from strategic objectives and financial strength to service scope, customer relationships and org design
• we complement your team’s experience with fresh perspective to interpret trends and translate static information into action plans
Reduce risk…
• we distinguish facts from interpretations to help your team reach a consensus that moves all stakeholders forward - not just individual silos
• we provide you with the metrics you need to stay the course and measure ROI
Our passion is helping you realize that Upside by providing insights to:
About Us…
Upside Consulting Group Inc. helps service firms find hidden value in their businesses and develop concrete action plans to realize it. We work with your team to break down functional and product silos and identify key assets that can be leveraged to drive new growth. With a proven track record across both business and consumer service sectors, Upside’s unique approach offers superior value as an enhancement to your executive bench strength.
We focus on service firms because they have a unique set of challenges – and opportunities
Challenge Example Key Question
Defining Quality Sometimes a five minute wait seems fine, while others, 30 seconds will make you leave
How can you get inside your customers’ heads to understand what pushes their buttons?
MeasuringQuality
Flying with Porter somehow feels more civilized than flying with the major airlines
Are you asking the right questions in your customer satisfaction surveys? Could there be other interpretations of responses?
ControllingQuality
There is a reason the barista calls out your latte order in a very specific sequence
Processes are helpful for routine services, but what if you’re selling investments or health care or telecommunications?
Determining Value
An award-winning advertise-ment often produces no sales lift
How can you price your service and align your costs to deliver what customers truly value?
Communicating Value
“We resolve the challenge of…” is much more powerful than “we are…”
How do you communicate your value in language that resonates with the target audience - and those who influence them?
Our Approach
The Four Cs• Your firm’s success is
heavily influenced by these four factors - you want your decisions to take them into account
• Our structured analysis around these four areas ensures a comprehensive assessment
• We draw on our network of industry experts to add valuable context and perspective
• We integrate the pieces together to reveal new opportunities – and risks
Catalysts
Customers
Competitors
Capabilities
Service Firm
Strategy
Customers• Perform statistical analysis on your customer
data to identify trends and opportunities• Interview customers to get candid feedback on
satisfaction, needs and decision drivers• Interview frontline staff to get unbiased
feedback on how your service is really working
Competitors• Benchmark product features, pricing, satisfaction
and profitability• Evaluate org structure, marketing initiatives and
product trends to reveal key priorities• Identify opportunities and threats by examining
market perceptions and customer wins/losses
Capabilities• Examine processes and performance metrics to
evaluate how consistently your value proposition is being delivered
• Interview staff across functions to assess talent quality and alignment around organizational goals
Catalysts• Catalysts are critical in service industries because
they typically require the customer to make a behaviour change
• Regulatory and legislative change• Emerging technologies• Other socio-political trends (eg. Green, social
networking, demographics)
We can help you answer questions in any one of these areas or combine them to develop a comprehensive plan
Why We`re Different
Relationships• We act with integrity and
authenticity in all of our relationships – not just with clients but all the resources in our network
• These relationships are the lifeblood of our business and we nurture them carefully
Approach• Our approach is
comprehensive yet practical.
• We leverage our network resources to probe all relevant facets of your project –marketing, HR, sales, operations, finance - but only where we see clear upside potential
Talent• Your engagement is
executed by seasoned executives with deep and wide-ranging expertise
• We draw on an elite network – formally and informally - to enhance the quality of insight and meet your specific needs
Value• We offer comprehensive
project plans with a fixed fee structure so you can focus on results rather than worrying about the number of hours being billed
• We don’t make work
Success Story: Marketing Services
ResultsA new, high growth, high margin target customer was
identified whose needs were better aligned with the firm’s capabilities
A new org structure and solution approach to account management were created to better leverage the firm’s
broad capabilities
What We Did
Analyzed customer data and industry trends to identify the root causes of attrition and margin compression
Established a unique integrated selling proposition that leveraged the firm’s broad capabilities
Challenge
New global competitors and consolidation among key clients were causing margin pressure and customer attrition in a firm that had previously been an industry pioneer
Success Story: Corporate Health Services
ResultsA concrete action plan was put in place to drive growth with clear priorities and metrics to keep the business on
track
A new org structure, new sales leadership and compensation plan were implemented to make reps more
accountable for performance
What We DidInterviewed customers, researched market trends and
analyzed internal data to understand the scope and causes of the attrition problem
Improved customer data quality and developed an account management framework that created a process and
metrics for proactive relationship building and up-selling
ChallengeAfter many years of consistent growth, competitive intensity and customer attrition were beginning to increase. At the
same time, the executive team wasn’t sure that it had the right sales talent and org structure to take the business to the next level
Success Story: Specialty Staffing
ResultsClear prioritization was established amongst high demand market segments that were a good fit with the attributes
that differentiate an entrepreneurial firm
A product management framework was established to enhance the service offering in key areas and ensure appropriate follow-through by sales and operations
What We DidConducted in-depth customer interviews and analysis of
the competitive landscape to identify under-served segments and how to pursue them
Performed a detailed assessment of the firm’s capabilities in areas that were most important to clients
ChallengeA rapidly growing business had been pulled in many directions by satisfied clients asking for one-off extensions of the
firm’s core services. The owners wanted to streamline their services but weren’t sure where to focus, while being mindful of their objective to position the firm as a takeover target.
Testimonials"Upside has helped numerous parts of our organization develop a deeper understanding of key issues and opportunities facing our business, and successfully translated these insights into practical strategic plans"
~ Maura Clark, President, C&I Energy Retail, Direct Energy
“I have retained Upside in two different organizations and was consistently impressed by their ability to adapt to my needs in a variety of situations and to become deeply familiar with our industry-specific strategic issues in a matter of days. They provided us with valuable insights into our customers’ needs and the competitive landscape that have helped us focus our efforts and prepare for the next stage of growth.”
~ David Bowden, President, Consumer Impact Marketing
“Upside provided Head2Head with useful corporate and market analysis using both quantitative and qualitative techniques and applying a unique focus on customer drivers. Their report helped us identify and prioritize some of the processes and metrics required to take our fast-growing business to the next level. I would recommend Amelia to an emerging business looking for strategic, third party validation of direction and priorities. ”
~ Paul Dodd, CEO, Head2Head
Amelia YoungPrincipal
• Work Experience
• Upside Consulting Group (2006-present)
• Corporate Strategy, Direct Energy (2002-2006)
• Investor Relations, Hummingbird (2000-2002)
• Equity Analyst, GMP Capital (1995-2000)
• Equity Trader, BMO (1993-1995)
• Education
• MBA, Rotman School of Management (2008)
• CFA, Association of Investment Management & Research (1997)
• B.A., English & History, University of Toronto (1993)
• Community Service
• VP Membership, American Marketing Association (Toronto Chapter)
• Committee Chair, Toronto Cricket Skating & Curling Club
• Class Champion, Rotman Alumni Association
Need a second opinion or a fresh perspective?
We would be pleased to offer a complimentary consultation to any executive looking for a third-party perspective on key opportunities or challenges facing their business. Please contact:
Amelia Young
416.628.3195 (w)
416.301.4382 (c)
For more information please visit our website at:
www.upsideconsulting.com
Contact Us