Switzerland

Switzerland

Results like this, of course, cause an observer to look closely at the research methodology. The research questions and CMAT methodology applied were consistent, the researchers, although different individuals, were fully trained and accredited by QCi. Quality assurance processes on the initial interviews were also carried out by QCi, and by the same quality assurance person for all of the research exercises. The timing of the research is not a contributory factor, because our work shows that customer management scores are not generally improving over time ^[3]. The audience for the research was very similar in terms of company type and level of person interviewed. There could be a difference in the openness and understanding of the people interviewed: perhaps people in Switzerland were blindly confident about what they thought their companies did? This possibility can only be proven if the same companies carry out a full CMAT, which is evidence-based. Our interviewers, who were experienced Swiss management consultants and therefore understand the nature of business dialogue in their country, have dismissed this, and there is no reason why we should suspect this to be the case. Hence, our research conclusion is that the results are significant and that Swiss companies do indeed manage customers better than the other sampled regions.

Another factor adds weight to the strong Swiss position in customer management. Three of the four highest scoring elements for Swiss companies (People, Measurement, Customer Management Activity) were the top three areas that our research has shown correlate most strongly with business performance ^[4]. Given the relationship between overall CMAT score and business performance ^[5], the implications for Swiss companies entering new geographies are interesting. If they can transfer expertise from Switzerland to other countries, they are very likely to be able to gain market share quickly from local incumbent companies struggling to develop customer-focused operations. However, the 'if' is a big 'if'. The difficulty in transferring expertise ^[6] in the customer management area and ensuring the success of new CRM projects ^[7] is well documented. If Swiss companies develop a successful approach to replicating their CM abilities in foreign markets, the world should watch out! However, they need to listen to, and act upon, customer feedback, and understand better what factors in the overall proposition lead to customer loyalty and commitment. With this vital element missing, Swiss companies may lose out in an increasingly competitive world, with increasingly fickle consumers. A deep understanding of customers and how this may translate into development of a strongly customer-focused proposition (particularly product design and the development of 'emotional' loyalty through customer transactions) may well be the key differentiator between companies.