Study: Despite enthusiasm to be consumer-focused retailers aren't making big strides

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Sept. 11, 2015

A new study reveals nearly two thirds of companies are getting ready to put a customer-centric strategy in place within the next two years to ensure that the consumer is the focal point, and nearly half, 43 percent, want the strategy established within a year or less.

While that’s a good trend, the study, conducted by Harvard Business Review Analyti8c Services, notes that more than a good number of such initiatives hit big stumbles and fail to create a meaningful impact.

"Many customer-centric strategies fail during execution because they were designed for the boardroom not for the customer-facing employee," said Strativity President Lior Arussy in an announcement. "It is time to bridge the executive-employee gap with an integrated approach, linking strategy and vision, organizational alignment, change management, employee training and empowerment, with measurements."

The study, "Making Customer-Centric Strategies Take Hold," sponsored by customer-experience strategy leader Strativity Group, polled 315 business leaders and states 75 percent are hoping to have the strategy moving forward by 2017.

The top challenges include a lack of confidence in the effort to clearly map out a vision and get senior leadership support. The study cites a "significant gap" between the importance regarding training necessary for such a strategy and the ability to get that training in place. Just about 80 percent acknowledged the training is crucial yet just 40 percent believe it can be done successfully.

As part of the study Strativity offered up five tips to launch and accelerate a "customer-centric" strategy:

• Create a meaningful, human cause.
• Integrate initiatives into a holistic program.
• Design strategies for employee performance.
• Align processes with metrics to accelerate.
• Set the standard at "exceptional" in everything.