A Path to Crafting Complete Offers for Tech Success

Are you a product provider striving to deliver the ultimate value to your customers? In today’s tech landscape, achieving complete customer satisfaction and business success isn’t just about the product itself. It’s about offering a comprehensive solution that seamlessly integrates technology and services to unlock the full potential of your offering.

Over the past two decades, the tech industry has undergone a significant transformation, shifting toward a model known as anything-as-a-service (XaaS). Yet, despite this shift, many organizations continue to evaluate XaaS primarily based on features and scalability, overlooking the crucial role that services play in delivering a complete and valuable solution.

Imagine this: You’ve developed an innovative product with cutting-edge features, but if you neglect the essential services such as professional expertise, support, management, and analytics, you’re missing out on a massive opportunity to not only enhance your customers’ experience but also monetize these vital components.

This brings us to the central theme of the TSIA 2023 ENVISION conference: silo-busting. The conference placed a spotlight on breaking down organizational silos to foster the development of complete, integrated offerings that truly empower customers and drive business success. In this blog, we will dive deep into the insights from the conference session track, “Unifying Offering Management for Complete Offers,” and explore how dismantling these silos can revolutionize the way you approach your product offerings.

Join us as we uncover the secrets to creating complete offers that go beyond product features, and discover how embracing a holistic approach can not only satisfy your customers but also bolster your bottom line.

Turning Silos Into Swimlanes Through Service Design

Have you ever wondered how leading organizations break down the barriers between departments and deliver seamless customer experiences? Look no further than the insights shared by Suresh Kandeeban, Managing Architect, and Adam Basey, Senior Manager of Managed Services, both from Insight Enterprises, Inc. In their eye-opening presentation, “Service Design Framework to Break Down Silos and Deliver as One Organization,” they revealed the secrets to creating a cohesive, customer-centric approach within their organization.

Imagine taking those daunting organizational silos and turning them on their sides, creating clear pathways to identify problems and develop innovative solutions. This is precisely what Insight Enterprises, Inc. achieved through their use of a service design framework. These “swimlanes,” as they aptly call them, have become a powerful tool for breaking down silos and fostering collaboration across their organization.

So, how did they do it? Kandeeban and Basey guided us through their journey, emphasizing the importance of a well-thought-out planning process. Their success hinged on sticking to guiding principles that kept them on the right path. These principles are the pillars that support their framework’s strength and effectiveness.

The Five Key Principles: Unlocking Silo Transformation

• Human-Centered: Putting the needs and experiences of end-users at the forefront. After all, it’s the customers who matter most.
• Co-Created: Collaboration is the key to success. By involving multiple stakeholders in the process, they ensure that all voices are heard.
• Orchestrated: Seamless coordination is vital. The framework brings various components together to create a harmonious whole.
• Holistic: It’s about seeing the big picture. Their approach considers all aspects of service delivery, leaving no stone unturned.
• Tangible: The framework is not just a theory; it’s a practical solution. Tangibility ensures that it can be implemented effectively across the organization.

As the organizational silos transform into swimlanes, each component of the framework becomes an integral part of this exciting journey. These components drive change, promote collaboration, and deliver a superior end-user experience.

Unlocking the Magic of Service Convergence: The Cisco Transformation Story

What’s the secret to creating a seamless and holistic customer experience in today’s fast-paced tech landscape? Lavanya Gopalakrishnan, the Vice President of Global Customer Success at Cisco, has the answer: service convergence. In her illuminating presentation, “Service Convergence Transformation: A Cisco Story,” she took us on a journey through Cisco’s remarkable three-phase transformation process that’s changing the game in customer-centric service delivery.

Phase 1: Strategic Alignment – Weaving a Unified Vision

The first step in Cisco’s transformation journey was achieving strategic alignment, a critical foundation for its success. They adopted a life cycle approach, which required three key elements: talent management, change management, and acquisition integration. Gopalakrishnan emphasized that these elements were indispensable for the transformation to flourish.

Phase 2: Crafting the Perfect Offer Structure

Next on the agenda was reimagining their offer structure. Cisco’s mission was to address the fundamental questions:

• What do customers truly need?
• How can Cisco bundle these essential services to create a seamless and continuous customer journey?
• What should be offered for free or embedded within wholesale support, and what should be paid services?

Acknowledging that customers are at different stages of their unique journeys, Cisco tried to understand the importance of flexibility in their offer bundles. This adaptability ensured every customer could access precisely what they needed, aligning perfectly with the overarching goal of a seamless customer experience.

Phase 3: Uniting Teams for Success

The transformation didn’t stop there: Cisco recognized that for true convergence, they needed to ensure all their teams were on the same page. This meant ensuring cross-functional alignment on key metrics for measuring success, sharing targets, and maintaining ongoing visibility. By setting clear and common goals across the organization, they empowered everyone to work together toward the same objective.

Crafting Irresistible Complete Offers: Insights From the Experts

Creating complete offers that truly resonate with customers can be a challenging endeavor. Product providers often navigate a complex landscape to deliver differentiated offerings that translate into tangible outcomes. But fear not, because Robert Saxe, President and Managing Director of nVision Consulting Group, and Hal Stanley, Vice President of Offering Management Research and Advisory at TSIA, shed some light on the best practices that can lead you to success.

In their enlightening presentation, “The Journey Toward Outcomes aaS: Best Practices for Creating Complete Offers,” Saxe and Stanley unveiled actionable insights to guide businesses on crafting complete offers that stand out in the market and deliver real value to their customers.

A Framework for Success

One of the first steps nVision took to pursue complete offers was adopting an as-a-service co-creation framework. This framework served as their roadmap, helping them navigate the intricate terrain of offer development.

During the design phase of their framework, nVision held fast to several guiding principles that proved instrumental:

• External Focus: Keeping a keen eye on the external environment, including market trends and customer needs, was paramount. This outward focus ensured that their offers remained relevant and customer-centric.
• Customer-In Approach: Placing the customer at the heart of the process allowed nVision to design offers that addressed genuine pain points and delivered meaningful outcomes.
• Scalability: Building offers that could grow and adapt as customer demands evolved was key to long-term success.
• Repeatability: Ensuring the offer development process was replicable allowed for efficiency and consistency in creating new offers.
• Consistency over Customization: While customization has its place, prioritizing consistency helped nVision maintain a streamlined approach to offer development.

The Blueprint for Transformation

Saxe and Stanley's insights didn't stop at principles alone. They outlined a complete set of steps that nVision took; TSIA recommends this approach to all organizations looking to transform their offer development:

• Segment customers and prioritize target markets: Understand your customer base and identify which markets hold the most promise for your complete offers.
• Ideate market requirements and customer pain points: Dive deep into your customers' needs and challenges to pinpoint where your offers can make the most significant impact.
• Identify specific target customer profiles: Develop a clear picture of your ideal customers to tailor your offers more effectively.
• Integrate next-gen as-a-service solutions: Embrace the latest advancements in as-a-service solutions to deliver outcomes that matter.

Your Path to Complete Offers

In the world of technology and service delivery, creating complete offers that truly resonate with customers is no small feat. It's a journey that demands ongoing collaboration, innovation, and a relentless commitment to excellence. The insights shared at the TSIA 2023 Envision conference serve as a testament to the fact that even the most prominent and successful organizations are dedicated to mastering this challenge.

The conference presentations showcased the diverse methodologies and strategies employed by these industry leaders, revealing how they've not only tackled the complexities of offer development but also continuously improved their portfolios.

Creating complete offers isn't just about delivering products and services; it's a stepping stone towards a broader goal: outcomes-as-a-service. By providing comprehensive solutions that address customers' needs and deliver tangible results, organizations are better positioned to thrive in the marketplace.