1. Customer Focus Ivan Kravchenko, EPAM Systems 2010 © EPAM Systems

2. 2 I. Customers & Interests

3. 2010 © EPAM Systems 3 Customer focus – what’s this about?  Identifying needs and interests  Acting accordingly  Making sure it’s visible properly

4. 2010 © EPAM Systems 4 Customer focus – why bother?  Trust  Comfort  Growth

5. 2010 © EPAM Systems 5 Who is our customer?

6. 2010 © EPAM Systems 6 Is it a VP who approves the budget?

7. 2010 © EPAM Systems 7 … or a product manager?

8. 2010 © EPAM Systems 8 … or a technical lead?

9. 2010 © EPAM Systems 9 … or a peer engineer?

10. 2010 © EPAM Systems 10 All of them!

11. 2010 © EPAM Systems 11 What do they want?

12. 2010 © EPAM Systems 12 In general – us solving problems without introducing new ones.

13. 2010 © EPAM Systems 13 Another generic need – peace of mind.

14. 2010 © EPAM Systems 14 What can help to ensure these?  Reliability  Responsiveness  Cooperation

15. 2010 © EPAM Systems 15 Reliability – fire-and-forget:  Get things done  Get back if stuck  No surprises

16. 2010 © EPAM Systems 16 Responsiveness – never make the customer to:  Wait  Inquire  Get anxious

17. 2010 © EPAM Systems 17 Cooperation – be on the same wavelength:  Understand  Empathize  Try to help

18. 2010 © EPAM Systems 18 What else do customers want?

19. 2010 © EPAM Systems 19 Customer’s wants – what to look for?  Requests and complaints  Specific interests  Bias and emotions

20. 2010 © EPAM Systems 20 Handling customer’s requests:  Understand what  Understand why  Decide on actions

21. 2010 © EPAM Systems 21 Make sure to understand customer’s:  Targets  Manager’s expectations  Overall context

22. 2010 © EPAM Systems 22 Don’t forget: they are human beings just like us.

23. 2010 © EPAM Systems 23 Being humans, they likely want to:  Look good  Be right  Earn respect

24. 2010 © EPAM Systems 24 Focus on interests, not positions! positions interests requirements reasons ambitions needs goals bias

25. 2010 © EPAM Systems 25 Which interests to focus on?

26. 2010 © EPAM Systems 26 Find a balance! Yet favor the job.

27. 2010 © EPAM Systems 27 Different interests on different levels – which to honor?

28. 2010 © EPAM Systems 28 Target more critical ones, yet keep the good relationships.

29. 2010 © EPAM Systems 29 Use a proxy where practical.

30. 2010 © EPAM Systems 30 Any interests from our side?  Team comfort  Personal career  Technical excellence

31. 2010 © EPAM Systems 31 Team issues: share the concern.

32. 2010 © EPAM Systems 32 Personal targets: align with customer needs.

33. 2010 © EPAM Systems 33 Perfection: speak customer language.

34. 2010 © EPAM Systems 34 One and only vs. one among many.

35. 2010 © EPAM Systems 35 Perception is reality!

36. 2010 © EPAM Systems 36 Bottom line:  Note and act on customer’s interests  Provide proactive and reliable service  Show understanding and care

37. 2010 © EPAM Systems 37 II. Situations

38. 2010 © EPAM Systems 38 Handling the conflict – techniques:  Delegate the confrontation  Deflect the argument  Focus on issues

39. 2010 © EPAM Systems 39 Leave the dirty job to manager.

40. 2010 © EPAM Systems 40 Get out of the line of fire.

41. 2010 © EPAM Systems 41 Concentrate on specific problems.

42. 2010 © EPAM Systems 42 Is it ok to disagree with a customer? Yes – for his own good!

43. 2010 © EPAM Systems 43 Arguments and corrections:  Hear opponent's reasons  Mind feelings and ambitions  Don’t get steamed up

44. 2010 © EPAM Systems 44 Staying positive: how to say ‘no’?  Say ‘yes’ first  ‘We need … to do …’  Defer

45. 2010 © EPAM Systems 45 Show commitment to a common goal.

46. 2010 © EPAM Systems 46 Be careful suggesting alternatives.

47. 2010 © EPAM Systems 47 Considering disobedience? Think twice!

48. 2010 © EPAM Systems 48 Responding to accusations:  Acknowledge  Alleviate  Prevent

49. 2010 © EPAM Systems 49 Hide your faults or report openly?

50. 2010 © EPAM Systems 50 “Customer is not an interruption in our work. He is the purpose of it.”

51. 2010 © EPAM Systems 51 BTW, your managers are customers to some extent…

52. 2010 © EPAM Systems 52 … just as your subordinates…

53. 2010 © EPAM Systems 53 Questions? Comments? Corrections?

54. Thanks for Your Attention Customer Focus By Ivan Kravchenko Senior Software Engineering Manager EPAM Systems 41 University Drive, Suite 202 | Newtown, PA 18940 p: +1 267 759 9000 | f: +1 +1 267 759 8989 | e: info@epam.com | w: www.epam.comwww.epam.com