Background of Client Downturn
“We were a proud company with a constant stock market growth, the master of our destiny. Suddenly, we were raided.” By Herminia Ibarra and Nicole Sackley, “Charlotte Beers at Ogilvy & Mather Worldwide”, 2011 HBS
The mass client exodus from O&M began as early as 1989 when WPP Group Plc, a leading marketing services company, acquired Ogilvy & Mather and merged with previously acquired J. Walter Thompson.
From the very beginning of this new partnership, conflict emerged. CEO Kenneth Roman was originally opposed to the merger. Described as a “shock,” this new environment became an ambiance of hostility, later provoking Roman to leave the company, with other executives following suit.
Thereafter, the agency lost major …show more content…
“The office was run by Czars with big accounts. But here it is important to mention that what was the most remarkable was the loss of American Express, which represented a symbol since for the agency; when this happened, people that were employees loyal to the company disengaged and said, ‘This place is falling apart.’” By Herminia Ibarra and Nicole Sackley, “Charlotte Beers at Ogilvy & Mather Worldwide”, 2011 HBS
As a consequence to these events, the agency started to feel the declines in revenue, finding themselves unable to adapt to clients’ increasing demands, suffering high-cost operations and a lack of financial discipline.
CLIENT RETENTION …show more content…
Beers and her team make a conscious effort to be aware of the pressure they place on their clients. Pushing too hard or too much can often make clients feel uneasy and burdened, leading to a potential end to the business relationship. Furthermore, in order to improve on the client retention rate, we recommend the implementation of complaint-resolution policies as guidelines to correct customer issues, rather than a rigid set of rules. Allowing O&M employees the freedom to make judgment calls as is necessary in order to solve a customer problem instead of having to follow an unyielding rule can aid in maintaining a positive and helpful client/employee relationship, leading to an even greater bottom
“We were a proud company with a constant stock market growth, the master of our destiny. Suddenly, we were raided.” By Herminia Ibarra and Nicole Sackley, “Charlotte Beers at Ogilvy & Mather Worldwide”, 2011 HBS
The mass client exodus from O&M began as early as 1989 when WPP Group Plc, a leading marketing services company, acquired Ogilvy & Mather and merged with previously acquired J. Walter Thompson.
From the very beginning of this new partnership, conflict emerged. CEO Kenneth Roman was originally opposed to the merger. Described as a “shock,” this new environment became an ambiance of hostility, later provoking Roman to leave the company, with other executives following suit.
Thereafter, the agency lost major …show more content…
“The office was run by Czars with big accounts. But here it is important to mention that what was the most remarkable was the loss of American Express, which represented a symbol since for the agency; when this happened, people that were employees loyal to the company disengaged and said, ‘This place is falling apart.’” By Herminia Ibarra and Nicole Sackley, “Charlotte Beers at Ogilvy & Mather Worldwide”, 2011 HBS
As a consequence to these events, the agency started to feel the declines in revenue, finding themselves unable to adapt to clients’ increasing demands, suffering high-cost operations and a lack of financial discipline.
CLIENT RETENTION …show more content…
Beers and her team make a conscious effort to be aware of the pressure they place on their clients. Pushing too hard or too much can often make clients feel uneasy and burdened, leading to a potential end to the business relationship. Furthermore, in order to improve on the client retention rate, we recommend the implementation of complaint-resolution policies as guidelines to correct customer issues, rather than a rigid set of rules. Allowing O&M employees the freedom to make judgment calls as is necessary in order to solve a customer problem instead of having to follow an unyielding rule can aid in maintaining a positive and helpful client/employee relationship, leading to an even greater bottom