Henk Jan van Arkel
Partner
Focus The support of and assistance to clients towards a more effective and efficient structure of their business process and organisation.
Expertise The development and implementation of marketing and sales strategies, (interim) sales management, organising and managing business processes, output-oriented coaching, bringing business to the next level.
Markets Structural and building services engineering, ICT, business services, automotive
Motto ‘Don’t push. Pull! Only then will you acquire clients that are a match for you.’
Experience
[twocol_one]- Optimisation of the business process at a technical service provider
A leading technical service provider directed the sales organisation primarily towards receiving as many requests for an offer as possible. Issuing offers, including the calculations required for this purpose, demanded a sizeable commercial back office. The low hit rate, caused partially by the lack of a proper qualification, caused bid costs to be disproportionate. Henk Jan reorganised the qualification process of requests for an offer to be much more stringent and competitive. He then begun directing the sales organisation on the basis of qualitative results by leveraging the value of relationships and the knowledge of the client’s challenges. This resulted in a hit rate that was substantially higher and a much more effective business process, as well as higher employee satisfaction.
- Development of opportunities and deal closing
An international fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) organisation had for years been a client of the IT and consulting solutions company where Henk Jan was working. This client used a custom-built IT system for the operational planning in their supply chain, to their full satisfaction. The consulting services, which could also have been valuable to this organisation, had not yet been adequately pitched. The complex supply chain and the evolving organisation of this client offered plenty of starting points for drawing attention to the added value of the consulting services and to position them. A large number of business units were involved in the optimisation of the supply chain and the logistics processes of this organisation. As a result, the decision-making unit (DMU) also consisted of a large number of members who represented the various business units. Henk Jan clearly delineated the issues to be researched for this opportunity. By narrowly defining the needs of the various stakeholders in connection with the issues to be researched, he ensured that the solution offered seamlessly fitted in with the client’s request. In addition, he secured the commitment of the members of the DMU for the proposed solution and, in doing so, secured the commission for this project. The project resulted in an improved logistics performance with demonstrable cost-savings, as well as in a reduction of the carbon footprint as an important secondary result.[/twocol_one][twocol_one_last]
- Expansion of services and development of new business
Clients of a large ICT organisation expecting a full-service package were not satisfied in their demand for operational management expertise. The organisation did not have a sufficient degree of this expertise in-house. Due to its full-service philosophy, the organisation felt obligated to expand its capacity to adequately meet this demand. Henk Jan expanded the services, within the scope imposed in that regard by the ICT organisation, to make it possible to meet the client’s demand. By hiring the right employees, binding them to the organisation, and training them, he ensured a sustainable solution to an issue affecting the clients, which could not be resolved structurally until then. In addition to defining the proposition and hiring the right employees, Henk Jan implemented the development of the business of this new service. Commercial arrangements were made with existing clients and he actively prospected for potential clients in the market.
Outcome: a demonstrable increase in turnover and higher customer satisfaction. Moreover, the relationships with the clients were secured for a longer time by concluding long-term contracts.
- Implementation of consultative selling and definition of commercial value
A strongly content-driven consultancy firm with a unique position in the market had been conducting business with the same group of clients for years. These clients were a good match for the firm and they understood the added value of its services. Yet, new prospects that were approached using this same content were not sufficiently convinced of the added value of the services. By introducing an outside-in approach, Henk Jan made sure that the firm developed a value proposition that demonstrably contributed to the achievement of the client’s objectives. This modified approach resulted in the development of new markets and clients, and improved the ability of the consultants to fulfil their commercial role. After the implementation, Henk Jan remained involved in the support of the consultants in their commercial role.
