Читать книгу A Customer-oriented Manager for B2B Services - Valerie Mathieu - Страница 64

In a B2B context, there is also the notion of seasonality to which is added the reality of economic fluctuations specific to the activity of particular sectors of activity. Service providers working directly with the oil sector, particularly on research and development, engineering and even works and maintenance assignments, were quickly and strongly affected by the drop in the price of a barrel of oil in the second half of 2014 and the spring of 2020. Political, economic, regulatory and health factors can quickly affect the manager’s unit activity in a positive or negative way. A diversified client portfolio in terms of industry sectors is an excellent hedge against these types of contingencies.

But there is a situation in B2B that is just as delicate for managers, when a loyal customer asks for new services when their unit is at maximum capacity. The risk of disappointment, misunderstanding or even loss of customer loyalty is high. Outsourcing may appear to be an option, but it also has its risks. If managers have no real room for maneuver to respond to the client, they can only count on the strength of their relationship and their proximity to the client to limit the latter’s disappointment.