Create Firm Alignment

What can you do to ensure that your firm is aligned for strategic account management?

1. Make certain you have:

   • Clear corporate and account management strategies on which to align;

   • Clear value statements to guide the alignment; and

   • Internal communication programs that drive and reinforce those visions deeply into the organization.

2. Develop a "voice of the customer" program to help employees walk in the customers' shoes.

3. Conduct regular and multiple types of assessments on critical customer relationships.

4. Drive robust customer information deep into the organization. At one point, Disney was supposed to have more than 200 ways of listening to its customers. How many ways does your firm listen to critical accounts?

5. Customize cross-functional teams to solve account problems as they arise.