Inside Track Issue 10 - November 2023

NAVIGATING THIRD PARTY SUPPLY CHAIN

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NEW PROJECTS ROUND-UP

CLARION RESPONSE |

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THE VALUE PROPOSITION

Q&A: IAN BIRCH OF SG FLEET

NOVEMBER 2023

It doesn’t seem like five minutes since I last sat down to update you and that was in the Spring, just ahead of this year’s CV Show. The feeling of time flying is perhaps testament to just how much has been going on and how incredibly busy the fleet market has been in the interim. The feeling appears to be universal across the fleet sector and many with whom we come into regular contact are highlighting the same hectic challenges.

With vehicles arriving into the supply chain in considerable numbers and companies’ order books full to bursting, its back to the more familiar territory for all of us of balancing schedules and resource planning to meet all commitments. The vehicle supply doldrums of the immediate post pandemic era already seem like a distant memory. Meeting all of these orders, and maintaining a commercial output which is greater than your business’ component parts takes real operational know-how, and it’s at times like these when I believe all companies really feel whether their supply chains are up to the task and if they have the right commercial partners. At Mediafleet we’ve seen an increase this Summer in the number of fleet operators approaching us for new branding solutions, looking for better supply chain integration and clearly evaluating their supplier options. This leads me onto what is perhaps a central theme for the new Autumn edition of Inside Track….navigating the maze of third party supply in the automotive and fleet markets. With contributions from my colleagues Rob Rudd and James Parry, the three of us consider working cultures within successful suppliers, understanding your customer’s value proposition and how to support it as a partner, and the risks for fleet operators as they navigate the complex puzzle of supplier selection.

I hope you enjoy this issue of Inside Track, and that it provides some light reading next time you take a break from managing all of those customer orders!

Barnaby Smith Managing Director

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In this issue

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Adding Customer Value

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The Value Proposition and Why You Need One

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Q&A: The Importance of Supply Chain Integration

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Working with 3rd party suppliers can be a risky business, as some companies find to their cost!

Initiating a culture of ‘Continuous Improvement’ has a direct effect on all aspects associated with business success.

Clarion Response Case Study

Brands Hatch Motor Racing Circuit – the ideal venue for the handover of brand new vehicles for Clarion Response.

Mediafleet Project Round-up

James Parry, our Head of Creative, shares his thoughts on some of our favourite customer branding projects we’ve worked on across the Spring.

Rob Rudd writes an insightful piece about the importance of crafting a customer-centric value proposition while clarifying the differences between business and brand strategy.

Mediafleet Head of Development, Rob Rudd, talks to Ian Birch at SG Fleet about working together to create a better ‘End User Experience’.

Rob Rudd warns about the risks of working with third-party suppliers, especially in crucial situations, and stresses the need to thoroughly evaluate factors like product quality, delivery reliability, and service.

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ADDING CUSTOMER VALUE

Initiating a culture of ‘Continuous Improvement’ has a direct effect on all aspects associated with business success.

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ADDING CUSTOMER VALUE

IN THIS EDITION of Inside Track you will see my article on adopting 3rd party suppliers in order to gain ‘competitive advantage’. A good idea unless the process of adoption goes wrong. But, there are many reasons for change, creating both risks and opportunities.

Further complications become apparent when you consider that ‘change’ that happens quickly holds the greatest benefits.

As obvious as this business practice may seem – unfortunately, situations arise time and again in which it is said, “The idea was good, but the implementation failed” … or…“We had a plan and it wasn’t rocket science, but we failed”.

These are accurate phrases heard throughout boardrooms across the world on a regular basis…but why?

Having been in commercial life for nearly forty years, and in business development for over thirty years, I have developed my own opinion on this. The textbooks will tell you it’s all about failure in resource planning, unclear goals, poorly defined project scope, inexperience, et cetera, and all of these and more are true. But that’s a little like saying, “I lost the race because I wasn’t fast enough”. That’s true but the problems started way before this.

The ‘bare bones’ of business success are…‘Giving an organisation what they want and maintaining that position’.

Removing the financial perspective for a moment, let’s focus on how the idea above (giving them what they want) is achieved. Easy to say, not so easy to do!

Giving an organisation what they want and maintaining that position 8

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Technical excellence and attention to detail are driving forces behind our customer service offering.

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ADDING CUSTOMER VALUE

There are three main elements: The Customer Perspective

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Internal/Process Perspective

Internal Learning/Growth Perspective

Customer Perspective – This is the most important element because only when the customer is totally satisfied that ‘he’ is receiving the best value at all times, will he remain with the you, the supplier. As soon as doubts creep in, the customer starts looking around the marketplace. Deal with customer complaints (although there shouldn’t be any, perhaps queries), provide good customer service. Introduce product and service developments. Keep them informed on market information. Be accurate and honest at all times. Give then the truth always. Employees should always resolve problems quickly, efficiently and be at the heart of customer service process.

Business Key Processes – These are the activities by the team that gives the customer the feeling that they’re getting what they want. The job of people like me is to identify the processes required for achieving customer objectives...this is true business development.* Successfully performing the same actions over and over again, with the same level of competency is no longer enough. Your company must develop a ‘continuous improvement method’. *(It’s a ‘bugbear’ of mine when businesses confuse business development with sales) Learning & Talent for Growth – There are two factors here: i. In today’s difficult economic times, it seems every time you advertise a job there are hundreds of applicants giving you plenty of choice. The reality is, however, that few of these candidates will have the proven skills required to match the remit. Internal learning of existing employees is a good route to take, plus, it also helps raise staff morale.

If employees see that there are opportunities for career flexibility and advancement, they are more likely to feel positive about their career prospects in their current job. For the customer, a stable and capable workforce is a pleasing and comfortable factor in business retention. However, as we know, fast, efficient change is the key to success, so if ‘learning’ is going to take too long, and the customer satisfaction level is at risk, then recruitment is necessary. ii.The cornerstone of an organisation’s growth is the identification of good talent because it builds competitive advantage for the future. In today’s tricky economic environment, identifying and attracting highpotential employees can give employers an edge on their competition and set up their organisations for future success. An example here is the development of new internal processes that the current workforce is not capable of introducing and managing in an acceptable time frame.

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ADDING CUSTOMER VALUE

For a company to grow, it needs a well-trained, highly skilled workforce, all working in harmony, with common goals that are clearly understood

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In Conclusion For a company to grow, either through new product or service development, identification of new markets, increased cost efficiencies et cetera, which all lead to competitive advantage and a strong value proposition, it needs a well-trained, highly skilled workforce, all working in harmony, with common goals that are clearly understood. A company achieving success in the three strategy objectives outlined above will grow as training initiatives and goals drive the attainment of strategic objectives. Invest in human resources (internal and external), bring in new blood when necessary, so as to develop new employee capabilities, information/ knowledge systems, motivation and empowerment.

The measure of how well your company is doing in achieving these objectives surfaces when you try to make a change…if it goes badly, it’s not because your 3rd party supplier messed up, nor is it because your salesperson failed to get the deal in a new market, it’s because you haven’t addressed the continuous improvement initiatives.

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C AS E S T U D Y

This month we review our new customer partnership with

Clarion Response Brands Hatch Motor Racing Circuit – the ideal venue for the handover of brand new vehicles for Clarion Response.

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Only five months ago, SG Fleet were given the task of providing 90 additional vehicles for the Clarion Fleet, and in August the team at SG Fleet personally handed over the vehicles to the Clarion Response drivers over a period of a week at the Brands Hatch race circuit.

Clarion Response is the country’s largest inhouse repairs provider servicing the needs of over 100,00 homes all over the country, 24 hours per day, seven days per week. They

C A SE S T U D Y

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deal with all aspects of building needs from plumbing and carpentry to plastering, and electrical work.

With a team of over 800 people, it completes over 1,000

repairs every working day. To support this activity Clarion needs a fleet of over 300 vehicles.

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“Mediafleet have proved themselves to be a very professional, responsive and reliable supplier and it has been a pleasure to work with them.”

Colin Hutt, Fleet Manager Clarion Response

CASE STUDY

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This high-profile handover event required a supply chain that could deliver on time and in full.

For the vehicle branding, SG Fleet chose Mediafleet.

Barnaby Smith, managing director of Mediafleet said, “This was a really enjoyable project from start to finish. The project required the full use of Mediafleet’s scope of service from help with the artwork, colour checking, production of the graphics, through to application of the graphics

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by our in-house technicians.

The handover at brands Hatch was a really well organised event and was a really good idea - what is usually a fairly mundane procedure turned into an absolutely splendid affair. The teams at Clarion Response and SG Fleet did a ‘top-class’ job”

Mediafleet has now completed over 150 vans for SG Fleet comprising new vehicles and in fleet rebrands. Plus, The Clarion Response EV fleet is now receiving the Mediafleet treatment.

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Mediafleet Project Round-up

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Our branding enthusiast, James Parry, brings us news of Mediafleet’s latest project successes. What have we been up to since the last issue of Inside Track?

Ford Transit Custom Build

Full Mediafleet wraps to customer colours with exciting new divisional graphics.

James:

“An absolute privilige to work with such a great group of people and such a impressive brand.”

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Mediafleet Project Round-up

Branding for EV Rally, Summer 2023

Supporting our customers’ teams with a variety of design work, wraps and graphics.

James:

“This was great fun, and some of the teams had some cracking cars to wrap and models that we were seeing for the first time. I’ve said to Barney that next year we must take part and do the rally itself!”

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Mediafleet Project Round-up

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OCS Royal Parks Wrap Program Time critical vehicles wrapped and commissioned to Royal Parks colours and delivered to 5 Royal Parks in London ready for contract start day...

James:

“We were determined to deliver all vans to each park across one weekend. It was a stressful few days, but we made it, and I even jumped into the transporter to Hyde Park to see the last van over the line!”

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M A RK ET IN S IGH T

The Value Proposition and Why You Need One

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M A RK ET IN S IGH T

Successful companies create a link between what they do well and what their target audience want. Here’s how to create a ‘Value Proposition’.

Firstly, we need to go back to basics because if we agree that the ‘value proposition’ sits between the business strategy (what a business wants to do well) and delivering in an understandable way what the customer desires (brand strategy), then we need to understand what we mean by business strategy and brand strategy.

Now a great deal has been written about business strategy and having been round the block a few times, I think I’m right when I say that most so called experts get this wrong! You hear and read things like strategy is how resources should be allocated to achieve the mission. No, it isn’t! It’s true that you can’t develop a strategy without determining your goals which is what the ‘mission’ is all about, but strategy is more than that. I read an article recently that said business strategies are the choices made with specific targeted customers that allow you to grow your business effectively. No they aren’t!

A business strategy details the vision of the business which is different from the mission. The vision describes what the success of the business will look like by defining targets and customers etc. The strategy then goes on to describe ‘the how’ by determining your competitive advantage and communications channels. All successful businesses succeed by developing points of difference and competitive advantage; points of difference being how your customers perceive your competitive advantage.

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So, what about brand strategy…again another misunderstood term. Brand strategy is the method by which the character of your company will be recognised by the target audience to which you are trying to appeal.

Now the value proposition is the value the customer receives (experiences) after purchasing your products and services. It’s what makes them feel good and enables them to improve their business, or lives.

Before we move on, we must agree that the value proposition is the way your product and service make your customers feel after they have purchased your product/service.

In other words, it is not your product/service nor is it the competitive advantages your product/service possess.

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MA R K ET I NSIGHT

How do you create a value proposition?

So, how do you do it? Here are a few basic guidelines: •

In my opinion, the most effective way to create your value proposition is to use the language that your customers would use to describe your products and services. Speak how your target audience speaks.

Copywriters and collateral generation in general often fall into the trap of trying to appear sophisticated, comprehensive, or overly technical with the hope of trying to impress the target audience. If you are not sure of the language and tone, do some research, send out questionnaires, or better still, go and speak with them directly; conferences, trade shows are good for this.

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Next, be clear about what you are trying to say. Again, copywriters often fall into the trap of using jargon and industry buzz words. That’s not good. Just tell them how buying your product/service will improve their situation. Tell them why they should buy from you and not your competitors. Clearly, you can’t knock the competition but through ‘ghost writing’ you can make them think about the choice they are going to make.

Tell them what your product and service does together with the advantage and the benefit. Remember to use the ‘So What’ test and make sure you ask the ‘Why?’ questions.

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M A RK ET IN S IGH T

Now we understand what makes up a value proposition, it is now time to actually do it…and here’s what you do.

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Ask yourself this question…What is it that we do that is better than everybody else? Make a list.

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My old boss used to say that if you can’t explain what you do as a business in one sentence, you have a serious problem. The same is true here. You should be able to describe your value proposition in one sentence. This uses the list from point 1 combining this with the brand voice.

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Once you’ve done that then you need to publish your value proposition where your target audience will see it. That’s where your communications strategy will play an important part.

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Lastly, be hard on yourself. Come up with a choice of value propositions and then test them.

Show them to your audience and ask them what they deem from the statement. Remember, on a website homepage for example, you have no more than five seconds to grab the attention before your prospective buyer bounces.

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MA R K ET I NSIGHT

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Q&A: The Importance of Supply Chain Integration Mediafleet Head of Development, Rob Rudd, talks to Ian Birch at SG Fleet about working together to create a better ‘End User Experience’.

Supply chain integration is a process that aligns all stakeholders in the supply chain to improve efficiencies.

These efficiencies benefit end user by delivery of the product/service on time, in full and on budget, and benefits the supplier through maximising profits leading to stable long term supply.

Supply Chain Integration (SCI) is a strategic process.

I say this because those organisations adopting supply chain management processes will fundamentally show Competitive Advantage (CA) thus reducing the need for alternative CA strategies that could negatively affect the profit position.

In other words, SCI is about working with technical partners to deliver a ‘class leading fleet supply solution’.

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The best way to view SCI is by regarding all suppliers in the chain as one organisation of several departments.

Supply chain integration begins with supplier raw materials through to the end product reaching the consumer without delays, increases in cost, or poor customer experience. If you think about an LCV getting to the customer, the process from vehicle manufacturing to conversion to delivery is a convoluted path with many pitfalls along the way. It is crucial that all suppliers within the chain are process savvy, internally and externally, and strive to provide the end user with a memorable experience.

What are the critical elements for successful supply chain integration?

The SG Fleet and Mediafleet relationship exists because our processes align to deliver end user desired goals.

There are, however, certain requirements from suppliers for this to work successfully.

I could talk about these, but, as a change to the usual approach, it might be more useful to look at the ‘barriers’ to successful integration instead.

I believe the ‘number one’ barrier is a ‘lack of knowledge’.

This is a big topic as this drawback could be across one element or several. The suppliers we work with fully understand the market and its intricacies, have a working relationship with the main players in the automotive industry, have a thorough understanding of their own market, and are experts in delivering the very best products and services within their sector. Our relationship with Mediafleet has gone from strength to strength as their service is hard to beat.

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The ‘working relationship’ across supply chain partners is crucial. There has to be a positive chemistry. If there is a clash of personalities, or the relationship is damaged through doubts creeping in surrounding competency and/ or attitude, the relationship will fail. As a consequence, the efficiencies will drop, and the end user suffers. Not acceptable.

IT solutions play a very important part.

Transparency regarding project progress is crucial.

IT has a big part to play in project tracking and information distribution.

A ‘lack of communication’ across supply chain partners is an obvious roadblock. It is important that all information, good or bad, is disseminated efficiently across the supply chain so that action can be taken to keep the project on track.

Business plans vary from business to business which is to be expected. But the goals within a business plan can vary significantly. At SG Fleet we are only interested in working with supply chain partners where the goals revolve around providing the end user with the best experience possible. Organisations that have other goals for profit improvement, such as cost cutting, poor service support, inferior raw materials et cetera, do not align with SG Fleet.

We work with organisations that are committed to quality improvement across the board resulting in decreasing costs, increased productivity, and higher profit levels.

Barnaby Smith, managing director of Mediafleet stated “All of us at Mediafleet are delighted to be supporting SG Fleet customers with their vehicle branding. The relationship continues to develop and strengthen, and we will develop our processes to offer a more personalised and enticing customer experience for SG Fleet.”

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BL O G - T H R EE MI N U TE R EA D

Working with 3rd party suppliers can be a risky business, as some companies find to their cost!

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BLOG - THREE MINUTE READ IMAGINE THIS...Your company is a major supplier within an important sector of the automotive industry.

It’s ‘CV Show’ time again and you have taken a big stand and put a big hole in the marketing budget. You have a brand-new product which is featuring majorly on the stand, provided through a relationship with a 3rd party supplier.

Towards the end of the first day, the new product fails due to reliability issues.

It’s a disaster! Customers, and potential customers, are arriving to see the new product but leave disappointed. Support services arrive on the stand in the middle of the show to try and fix it, but it’s no good; they can’t get it working. Finally, on the last day of the show, they breathe some life back into the failing product.

There would be tough conversations in the board room after such an event.

Hard earned reputations can take years to develop and only seconds to lose.

Rob Rudd considers supplier evaluation and how to tackle this difficult issue...

This example scenario serves as a reminder of the importance of a sound supplier evaluation process.

In this case, it could be said that this was a strategic relationship, as this was a ‘new product entry, into an existing market’ – one of the most important revenue and profit generating mechanisms available.

Supplier selection represents one of the most important decisions a company can make in remaining competitive, especially nowadays, where markets can change quickly.

Supplier selection is an evolving process. Market research for new suppliers should be a constant process and high priority for all companies in order to optimize profits by reducing costs, introducing innovation.

Personally, having spent most of my working life within a corporate environment, I am familiar with the

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evaluation process. As a young, eager, revenue hungry executive, I found this aspect of business development somewhat tiresome.

My attitude then was one of, “look, I’ve found the right partner for this, let’s just get on with it”. But no, legal and procurement must ‘earn their salt’ and perform due diligence.

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In basic terms there are four stages to supplier selection assuming that the concept in mind meets the business development aspirations of the business.

Define the business needs in order to contact appropriate suppliers

After RFI, select a shortlist of potential suppliers

Interview the suppliers finding info on history, experience, customers etc

Select one supplier and apply the selection process

And arguably No. 4 is the most important and sometimes skipped!

Supplier or vendor selection decisions are complicated by the fact that various criteria must be considered in the decision-making process.

I have written several courses on business development and one of the lessons is to understand the interests of the person you are talking to in order to tailor the conversation to meet the needs of that individual. The same is true here.

For different personnel within the organisation, different vendor attributes will be important. The table below shows what issues feel important to different roles in supplier selection.

Position

Position and Corresponding Issues Potential Issues

Chief Executive Officer

Investor Expectations Share Price

Shareholder Value Operational Costs

Delivery Schedules Chief Operating Officer

Productivity Scheduling

Raw Materials Staffing

Margins

Chief Financial Officer Sales & Marketing Director

Manufacturing Director

Product Director

Cash Flow Profit ROI

Company Sales Targets Account Acquisition

Customer Satisfaction Deadlines

Inventory Levels

New Equipment Purchase New Products Design Costs

Product Planning

Sales Manager

New Product Designs

Individual Sales Targets Individual Profit Targets

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BLOG - THREE MINUTE READ

Don’t be tempted by the juicy red apple hanging low on a branch.

It might be full of worms!

The analysis of criteria for selecting and measuring the performance of suppliers has been the focus of purchasing practitioners since time began. But the real documented work was done in the 1960’s.

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In a nutshell (after some research as I am not a procurement person) the majority of research about supplier selection problems mentions Dickson’s study which states:

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The supplier selection process should involve a diligent pursuit of the answers to the following criteria:

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Product quality.

Performance Delivery - The certainty of the right product delivered at the right time in the

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right quantity.

Service – Fault rectification and SLA, handling complaints, ease of doing business, and quick response.

Price/Cost - Competitive pricing and total cost Lead-time - The elapsed time from order being placed to delivery.

Financial strength - Cash flow and stability.

Flexibility - Ability to adjust volumes and delivery times.

Technical ability - Modern equipment & premises, ability to follow the development plan Development – Innovation and the ability to improve products and reduce costs.

Production Capacity - Capacity to increase and decrease volumes.

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Management approach - Good relationship and commitment, trustworthy.

Geographic location

After garnering the opinion of some 300 procurement professionals, Quality was considered by 100% of the respondents as the most important aspect followed by service.

At Mediafleet, we get very nervous when talking to potential suppliers, so we follow these simple rules.

It’s true that some suppliers get frustrated even to the extent of getting ‘pushy’, but we have developed our reputation on delivering what we say we will deliver. Embarking on relationships with fast talking but poor performing suppliers is not the way forward for any company.

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Branding Britain’s Fleets Our passion at Mediafleet is what drives us to create industry leading graphics, and we are proud of our position in the UK’s commercial fleet supply chain.

If you are looking to enhance your fleet branding please get in touch.

mediafleet.co.uk

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sales@mediafleet.co.uk

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Windrush Industrial Park, Burford Road, Witney, OX29 7HB.

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+44 (0)1993 772525