The Key to Key Account Management: OfBusiness

As I glide through my third year at OfBusiness, I lean back and look at the learnings I’ve garnered in various capacities at this phenomenal organization.  

One thing does bug me though, 
Am I doing my job right? 

When our company reached a sizable book, we realized that for sustained growth, we need to have a careful balance between getting new customers & ensuring high-touch, quality interactions with our existing customers. To avoid being stuck in a situation of stagnated growth, it became necessary for us to find that equilibrium between account management and acquiring new customers, and hence the KAM department came into the picture. 

A change from Supplier Operations to Key Account Management for me didn’t just mean a shift from the sunny lanes of Ahmedabad to the somewhat smoggy high rises of Gurgaon. It was a sea change in my nature of work, and a new challenge to conquer. I did try to take it head-on, and my time as a Key Account Manager did teach me a few things that I would like to share: 

1. A study and understanding of customer outcomes are very important:

Always trying to upsell to the customer and offering other products without judging the fit only serves to deteriorate customer’s trust. While you may have read about the Customer First policy on paper, this is a field that requires understanding Customer needs first and judging what would be the best fit, before pitching it to them. Remember, you are in the process of nurturing relationships, and increasing Customer Lifetime Value, not only upselling.

2. Estimating the CLV:

Remember, without data, you’re just a person with an opinion. You must have a detailed insight and estimate about how the customer’s performance has been with us and in the market what their expected growth is over the next few quarters, and how you can enhance their experience with your offering.

3. Proactive, not Reactive:

You may have come across the popular quote by John Kennedy, ‘Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country’. Well, replace country with customer. A proactive approach, and going the extra mile for your client always makes them notice, and always results in better relationships, and in the end, more revenue.

4. Keep learning from each other:

Teams in Account Management need not limit their skills to negotiation or customer communication but have to be equipped with a handy knowledge of finance/accounting and sales as well. That said, gel with your team. Make them understand your offerings, and try to pick out the offerings which are often misrepresented. Try to document the learnings from your customer interactions, and relay the same to your team. Such processes help us to come up with data that optimizes our approach towards customers. 

As I look back at the last half-year, the learnings on the job have led me to enjoy my role in KAM a lot, and winning the recent OPL was the cherry on top. And to answer the question I had in the beginning, well, Key Account Management isn’t really about rights or wrongs. It is more an analogy of life. It’s about maintaining relationships and making the best out of them.

Read more from Life At OFB –
All Our Dreams Can Come True If We Have the Courage to Pursue Them.
It ain’t over till it’s over! – Life At OFB