Alex Cairns, Changepoint, Maidenhead, UK discusses: Business and Services Opportunity Services in a Product Environment Implementation Challenges Analysis of Stakeholders Approach to Business Analysis Deal Lifecycle Process

1. Differentiating Your Professional
Services in a Flat Economy
Alex Cairns
Changepoint, Maidenhead - 16th October 2012

2. Alex Cairns
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3. Economic Backdrop …
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4. Business and Services Opportunity
 Services in a product environment …
•
•
•
•
•
Given away ‘free’
Supporting ‘what’s on the truck?’
‘Free’ presales
Make the ¼ number
Achieve ‘strategy’ with same people
 So how can you
be different 
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5. Implementation Challenge
 Executive announcement :• “We are leveraging solutions”
• “We can support customers with
virtualisation transition”
• “We can provide Cloud solutions”
 Followed up by :•
•
•
•
No further executive presence
No new investment hence no training / enablement
Same workforce
Same pressure to make ¼ number
 One consistent theme is omitted :-
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6. Professional Services is a People Business 
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7. Stakeholder Analysis
 Interview people across whole Business from Field,
Operations to Director level
 Consistent themes emerge
 Establish basis for starting
point and quick wins
 What you we take forward -> strategy?
Blueprint
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8. Business Analysis Approach
 Analyse your business
 What are the ‘sweetspots’ now?
 What repeatable solutions have been packaged to
increase margin on subsequent delivery?
 Determine the key revenue
streams now and what will
be necessary to replace
them as they dry-up –
Closing & Transitioning
the ‘S’ curve effect
Deriving
 Change comp plans to
efficiency
drive behavior, if you
Jumping and transforming
Scaling
can’t then create local
for growth
incentives
Architecting the future
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9. Big Picture – Deal Lifecycle Process
6
Opportunity
Qualified
5
Needs
Analysis
Internal
Business
Case
Develop
Solution
Sales Prop
SOW
incl.
Risk Assessment
4
Proposal
Submitted
3
Vendor
Finalist
2
Verbal
Acceptance
1
In
Legal
Agree
margin
Client
Acceptance
Initiate
Contract
7
Marketing
Opportunity
Client
Startup
Client
PO
Deal Review
Bid Review
Deliver
Setup
ChangePoint
Project &
Assign team
Weekly
Checkpoint
Reports
Change
Control
(Optional: PS opportunities auto-feed into Changepoint for PS qualification)
Close
Customer
Sat Survey
Handover to
Support
Sustain
PS Build
Docs
Review
margin
Service Delivery Management
Project Board, Project Manager
Bid Executive, Bid Manager (Complex deals only)
Opportunity Typing Variations :0
< £50K – Product, Repeatable, No variance
<
1
< £50K – Product, Repeatable, Some Variance
<
2
3
4
£50K-£250K - Medium Risk
> £250K Complex, High Risk
> £500K High Value, Complex, High Risk
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10. Understand your customers – they are Stakeholders too 
Identify and manage stakeholders in your customers
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11. Customer Focus
 Understand your customer
 What is their business problem?
 Their problem could be your advantage!
 What is their compelling event? CIOs Q4 bonus?!
 Leveraging solutions with competent communicators who
aptitude and ability for transformational conversations
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12. It’s All About People
 Hire the best people
• Motivate them
• Make sure they have ability to understand your customer
 MIS / processes / BI
• Deal lifecycle
 Standards / aptitude
• Developing the right people
 Sensible investment driving
S-curves -> higher RoI
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13. The Alternative …
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14. Thank You
Alex Cairns
Changepoint, Maidenhead - 16th October 2012