Webster’s dictionary defines concierge as “a usually multilingual hotel staff member who handles luggage and mail, makes reservations, and arranges tours; broadly: a person employed (as by a business) to make arrangements or run errands.” While not a concept we associate with business, it might be time to start changing our structures to foster a business model with this role in mind.
When thinking about the word “concierge” in association with business, it seems that with the push to automate, regulate, and limit our contact with customers, we've lost the personal aspect of business that makes people communicate and work well with each other. When I place an order with Amazon, I enjoy the fact that they have nearly everything I could ever imagine available, and much of it ships to me within 2-days. But, occasionally, something goes wrong, and navigating their complex layers of information on their website makes getting to real person nearly impossible. There are times when I wish that there was a person at the other end who listened, understood my unique situation, and responded to my specific situation. This person would serve the role of concierge, customizing their business offerings to my needs.
How this relates to business is that companies have been in the role of selling product, services, and knowledge for quite some time. Clients seek out companies because they want what we offer. Most decisions to do business with a company hinge on price, availability, and/or speed of delivery. But, what makes the client return to us for more of what we sell? This is where the concierge mindset fits in. Having an actual person understand the needs of a client and their business will turn a one-time visit into an ongoing relationship.
The role of concierge can be best understood in association with the complex world of government-related purchase orders. Let’s say we are dealing a large university whose laboratory does contract work for other universities. Their initial contact usually brings two technical researchers together to see if a procedure or approach is possible. Once it has been determined that the work can be accomplished, the client needs a quote to take to their purchasing office in order to pay for the lab work. The first of many challenges in procuring this sort of work is that the purchasing office may require different or additional information from what is documented on the quote. The client may not be aware of the needs and requirements of their specific purchasing office and as a result, the bid is stalled for weeks or months, unbeknownst to the parties involved. This is where contact with a person in the role of concierge first comes into play.
Once the client’s purchasing office approves the work and issues a purchase order, the laboratory work can begin. But, this doesn't mean that the service lab will receive payment for work they do for their client. Just as the bid process can run into delays and miss-communication, requesting payment may uncover subtle nuances in each institution. A one-size-fits-all approach to billing the client often does not yield the desired results. Again, multiple conversations of a business concierge with the accounts payable office may be needed to clarify how payments are processed and made and get the work paid for in a timely manner.
Finally, we need to return to our two technical researchers. If the previously described bidding, purchasing, and payment process has run smoothly, the likelihood of continued contract work is very probable. But, if the client has had to be pulled out of their technical tasks to solve frequent communication problems, they will likely go elsewhere for future work. The business concierge acts as a liaison for products and services, and serves as the expert for getting things done seamlessly between client and support staff. Most companies selling a complex product would be wise to include this vital role in their business model.
When thinking about the word “concierge” in association with business, it seems that with the push to automate, regulate, and limit our contact with customers, we've lost the personal aspect of business that makes people communicate and work well with each other. When I place an order with Amazon, I enjoy the fact that they have nearly everything I could ever imagine available, and much of it ships to me within 2-days. But, occasionally, something goes wrong, and navigating their complex layers of information on their website makes getting to real person nearly impossible. There are times when I wish that there was a person at the other end who listened, understood my unique situation, and responded to my specific situation. This person would serve the role of concierge, customizing their business offerings to my needs.
How this relates to business is that companies have been in the role of selling product, services, and knowledge for quite some time. Clients seek out companies because they want what we offer. Most decisions to do business with a company hinge on price, availability, and/or speed of delivery. But, what makes the client return to us for more of what we sell? This is where the concierge mindset fits in. Having an actual person understand the needs of a client and their business will turn a one-time visit into an ongoing relationship.
The role of concierge can be best understood in association with the complex world of government-related purchase orders. Let’s say we are dealing a large university whose laboratory does contract work for other universities. Their initial contact usually brings two technical researchers together to see if a procedure or approach is possible. Once it has been determined that the work can be accomplished, the client needs a quote to take to their purchasing office in order to pay for the lab work. The first of many challenges in procuring this sort of work is that the purchasing office may require different or additional information from what is documented on the quote. The client may not be aware of the needs and requirements of their specific purchasing office and as a result, the bid is stalled for weeks or months, unbeknownst to the parties involved. This is where contact with a person in the role of concierge first comes into play.
Once the client’s purchasing office approves the work and issues a purchase order, the laboratory work can begin. But, this doesn't mean that the service lab will receive payment for work they do for their client. Just as the bid process can run into delays and miss-communication, requesting payment may uncover subtle nuances in each institution. A one-size-fits-all approach to billing the client often does not yield the desired results. Again, multiple conversations of a business concierge with the accounts payable office may be needed to clarify how payments are processed and made and get the work paid for in a timely manner.
Finally, we need to return to our two technical researchers. If the previously described bidding, purchasing, and payment process has run smoothly, the likelihood of continued contract work is very probable. But, if the client has had to be pulled out of their technical tasks to solve frequent communication problems, they will likely go elsewhere for future work. The business concierge acts as a liaison for products and services, and serves as the expert for getting things done seamlessly between client and support staff. Most companies selling a complex product would be wise to include this vital role in their business model.
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