Calvary TV – Christoph Schell “How the Pandemic is Changing the Business Environment (Part Two)”

In the final part of this series with HP Inc.’s Christoph Schell, the chief commercial officer takes a closer look at how companies like HP reassessed their selling and forecasting practices in light of the market conditions created by the pandemic.

 

In his 23 years at HP, Schell noted that not many things changed at the company. However, what he and his colleagues realized recently was that decentralization of decision making doesn’t work anymore. Why? “Because customers have decided to move their shopping journey online,” he revealed.

 

This insight resulted in huge changes across the organization, including its overall structure and the makeup of different departments. When customers shop for products, they leave behind “footprints,” said Schell. With the proper analysis, “you can predict what the customer wants before they’re able to articulate that.”

 

An in-depth look at any business reveals that most customers, if not all, want personalized experiences. But what about these experiences makes them so valuable to consumers? Schell had an answer for that as well and used subscription business models as an example. “The value is not in the contract; the value is in the outcome,” he said. “And if you deliver a good outcome, then the loyalty will stay.”

 

Gemma also touched on how forecasting has changed as a result of the pandemic, and Schell pulled back the curtain on how his company adapted to these new market conditions.

 

“It’s not so much about forecast accuracy anymore,” said Schell. “That’s what it used to be in the past. It’s more about accuracy of ambition — what do you want to achieve six months from now?” At some point, you have to consider: Are the goals that you set good enough or not?

In the final part of this series with HP Inc.’s Christoph Schell, the chief commercial officer takes a closer look at how companies like HP reassessed their selling and forecasting practices in light of the market conditions created by the pandemic.

 

In his 23 years at HP, Schell noted that not many things changed at the company. However, what he and his colleagues realized recently was that decentralization of decision making doesn’t work anymore. Why? “Because customers have decided to move their shopping journey online,” he revealed.

 

This insight resulted in huge changes across the organization, including its overall structure and the makeup of different departments. When customers shop for products, they leave behind “footprints,” said Schell. With the proper analysis, “you can predict what the customer wants before they’re able to articulate that.”

 

An in-depth look at any business reveals that most customers, if not all, want personalized experiences. But what about these experiences makes them so valuable to consumers? Schell had an answer for that as well and used subscription business models as an example. “The value is not in the contract; the value is in the outcome,” he said. “And if you deliver a good outcome, then the loyalty will stay.”

 

Gemma also touched on how forecasting has changed as a result of the pandemic, and Schell pulled back the curtain on how his company adapted to these new market conditions.

 

“It’s not so much about forecast accuracy anymore,” said Schell. “That’s what it used to be in the past. It’s more about accuracy of ambition — what do you want to achieve six months from now?” At some point, you have to consider: Are the goals that you set good enough or not?

 

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