The Elevator Industry in America - Case Study Example

Otisline (A) Industry Overview The 1980’s decade was of the elevation of the elevator industry in America. With many companies like Otis, Westinghouse, U.S elevator, Fujitec, Dover, Montgomery etc., the industry was full of competition and revenue. Most of these companies were situated in North America (Otisline, 2). Though the sales depended on the building cycle, the industry managed to be stable and profitable enough for others to be attracted by it. The reason being high competition led companies to maintain low costs in order to get more customers. As demand ran high, costs remained low and quality remained stable, the industry generated increasing amounts of revenue. The industry gradually gave birth to other related industries like elevator services, maintenance etc (Otisline, 2). Company Overview Otis Elevators always remained on top of the competition. Since the time it was founded, it managed to form and maintain its reputation as the best in the industry of elevators. The fact that it provided services along with the product made it even more popular and the quality remained credible. Owing to its reputation customers were often willing to pay premium price for Otis’ services (Otisline, 1). Otis elevators had three branches: Otis Hydraulics (for up to 6 story buildings), Otis Geared (for 24 story buildings) and Otis Gearless for higher buildings. The state-of-the-art elevators with higher capacity than usual, Otis was customers’ first choice (Otisline, 1). Otis was divided in four geographical areas: North American Operations, Latin American Operations, Pacific Area Operations and European Transcontinental Operations. North American Operation (NAO) had the most widely dispersed customer base because of the large geographical area it catered to and also because there was a variety of customers to attend. The need to develop easy communication with the customers occurred and so Otisline was formed (Otisline, 1). Otisline was the main customer service centre of Otis NAO. It was established so that customers could easily contact the company, give feedback, lodge complaints etc. This way, Otis secured its customers’ loyalty by developing easy communication. Current Challenges faced by IT function Otis was a decentralized organization but the new system it installed, Otisline, was centralized. A centralized system was launched for focusing on faster responses to callbacks. Customer’s rate quality of services according to the way they are responded by the firm and the time it takes for responding. Commercial answering services were used for non-prime-time call backs and the interest of commercial answering services did not focus on attending the customer requests speedily as Otis. Expenditures were being made on automating and developing old manual procedures rather than in new systems. Programmers were being laid off, no upgrade in hardware was allowed, and no new applications were implemented (Otisline, 3). All the customer service systems should operate perfectly for timely diagnosis of customer complaints stored in the system. Also all latest technological equipments need to be installed for improving relationship with customers through faster response and other types of services. The customer database on the system needs to remain update at all times for references of any sort. Thus Otisline was developed for addressing all the customer related issues. Factors contributed to the challenges that the firm is currently facing Otisline is part of NAO’s Service Management System (SMS). With Otisline, the SMS was expanded in include all maintenance activity for elevators under a service contract. SMS database is updated through Otisline Dispatcher. Due to its strategic nature, Otisline application required a huge portion of information services budget for its support (Otisline, 3). The reason for implementing a centralized system was due to the service contract. The elevator technology of microprocessor based control system was distinctive to Otis. Due to this technology, elevator sales experienced an increase and also ensure that future businesses of service become highly promising. Profitability margin of Otis increased as Otis concentrated both on sales and services of the products. For maintaining the service contract, it was important for Otis to ensure that customers are responded timely on callbacks. Service mechanics were responsible for callbacks and preventive maintenance for elevators Infrastructure of Otisline supported applications that enhance productivity of elevator sales representative and service mechanics. Customer calls were tracked with the help of the new system and also reports were generated that included statistics of response time. Otisline guaranteed response time to its valuable customers. It was expected that in future remote diagnostic technology may be used. Current Status of Otisline Otisline has ensured that it remains on top of the industry all these years. It has developed itself steadily, adding technology and ensuring better service each time. Otisline is known to have the most competent staff, which attends to customers’ needs in the friendliest manner possible. The employees are trained for 4-6 weeks before actually starting their job. They are taught to operate Otisline software (the dispatching system), the IBM display, and operation of the phone system, proper telephone salutations and courtesies, listening and customer satisfaction skills, overview of Otis Elevator organization structure and elevator terminologies etc (Otisline, 5). Current Otisline Dispatcher Currently Otisline has its own software, the Otisline software, which is the main source of communication with the customers. Newly hired employees are trained to use it and act according to company policy before their job is finalized. They are trained to be courteous, sensitive and cooperative towards customers (Otisline, 7). Special phones are installed in Otis elevators, so in case of emergency, people can directly call Otisline and get help. Dispatchers are fixed with special beepers, so dispatchers would know at once, if there’s an emergency call. Marketing of Otisline Otisline published a brochure in 1984, listing the aspects that improved after Otisline was established. After the service company was formed the pace of response to customers’ complaints and feedback increased dramatically. The measures taken to repair elevators were saved by maintaining the SMS. This data would be useful in future if a similar problem would occur. This increased the reliability of Otis. Being the leader in the industry, Otis was expected to deliver the best. Living up to everyone’s expectations, Otisline was the first customer service centre. Communication between customers and service sale department became smooth and almost flawless. Teamwork among Otisline staff increased as everyone strived to provide the best customer care. Customer satisfaction increased dramatically as it became easier for customers to talk to the service sector (Otisline, 8). Future Applications and Recommendations Information technology can be used immensely for enhancing Otis’s marketing service such as remote elevator monitoring, In car phones, replacing service mechanic pagers with handheld terminals, new equipment ordering, contract management, and telemarketing of service (Otisline, 9). . Otisline has planned out its future strategy well. As a consultant, I would recommend the telemarketing of service option to be concentrated upon as this would allow Otis to contact customers that require renewing of their contracts with Otis. Customer base would grow gradually with the implementation of telemarketing. Owing to the fact that Otisline has maintained its profits and increased them at a steady pace, the company has become an attractive investment for investors. Thus an increase in share prices will be safe as shareholders will still not hesitate to invest in the company because of its constant profitable status. Works Cited “Otisline (A)”. Harvard Business School 9-186-304 (1990): 1-16. Read More