Customer requirement management is the process required to identify, analyze, prioritize, address, and monitor customer demands on us as an organization. It is a system to ensure that we as an organization meet customer expectations and other demands placed on us. This can involve gathering requirements from customers, communicating actions taken to meet demands, documenting changes, and implementing improvements.
Customer requirement management involves first identifying customer demands. This is appropriately done by collecting information from the customer industries and the organization's most important customers, such as from their supplier agreements and related terms, their websites, during negotiations with customers identifying important demands on the organization, conducting environmental monitoring regarding current and intended customer industries.
Depending on the industries your customers operate in and the type of business you conduct, the demands may be more formal and are often related to industry agreements, standards, or legal requirements.
Once requirements have been identified, they are analyzed to determine if each requirement is realistically achievable for our business. This means first identifying if the requirement should reasonably include our business. It is quite common for companies to set the same criteria for all their suppliers regardless of what they deliver because it is easy for the customer to set a generic demand. But difficult for, for example, a service company to meet requirements that are actually directed at the customer's component suppliers. Thereafter, it should be investigated if there are any economic or other limitations that make it difficult or uninteresting to meet the demands at all. One should then have a good understanding of what it will require of the organization to meet the demands.
After the requirements have been analyzed, they are prioritized to ensure that the critical actions are taken first. Then measures to meet the requirements must be developed. This can involve implementing processes, improving the product or service, developing new features, improving customer service, or improving quality.
When actions have been developed, they must be communicated to customers, and it is important to document the changes and monitor customer expectations to ensure these are met.
Effective customer requirement management requires IT tools such as:
Customer requirement management is a critical process for all companies, regardless of size or industry.
By systematically identifying, analyzing, and prioritizing customer demands, companies can ensure they deliver products and services that meet or exceed customer expectations.
This not only leads to increased customer satisfaction and loyalty but also helps drive innovation, improve efficiency, and increase the company's competitiveness in the market. Furthermore, it creates value for different stakeholders within the company, including salespersons, product developers, customer service personnel, marketers, and the CEO. All companies, whether certified or not, should consider implementing robust systems and processes for customer requirement management as part of their overall business strategy.
Understanding your customer leads to success.
