► Telcos
► Mobile Phone Network Operators
► Electronics & Telecommunications Manufacturers
► IT and Ecommerce
► Service Industry
► Chemical, Metal and Mining Industry
► Consulting Industry and Associations
| Topic | Project details | Client |
| Telcos | ||
| Start-up of a voice-over-IP-service | • Aim: Launching complex voice-over-IP product in a slow and complex organization within 9 months. Becoming the national market leader. • Business planning (investments, break-even, net present value, ...), creation of decision papers for formal approval by all board members. • Specification of system requirements, system technology procurement. • Detailed process design (sales, subscriber activation, billing, lawful interception, maintenance procedures, ...). • Organizational design. • Project management (full scale implementation, ensuring that the infrastructure and processes are available on time). • Creation of terms and conditions / solving legal issues. • Product definition and product management. • System testing (in lab and pilot customers). • Market communication together with a marketing agency (brochures, TV-ads, CeBIT). |
Large European telecommunication enterprise |
| Redesigning a telco's maintenance operation | • Aim: Efficiency improvement of the geographically distributed maintenance service organization (30 000 people at over 100 locations handling 10 000 different products). • Designing and implementing an integrated task planning and dispatch system to minimize unnecessary/ unsuccessful customer visits. • Optimization of travel time, prioritizing assignments according to clients' service levels. • Introduction of an artificial intelligence system to support fault resolution for maintenance staff at the end location. • Improved information sharing across all departments and regions. • Redesign of major maintenance processes. |
A large European telecommunication enterprise |
| Telecommunication industry 10 year forecast | • Market research and analysis about technological development, industry segmentation, players, financial impacts, economy and society. • Delphi interviews of relevant experts. • Creation of a modelling basis for forecasting for the appropriate long term strategies. • Ghostwriting the CEO's presentation at the World Economic Summit (Davos) and at several national and international events. |
Telco (national market leader) |
| IP inter-carrier sales strategy | • "Make or Buy"-strategies for acquisition of own fiber optic network (30 cities across 4 countries). • Strategies concerning depths of own value creation (IP-transfer, IP-connectivity, dark fiber, ...). • Procurement and sales negotiations with other carriers (MCI, Level 3, Deutsche Telekom, KPNQWEST, ...). |
Telco (trans-European start-up) |
| Benchmarking global best practice for fixed telecommunication marketing | • Market research about key telecommunication markets (UK, Sweden, Netherlands, USA, Chile, ...) based on desk research and phone interviews. • Analysis of most promising telecommunication products and distribution approaches. Identification/invention of new products. • Strategy workshops with client. • Creation of basic business cases for new key products. |
Telco reseller (German market leader) |
| Telco maintenance operations benchmarking | • Aim: Getting operational information about maintenance operations from competing telcos who normally would not cooperate. • Setting-up an industry panel (questionnaire, university involvement for better reputation). • Invitation of participants (15 telcos from 4 continents). • Conduction of expert interviews and analyzing key findings. • Creation of report, distributing panel results to all participants. • Results: Client got key insights for its massive restructuring initiative. Panel participants satisfied. |
Telco (Brazil) |
| Mobile Phone Network Operators | ||
| Mobile phone operator start-up | • Designing the company's organizational structure. • Processes design (for all departments). • Design and creation of all relevant departments: network, technology, infrastructure roll-out, marketing, sales, subscriber administration, activation, credit check, recruiting, logistics, legal, ... • Recruitment of personnel and training of employees. • Specification of system requirements. Procurement of hard and software, as well as system technology. • Identification of the corporate headquarters location. • Product definition and product management. |
Mobile phone operator (Austria) |
| Set-up of industry panel for mobile phone network maintenance | • Background: The client is interested to benchmark its maintenance operation figures with its international counterparts. Since the established players refused to share competitive information, this panel approach was set-up. • Setting-up benchmarking panel methodology. • Identifying and approaching panel participants (10 European mobile phone operators). • Conducting expert interviews with panellists. • Publishing results to all participants. |
Mobile phone operator (Austria) |
| International benchmarking mobile phone marketing and distribution | • Market research, interviews, workshops and benchmarking visits in the most advanced markets (Sweden, Denmark, Germany, UK, ...). • Development of the sales strategy. • Negotiations with key sales channels/-partners. |
Mobile phone operator (France) |
| Billing system migration | • Aim: Ensuring a smooth system migration of all subscribers from the legacy billing system to a standard billing system. • Identifying improvement possibilities of current billing processes. • Designing the to-be-processes. • Identifying migration risks and creation of contingency plans. • Detailed project planning for the system migration. |
Mobile phone operator (Greece) |
| Interim management for start-up mobile phone operator | • Situation: Mobile phone operator realized 8 weeks before the communicated network launch date that they are far behind schedule. To avoid further losses, a provisionary commercial launch has to take place within 8 weeks. • Specification of system requirements and procurement of IT systems (billing, activation, warehousing and logistics, CRM, call center). • Civil engineering project management to ensuring that the headquarters premises are available on time. • Design of call center processes / creation of agent scripts. • Interim management with a high number of contingency measures to overcome implementation shortages. • Results: Commercial launch on time, despite the originally huge project delay. |
Mobile phone operator (India) |
| Launching a mobile phone service provider | • Strategy definition based on market research / analysis of German service provider market. • Financial and operational simulation of market entry. • Contract negotiations with all mobile network operators. • Identification of alternative market entry strategies. • Identification / invention of niche market mobile services • Detailed business plans for five disruptive mobile services (access via roaming, calling cards, ...). • Executive strategy workshops. |
Mobile Phone Service Provider (German start-up) |
| Mobile service distribution strategy | • SWOT analysis of client market situation. • Mystery shopping to identify adherence of cooperation partners. • Identification of available strategy options. • Business plan and business process modelling. • Set-up of mathematical models for UK demand forecasts (5 years, break down by carrier and sales channel). • Formulating a make or buy strategy. |
Mobile phone service provider (UK) |
| Electronics & Telecommunications Manufacturers | ||
| Business area refocus strategy | • Interviews with stakeholders of all key business areas.. • SWOT analysis for all key business areas (including telecommunication industry trends and competitors). • Portfolio strategy, recommendations to the board. • Result: Focus on 4 business areas, discontinuation of 3. |
Large German telecommunications manufacturer |
| Market strategy voice value-added-services | • Market research / expert interviews of voice based value added services. • Analyzing the market trends to forecast future situation, developing strategic key recommendations. • Workshop with the client and the client's customers. |
Swiss telecommunications manufacturer |
| Key account strategy | • Aim: Marketing and sales strategy to become one of the top three supplier of an international telco. • Identification of the customer's procurement situation. • Identification of the key account situation of each key competitors. • SWOT analysis for own product and service portfolio. • Defining new key account strategy and redesign of sales operation. |
German operations of international telecommunications manufacturer |
| Sales organization restructuring | • Identification of key issues in sales operation. • Redesigning organizational structure. • Reallocating customers and channels among the sales teams. • Redesigning current sales processes. |
Large consumer electronics manufacturer |
| Distribution channel strategy desktop computers | • Systematic identification of all relevant sales channels. • Market research about existing shop networks (size, growth, approach, P&L). • Business modelling for large scale shop network (timed rollout). |
Large European computer manufacturer |
| SIM card service strategy | • Aim: Creation of revenue streams from new services, additionally to component business. • SWOT analysis and development of strategic framework. • Interviews, workshops and visits with the leading mobile network operators (France, Belgium, Spain, Portugal, ...). • Identification of new services, e. g. subscriber activation outsourcing, SIM replacement service, logistics, ... . • Business cases for new services. • Patenting of invention made during project. |
French SIM-card manufacturer (world market leader) |
| IT and Ecommerce | ||
| Telecommunication procurement cost reduction | • Telecommunication spend identification (over 10 mn EUR for 10 000 employees across 15 countries): Consolidating data from different accounting systems, cost segmentation into categories (fix voice, mobile voice, data, VAS, ...). • Identification of service levels and usage volumes (today and future). • Identification of current telecommunication structure, design of future structure. • Identification of new cost saving approaches / new technologies. • Contract negotiations with existing and newly identified suppliers. (RFI, RFQ, facilitated negotiations). • Contract restructuring to reduce spend within current contracts, bundling / un-bundling of service needs, decomposition of suppliers‘ price structures, internal best pricing). • Project results: 28% cost reduction on telecommunications spend. |
IT-systems house (world leader, Asia Pacific operation) |
| Start-up of electronic project market place | • Business concept (market studies, target group panels, brand name). • Identification and selection of key suppliers (service, graphics, programming, financial advisor). • Business registration as a UK Limited company. • Managing launch of service. • Ongoing operations management. Introduction of additional features and services. • Creation of a licensee model. • Internet marketing and PR (newsletter, SEO, SEM, affiliate marketing, public presentations, media releases, customer retention). |
Ecommerce (German start-up) |
| Turnkey start-up of ecommerce platform | • Defining start-up strategy for tax advisor market place, implementation plan, definition of milestones. • Identification of business name (market research, target audience panels). • Recruiting the relevant experts and suppliers (designer, writer, web designer) as part of turn-key solution. • Implementation management. • Results: Platform up and running within two months. |
Tax consultancy (Germany) |
| Start-up of a global Internet navigation service | • Aim: To launch a global mapping service similar to Google-Maps. • Development of the specific internet technology. • Supplier identification (maps, rendering, massive data hosting, programmers). • Managing launch of service (global coverage based on 110 000 sub-maps). • Product management (introduction of additional features and services). • PR, media releases. |
Ecommerce (German start-up) |
| Start-up of telephone directory service | • Business case development / VC strategy. • Industry benchmarking • Design of viral marketing mechanisms. • Restructuring IT-operations. • Usability testing. • Coaching of founder team. |
Ecommerce (Australian start-up) |
| Businessplan ecommerce | • Aim: Business plan for a long term ecommerce commitment. • Creation of core team consisting of managers from all relevant enterprise areas. • Definition of the BP structure. • Review of all initiatives within the corporation. • Development of the long term product vision. • Co-ordination of the team members' contributions. • Overall Results: Business plan that has the commitment from all stakeholders, investment decision. |
International farming machine manufacturer |
| Service Industry | ||
| Start-up of international payment card operations | • Aim: Launching a new card payment product for transportation industry across 39 countries. • Assessment of the existing processes in terms of applicability for the new product stream. • Focus interviews with employees of al levels to identify soft implementation issues. • Identification of international best-in-class processes. • Make or buy strategy for the different operational steps. • Definition and implementation of the to-be processes. |
German automotive manufacturer |
| Efficiency improvement of HR-operations | • Centralized identification of absenteeism rates across the 10 000 employees of 300 departments in 10 countries. • Identification of key absenteeism reasons among staff. • Process reengineering, setting-up an online reporting system with early warning indications for 300 department managers. • Designing and piloting of other HR-projects (occupational health cost reduction, performance management improvement, recruiting in-sourcing, ...). • Results: Absenteeism reduced by 3 days per year. |
IT system house (Australia) |
| Process improvement real estate marketing | • Aim: Improving the process and sales efficiency. • Strategy definition workshops. • Focus interviews with employees of al levels. • Documentation of as-is-processes. • Identification of international best-in-class processes. • Definition and implementation of the to-be processes. |
German real estate broker |
| Launching a recruitment agency | • Aim: Start-up of a recruitment agency / temps agency for call centre agents. • Business planning. • Incorporation as a German limited corporation. • Process design and product design. • Creation of an Assessment Center for applicants. • Interim management of operations. • Recruiting and training of employees. |
German telemarketing agency |
| Product implementation of a registered letter product | • Overall project management. • Interactive process design together with all involved departments and suppliers. • Choosing the appropriate tracking & tracing technology and supplier selection. • Identification of product quality criteria and committing all process owners. • Process implementation. |
European postal service company |
| European software distribution strategy | • Market research about software distribution in 10 key European markets (market figures, structures and players) . • Interviews with international market experts. • Mathematic modelling for each market. • Identifying KPIs for each market. • Strategies for market entry per country. |
Publishing house (Austria) |
| M&A project management | • Establishing company value (business plan, calculation of net present value evaluation based on depreciated future cash flows). • Creation of sales brochures (brief, full, sanitized). • Defining M&A strategy options (buying, selling, co-operating, investor). • Identifying potential target companies (Europe wide), establishing contacts with decision makers, NDA. • Facilitating structured negotiations between client and target. • Supporting the contract procedures (legal, financial, taxation, ...). • Supporting the due diligence procedures. |
Telemarketing agency (Germany) |
| Sales organization restructuring | • Identification of sales force KPI. • New organizational design for the sales organization. • Development of efficient key incentives for sales force. |
German Insurance Group |
| Chemical, Metal and Mining Industry | ||
| International key account sales process | • Aim: Improving sales conversions of international customers during the 2-4 day visit at the enterprise's test and technology center. • Detailed process design (customer travel logistics and welcome, management of customer specific test jobs, cultural programme). • Set-up a new department for customer visit management. • Coaching the department's manager (leadership, management skills). • Results: Department functional within 3 months. About 10 weekly visits of client teams. About 50% of visits result in orders > 1 mn Euro. |
International printing machine manufacturer |
| Production cost reduction | • Target: 30% cost reduction, all initiatives must have payback within 2 years. • Kick-off (securing project resources, focus interviews, benchmarking, basic analysis). • Client mobilization (workshops, in-house PR-events, company newspaper). • Analyzing accounting data to identify and define key improvement areas. • Master plan creation (2 years, 10 departments involved). • Launching improvement teams (pilot team, then one team per department). • Identification of over 100 improvement ideas (brainstorming, workshops, process analysis, ...). • Feasibility and financial validation of all improvement ideas. Getting board approval for all large investments. • Implementation of quick win projects (implementation of other projects was performed by client himself). • Project results: Cost reduction over 100 mn EUR within 2 years. |
Steel manufacturer (German market leader) |
| HR-operations re-engineering | • HR-improvement team kick-off for 5 people over 18 months (Coaching and training of the team during initial 3 months). • Evaluation and prioritization of key issues (focus interviews, criteria ranking, workshops, cause-results analysis). • Managing reduction of recruitment time from 9 to 3 months. • Creating a system to ensure clear roles and responsibilities. Creation of high transparency across the whole organization. • Restructuring other HR process, e. g. visa application, temporary labor pool, industrial relationship management, ... |
Namibian mine of a global mining company |
| Procurement cost reduction | • Aim: Helping the procurement department to reduce the expenditures for mining equipment and for temporary labor by 20%. • Identification of key spendings from accounting systems. • Definition of procurement needs (features, qualities, quantities) with process owners. • Global identification of alternative suppliers. • RFI, RFQ, RFP and negotiations with suppliers. • Overall Results: 21% cost reduction in the addressed areas. |
Global mining company, British operations |
| International distribution strategy for specialised chemicals | • Challenge: Low international market penetration despite having leading product features and being number one in national market. Client could not find reasons, despite several analyses. • Focus interviews in 10 countries with employees (all levels), customers, dealers. • Structuring and rating of the findings. • Client workshops to priotise issues and improvement approaches. • Results: Identified the core issue (previously unknown to client) and development of a suitable solution. |
German market leader for specialised chemicals |
| Consulting Industry and Associations | ||
| Benchmarking European electronics manufacturing | • Market research (Internet, press, interviews). • Research report (to be translated into Japanese). |
Japanese industry association |
| Video documentary about Nobel Price Winner | • Ensuring project funding from six contributors. • Recruiting of team members for camera, sound, video mixing, graphics, DVD authoring, translations into 16 subtitle languages, Internet channel. • Project management and performing interview with Nobel Prize Winner Prof. Reinhard Selten. • Media production and distribution to 20 countries. |
International business association |
| Market research about German consulting industry | • Market research / interviews with industry experts. • Identification of key figures from all players (market reports). • Identification of key customers and projects. • Creation of a large ACCESS database with all relevant data. |
Business consultancy (German market leader) |
| Global alliance maps | • Aim: Graphical overviews of alliances and shareholder structures for 3 global industries (telecommunication, chemical and banking). • Creation of a special database to manage inconsistent alliance data/information. • Creation of the necessary tools to graphically represent the alliances. • Market research to identify and update alliance data (shareholders). • Publication of maps in business press. |
German operations of a global business consultancy |
| Launching a telecommunications industry think tank | • Aim: Creating a market research department for the international telecommunication industry. • Start-up the department (hiring and developing 6 employees to cover 6 languages). • Interim management of the department, acquisition of projects, growing department until break-even. • Performed first 20 international research and strategy projects ( Focus: telecommunications, ecommerce, call center). • Presenting results to key clients and as a speaker at international conferences. |
Business consultancy (Germany, global player) |
| Toolkit for start-up mobile phone operators | • Aim: Creation of a standard toolkit to support turn-key start-up mobile phone operators. • License bidding processes. • State of the art organizational structures. • Designing all key mobile phone processes. • Development of standardized implementation plans. • Develop of standardized business planning toolkit. |
Business consultancy (large UK player) |