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As the new VP, Customer Success and Flagship Programs, Jackie explains how she approached the daunting task of changing CA Technologies’s customer reference program. In just six months since taking it over, she’s executing on a plan to get her team away from inefficient and time burning “butler services,” while... read more →

A great article in the Sunday NY Times business section today. Seattle Children's Hospital is both improving patient care and lowering costs by involving its customers (patients' families) in extensive, ongoing process improvement efforts. The include 40 hour (!) workshops.    In a typical workshop at Seattle Children’s, a group of... read more →

I’ve compiled some stats showing how buyers—including senior executives—are   finding vendors through the Web. This is good to keep in mind as you think through how and where your reference content can be most effectively deployed. - Siemens PLM Software reckons that 70% of their buyers’ “journeys” toward the decision... read more →

Online MBA programs have obvious appeal and are enjoying rapid increases in enrollment. But they also suffer from high drop out rates as well. One reason: virtual students don't enjoy the advantages and stimulation of being part of a community like campus based students do. The University of Flordia's Hough... read more →

I hope you can join us starting June 30 for our Summer Teleconference Series: Transforming Your Reference Program: Implementing Change That Creates Dramatic Impact. Does your reference program need to change what it's doing? Have a greater impact on business results? Leverage the Web more effectively? You'll learn how four... read more →

From the June Issue of Reference Point: (To subscribe, click "contact me" at the right.) Marquee customers, particularly large ones, can provide an enticing opportunity for expanding your reach, both in finding more references as well as new customers. Suppose, for example, your company has a terrific, marquee customer--we'll call... read more →

Positioning a customer reference program as a  . .  . customer reference program . . . won't get the attention of senior management at any firm. It's a function. A cost, in the preception of most. Reference program budgets reflect this. But two emerging developments, which came into view at... read more →

I've been attending Sirius Decisions 2010 Summit this week, and getting up to speed on the art of building demand for your products and solutions. In their 2010 survey of B2B buyers, here are some striking results on the question of what sources of information they value most duing the buying... read more →

You either love customers or not, but you can't fake it.  Recently I came across a stray dog as I was just starting a bike ride on lovely Katy Trail near downtown Dallas. I'd snuck out from work for a quick ride and was in a bit of a rush... read more →

Following up least week's early "heads up," here are links to thepress release and to the web pages about the new Customer Reference Forum onsite workshops. They're designed to get customer reference programs well aligned with company strategy, poised to take advantage of social media, and in great shape to help... read more →