Global Account Management Free Essay Example

Global business world is highly competitive fueled by new inventions and innovations which decorates operational activities. This changes in business environment, changes management methods, techniques and approach in business operations, but since changes can not be avoided business must embraced it in order to retain it’s market share. However management changes can not produce desired result without proper planning and implementations.

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Therefore this essay shall closely examine the Schneider Electrical Global Account Management initiative, key drivers in the market, preparedness for implementation, benefit and disadvantages to the firm and clients.

INTRODUCTION The concept of GAM (Global Account Management) refers to a relationship oriented marketing management approach which focuses on dealing with the needs of an important global customer, whom in this case is referred as an account with a global organization (Wilson Speare 2002).

Thus GAM is business management process that aim at providing strategically important customers with a co-ordinated value proposition that suits customer’s need wherever they may operate in the world.

This make a customer to perceive the supplier as an indispensable strategic resource, hence the customer will be prepared to share the enhanced value created through the relationship with the supplier (Ghoshal Birkinshaw Bartlett 2004). The aspect of GAM is important because global firms have specific requirements which demands a higher level of account management and support for their mobile communications solutions.

In this view GAM (Global Account Management) offers simple, reliable and consistent support worldwide for these global firms. The other component of GAM encompasses the area and scale of operation across five continents and partner networks (Wilson Speare 2002). Therefore it is vital to understand the needs for multinational companies that satisfy local level requirements, drive global standards and practices within the business environment.

In order do this the management structure must have a Global Account Manager who oversee regional relationships, regional account strategy, account planning opportunities and customer satisfaction globally (Kingsley 2003). And second to Global Account Manager firm must have a National Account Managers to oversees local relationships, local input to overall account strategy and implementation of firm’s global strategy locally, local account planning, identifying local opportunities and co-sales of global opportunities, local customer satisfaction and Delivery against firm’s local targets (Lawrence John 2000).

In this case Global Account Management shall be providing the organization with a single point of contact delivering consistency of service, support and commercial terms globally. However in order to have a successful implementation of GAM the organization should be prepared and plan well, focusing on its’ key components of business like accounting, aspect of globalization and information management (Wilson Speare 2002). Analysis of Schneider Electrical Global Account Management French-based Schneider Electric company was established in 1782 as an industrial equipment company in automation industry.

It made history for building the first French locomotive in the year 1836. Today the company have more than 85,000 employees, operating in more than 130 countries worldwide and 13,000 distributor outlets globally. The total revenue is about $14 billion that grows at 18 percent annually and organic growth of 8. 5 percent. This revenue increased by 6. 4 percent from 2004 to 2005 significantly (Schneider Electrics 2007). Schneider Electric company started Global Account Management with an American firm Capiato.

This initiative was beneficial to both organizations because Schneider made products that suited Capiato market, both identified mutual benefit initiatives in product development, improved productivity, reduced project cycle-time and reduced purchasing and inventory costs. From then the firm has made progress in it’s GAM invention since the formation of SGBD in the year 1992 with Fritz Keller as its International Accounts Manager. The company strategy was to maintain its position in the market and customize innovations to fulfill customers’ needs.

At the same time meet the standards and practices which are applicable to individual countries through adaptation of products. This strategy needed a strong Global Account Management system to ensure the company remains top in automobile industry globally. All this could not happen without the management understanding key business drivers to be used to formulate Global Account Management. Therefore in the following section this essay shall examine the company’s drivers for Global Account Management.