{"id":49481,"date":"2021-05-28T17:36:00","date_gmt":"2022-10-18T17:36:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.salesforce.com\/?p=49481"},"modified":"2022-11-01T23:56:42","modified_gmt":"2022-11-02T06:56:42","slug":"foxtel-explains-how-to-keep-transformation-projects-on-track-and-customers-at-the-centre","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.salesforce.com\/au\/blog\/foxtel-explains-how-to-keep-transformation-projects-on-track-and-customers-at-the-centre\/","title":{"rendered":"Foxtel on Keeping Transformation Projects on Track and Customers at the Centre"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Foxtel\u2019s mission is straightforward: make it easier for people to watch the TV they love. To achieve that mission, they\u2019re focusing on improving customer experiences \u2013 which maybe isn\u2019t quite<\/i> as straightforward. It has required a large, cross-functional transformation project in a complex business, within a disruptive industry, partially during a public health crisis that heightened customer needs and expectations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So how have they done it? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Adam King, Group Director of Customer, Marketing, Audience Enablement and Corporate Technology, and Jason Smith, Director of Service and Agent Experience, share how they never let a big plan get in the way of making the sometimes small \u2013 but meaningful \u2013 steps that improve customer experience day by day. Here they share three key pieces of advice for achieving customer-focused digital transformation<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Stay focused but flexible<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMost big programs struggle with rigidity,\u201d says Adam King. \u201cYou go in with the best intentions, thinking you know where you\u2019re going to end up in 18 months. But the last 18 months has shown us that\u2019s probably not the most prudent approach.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSo you need something that can be agile in terms of what you\u2019re building as well as agile in the way that you work.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Best laid plans are all very well, but as we\u2019ve seen over recent months, the real test for a company is what they can do when those plans get turned upside down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Foxtel, that meant a surge in people streaming shows from home at all hours of the day and an increase in associated support requests. \u201cWe can\u2019t control what time of the day they might be on,\u201d says Jason. \u201cAnd when things go wrong, we need to be able to offer really strong real-time digital solutions.\u201d The recent State of Service report shows Foxtel is not alone, with 81% of service decision makers accelerating digital initiatives due to the pandemic. Those initiatives are no longer just \u2018nice to have\u2019 \u2013 they are now a necessity. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Part of getting that all important flexibility and agility right is embracing it as a mindset. Often we become wedded to the idea that we have our strategy laid out and everything has to be in place before we can get started. Sometimes, you just have to get started and snap up some quick wins. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe have a longer term strategy for implementing Salesforce,\u201d says Jason. \u201cBut rather than wait to be able to do everything all at once, we started last year to pick off some of the key opportunities that could help us build a foundation. We were looking for where those immediate quick win opportunities could be and how we could start getting our agents and customers used to the platform. We\u2019ve started to build on that, and then we\u2019ll rapidly scale in 2022.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Make the marathon a series of sprints<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The transformation from legacy systems to a single platform for seamless, integrated omni-channel experience is no mean feat. As Adam says, it\u2019s a project that not only involves delivering a newly customer-centric service experience, \u201cit\u2019s also about making sure we\u2019ve got a very clear sales journey, and retention and reacquisition journey. It\u2019s about the entire life cycle of the customer.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So how do you approach eating that elephant? How do you get started with that level of transformation?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou have to break it down into manageable chunks, which enables the team to be very focused on their objectives and aligns nicely with that agile sprint-based approach. It gets you to success a little quicker.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Foxtel, that means using the lessons of their start-up Stream Motion business to inform the transformation of the established Foxtel side of the business. \u201cWe have this body of case studies, examples, references, things that have been successful or not so successful \u2013 it\u2019s a learning platform that we can use to help in our decision-making around the digital transformation of the Foxtel business.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yes, every big project means looking forward to some form of end goal in the future, and Foxtel are focused on what that future looks like for their customer. But getting there doesn\u2019t happen in one big stride. It\u2019s a marathon broken down into sprints \u2013 sprints that can change direction as needed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Let customer needs determine implementation priorities<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOur focus is always on the customer and figuring out how to deliver a really great premium experience to our Foxtel subscribers,\u201d says Adam.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s a focus that informs every aspect of the business including decision making around priorities. \u201cHow do you prioritise the functions you want to put in place?\u201d says Adam. \u201cFor example, if you want to implement a bot you have to look at what job that bot does. What is the value it adds compared to the complexity involved in implementation?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the State of Service report<\/a>, 88% of service teams say the pandemic exposed tech gaps in their organisation. Those gaps can rarely be closed overnight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSo how do you pick which jobs to accelerate so you can deliver improvements to efficiencies and customer experience, but not lose sight of dealing with the bigger, more complex jobs? This is always going to involve some hard questions about what you choose not to unpack right away.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At Foxtel, implementation of messaging and social capabilities, for example, very quickly became a priority for fast implementation. They had not only experienced an increase in the volume of interactions but also in the complexity of the customer use cases. Introducing social and messaging tools took less than ten weeks and made the agents\u2019 days easier within a couple of months with customers responding to a more efficient conversation and an overall more seamless experience. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A comprehensive digital overhaul of customer experience is a major project – big enough to get lost in. Find your way and stay the course with careful prioritisation (and always with the customers\u2019 most urgent needs in mind), a flexible approach in a shifting landscape, and a willingness to go for small wins while keeping the bigger picture afloat.<\/p>\n\n\n