Book Reviews

Building A Chain Of Customers

By Richard J. Schonberger

Reviewed by Steve Buchwald, CIRM

This month's book review is on an exceptionally well written book published in 1990. I included the publish date here because as you know from previous book reviews I think the publish data is extremely important. Why? Because, as a book becomes old, two things can occur. The first, is that the examples cited are often so out of date that they become meaningless. Second is that the approaches can be so out of date that they can be misleading. However, an interesting thing occurs with this particular, somewhat old book. The ideas presented here are right on. There is very little that has occurred that would make the approach presented here old or misleading. Nonetheless, the examples cited are still out of date. Therefore my recommendation is to read this book and to make notes of the companies mentioned and then find time to conduct your own up to date analysis. I think you will find that the companies that have truly followed the path outlined here will still be successful.

The purpose of this book is to demonstrate the importance of linking business functions to create a "World-Class" company. As I began to read this book, I was thinking "haven't we heard enough of these stories yet?" Every company knows what they need to do to become world class. But of course I was wrong, as usual. The problem is that we have all heard these stories over and over again, but far too many companies ignore them. Their excuse is always that they are different and that these ideas don't apply to them! I have news for them, if they don't listen soon there will be no tomorrow. They should listen closely to the approach Schonburger recommends. He simple says that you have to put the "Customer-In" the organization, and then to link all the business functions to support this concept. As Schonburger says, "If left on the outside, the customer gets treated with indifference and offers the same in return." Schonburger was astute enough in 1990 to have foreseen the need to form – focused teams of multi-skilled, involved employees arranged according to the way the work flows or the service is provided. His 19 principles of World-Class, Customer-Driven performance cover General, Design & organization, Operations, Human Resource Development, Quality & Problem-Solving, Accounting & Control, Capacity, and Marketing.

Just how astute was Schonburger? Well, you are probably just now hearing of the virtues of Supply Chain Management. However, in 1990 when Schonburger wrote this book he said, "A few years ago, some firms began devising tactics for supply chain management-a worthy new term, because supply chain captures the essential idea of a long-linked partnership. Customer chain (or chain of customers) captures the same thing-and has two extra virtues: (1) It reaches forward toward the source of demand and revenue. (2) It sounds like a broad undertaking, whereas some might assume "supply chain" to be just a logistics concept." One of the problems with the current movement toward SCM is its narrow focus on one company as the center of the chain and its proximity to logistics. It is amazing that Schonburger had the broad vision to see this so long ago - but you get used to insight like that when you read this book.

Please do you and your company a favor and get a copy of this book and read it soon. Then let me know what you think. Until we see each other again then let me wish you good reading.