The Company needs to develop non-price competitive advantages, which are based on the formation of a strategy to improve the quality of services provided and the level of customer service.
Customer orientation is the main element of anti-crisis management, which offers the Holding additional advantages, especially during a downturn in traffic volumes.
The interpretations of the concept of customer orientation are closest to the working conditions of the Russian Railways holding, in understanding the companys ability to create an additional flow of customers and additional profit [1].
The main objective of the Holding is a mutually beneficial long-term partnership with customers, the constant development of a portfolio of products and services in the interests of consumers.
For the Holding, which has more than 30 types of business in its portfolio from freight and passenger transportation, from logistics, construction services, design, IT and even healthcare, a cardinal reversal of all resources and processes towards the client is a unique task covering all processes, from planning to the direct implementation of transportation and its resource provision. It is made even more unique by regulatory conditions, social responsibility and a special role in the countrys economy, determined by the main shareholder the state.
The model of Russian Railways that has existed up to now, where 90% of business depends on the basic rail transportation service, with tariffs regulated by the state, cannot generate a financial flow to implement the necessary level of investment. The new business model, defined by the Development Strategy of the Russian Railways holding for the period up to 2030, provides for the transformation of the company from a transportation to a transport and logistics company, providing, in addition to the basic transportation service, a full range of services with the expansion of the range of 3PL, 4PL services and the formation of end-to-end supply chains in the cargo segment and multimodality in passenger transportation.
To form non-price competitive advantages of the Company today, it is necessary to develop and implement a strategy in the field of improving the quality of services provided and the level of customer service. As long as there is no customer orientation, full fulfillment of all obligations on the part of the railway, well-coordinated work between all structural divisions, the cargo will go to other alternative modes of transport, and the railway will have heavy losses.
2.2 Tasks and activities of the Department of Business Development and Customer Orientation
In December 2014, the Department of Business Development and Customer Orientation was established.
The main goals of the Department, fixed in the regulations approved by the President of the company, are (Figure 2.1) [8]:
formation and implementation of a strategy for customer-oriented activities of the divisions of JSC «Russian Railways» and its subsidiaries in order to maximize customer demand for the services of the holding of the required quality as a basis for increasing its economic efficiency;
ensuring the achievement of the strategic objectives of the production and economic activities of the Russian Railways holding and the established parameters of its effectiveness through business development and customer orientation.
To fulfill these goals, the new department focused on the following main areas of activity:
1) development of corporate policy of internal and external customer orientation of the Russian Railways Holding;
2) organization of the development of new transport products and the formation of an optimal portfolio of services provided by the Russian Railways holding to external customers, taking into account the exclusion of intra-holding competition;
3) coordination of the interaction of business units in order to ensure the balance of their activities aimed at business development and customer orientation;
4) development of tools for researching the needs of internal and external customers and assessing their satisfaction with the quality of services;
5) development of industry standards and creation of a unified catalog of internal and external services of the Russian Railways holding.
The Department of Business Development and Customer Orientation was abolished in 2015 and now the model of a customer-oriented company is formed by the corporate system of internal and external customer orientation of Russian Railways.
2.3 Corporate system for the development of customer orientation formation of the Russian Railways Holding
In 2010, the concept of «Customer orientation» was fixed in the Model of corporate competencies of JSC «Russian Railways» «5K+L» as one of the main values of the Companys brand. The world does not stand still: technologies are rapidly developing, the level of digitalization of transport is growing, customer needs are changing, which means that the strategic objectives of the company are also changing. In order to develop and improve the customer-oriented approach in JSC «Russian Railways», extensive analytical work was carried out with the participation of a large number of managers, including top managers of the company, and in 2019 an updated model of corporate competencies of JSC «Russian Railways» was approved, which consists of 8 blocks: innovativeness; customer orientation; responsibility for the result; organization of work process; teamwork and mutual assistance; development and care of employees; integrated thinking; effective communication.
Each of the 8 corporate competencies has a different interpretation of concepts for each level of employees and is divided into two types: professional and corporate.
There are four management levels of the Russian Railways holding company. The first three levels include managers, the degree of importance begins with the first level of managers, which is evaluated at the Corporate University of JSC «Russian Railways», the second and third levels include positions from the deputy head of the linear enterprise to the deputy head of the service. The fourth level includes workers and specialists of the holding.
Personnel evaluation is one of the main tasks for a systematic unified personnel reserve, since in the process of this procedure, the qualification knowledge of employees and the assessment of the effectiveness of performing due duties are determined.
There is a single stage in the development of customer orientation in large Russian and foreign holdings.
Stage 1. Understanding customer orientation.
Stage 2. Education of customer orientation.
Stage 3. Customer orientation training.
Stage 4. Reward of customer orientation.
For the successful implementation of the principles of customer orientation, 5 key components are identified, which are fundamental for obtaining a productive result (Figure 2.2) [5].
For fruitful and methodical work aimed at the development of customer orientation, it is necessary to determine due attention to the study of the principles of customer orientation and the basics of organizing work with internal and external clients of the Russian Railways holding.
2.4 Internal and external customer orientation of the Russian Railways Holding. Customer orientation principles
The concept of «client» is interpreted not only in relation to the consumer of the service or the buyer, but can also be used to identify the interests and internal customers. The achievement of strategic goals by the company is impossible without meeting the requirements for the entire transportation process and its participants. Therefore, the concept of customer orientation is considered to be complex, which includes an external and internal component (Figure 2.3).
External customer orientation is responsible for the strength and long-term relationship with customers, as well as their level of satisfaction and loyalty.
Internal customer orientation is characterized by the quality of interaction between the structural divisions of JSC «Russian Railways», considers the effectiveness of the organization of end-to-end cross-functional processes in the process of value creation from the moment of their planning until the completion of the provision of services to an external client.
In accordance with the order of JSC «Russian Railways» dated July 26, 2016 No. 1489r, the development of the Holdings external customer orientation provides [6]:
building a system of segmentation and differentiation of customers in each type of activity, identification and implementation of needs for each segment and client;
offering customers modern services in all types of business;
ensuring accessibility and simplification of procedures for concluding contracts for the provision of services;
development of inter- and multi-modal transportation;
expansion of the portfolio of end-to-end complex services based on the development of logistics technologies: door-to-door delivery, just-in-time, last mile, etc.;
development and implementation of loyalty programs in all types of activities;
building customer feedback mechanisms;
development and application of tools for assessing the level of customer satisfaction and loyalty;
development and implementation of an Integrated information management system in the field of customer relations (CRM systems);
unification of requirements for quality and consumer characteristics of services, implementation of service quality standards;
development of the institute of customer service managers and unified customer service centers at the landfills of the railway network;
development of marketing functions and active promotion of services in regional and linear divisions of the Corporate Transport Service Center a branch of JSC «Russian Railways»;
improvement of the regulatory environment and legal framework in the field of freight transportation;
increasing the level of corporate culture in terms of the development of customer orientation and the focus of business units on a single result;
providing quality services in all types of business.
The development of internal customer orientation provides:
implementation of development concepts and functional strategies by type of activity;
coordination of interaction between structural divisions, branches of JSC «Russian Railways» and business units of the holding «Russian Railways», aimed at forming an optimal portfolio of services based on the requirements of the transport market and the accepted parameters of strategic development;
development of cross-functional end-to-end processes aimed at creating additional value for customers;
improvement of the internal turnover of services based on the application of the system of work orders and quality parameters;
improvement and expansion of the use of technological audit tools for the creation and implementation of services and services;
fulfillment of the Companys obligations under the Collective Agreement of JSC «Russian Railways»;
ensuring social stability in labor collectives;
implementation of internal corporate training and staff development programs;
implementation of projects «Construction of technological housing» to secure highly qualified personnel.
The principles of customer orientation are crucial for a large holding of JSC «Russian Railways». The fulfillment of the conditions of the principles will allow the company to attract an additional flow of customers and profit, thanks to the understanding, quality approach and satisfaction of the needs of each of them.
The key principles of JSC «Russian Railways» are:
1) the company should have only one idea about customer orientation;
2) the rules of interaction with the client should be clearly regulated;
3) how customer-oriented the company is should be decided by the customer himself;
4) customers should be differentiated;
5) the companys orientation should be aimed at key customers;
6) customer orientation should have the effect of increasing the profitability of the company;
7) there will be no customer orientation without profit from investing in the service;
8) the concept of «customer» should not be limited to the concept of consumers of goods and services;
9) the company is obliged to take into account the interests of internal customers.
2.5 Unified Customer Orientation Policy of the Russian Railways Holding
The unified policy of customer orientation of the Russian Railways Holding was developed in accordance with the instructions of the final meeting of the Management Board of JSC Russian Railways for 2015 and approved by the Order of JSC Russian Railways No. 1489r dated July 26, 2016. The main guidelines for the development of this policy were the implementation of strategies for the development of the railway industry and the Russian Railways holding, as well as long-term development programs of the holding, creating a basis for meeting the needs and expectations of internal and external customers.
The policy complies with the current legislative norms and takes into account the provisions of internal, regulatory legal acts of the Russian Railways Holding.
It defines the basic principles of the formation and functioning of the corporate customer orientation system in the Russian Railways holding, including structural divisions, branches of JSC Russian Railways, subsidiaries and affiliates of the Russian Railways holding at all levels of management (Figure 2.4), will fix the unity of norms, principles, methods and approaches in the holding, including all structural divisions, subsidiaries and dependent companies at all levels of management.
The policy takes into account world experience, which indicates that a full-scale transition to the principles of customer orientation is one of the main competitive advantages that ensure in the medium and long term the growth of revenue from existing and new customers.
This Policy contains the basic values, criteria and rules shared by managers and employees and serves as the basis for the activities of all structural divisions, branches of JSC «Russian Railways», subsidiaries and affiliates of the holding «Russian Railways» in the field of freight transportation, including regional and linear levels of management.
The customer orientation policy is aimed at implementing a clear understanding that the quality of services and products directly depends on the quality of production processes, which can be achieved through coordinated activities of all divisions, business units and business units of the holding.