Management of Service Organizations

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1. Introduction

1.1 About International Development Company

History

Based in Abu Dhabi, International Development Company is one of the leading service and supply companies in the United Arab Emirates. IDC was established in 1978 and has been operating for a period of over thirty years where it has widened its market base to worldwide level. Its commercial license holder is Sheikh Tahnoon Bin Saeed Shakhbout Al Nahyan. This

means that he owns the larger percentage of the company. Other partners in the company are the heirs of Late Mr. Saif Mohamed Hamdan Al Mansouri. The company established a Dubai branch in 1989 called the Arab Industrial Equipment, which covers dealings in the Northern Emirates (International Development Company website). It also has formed strong associations over the years with Qatar, Iraq, Oman, Jordan, Egypt and Lebanon. This enhances its ability to promote its business interests and those of the international manufacturers and contractors with whom it works. It has also formed partnerships with international organizations hence giving it exposure and the ability to serve their international clients well. It initially was one unit but gradually the company’s units have dispersed into different specific divisions based on their area of operation.

Mission and vision

International Development Company realizes the importance of a mission statement that incorporates what the company offers emphasizing their commitment to quality and customer satisfaction. Its mission is to acquire and maintain a leading role in the service industry in the United Arabs Emirates by supplying the best services in the gas, petrochemical, oil, power, refining and water industries (IDC website). Their key aim is customer satisfaction and adding value to the partner international organizations they represent. Part of its vision is to establish more service facilities that deal with equipment servicing which will result in convenience for its clients. Another vision is to add diversity, exploration and expansion to make the company make a positive impact of the value of the country.

Market

This company boasts of an international market base with holdings far into the Arab nations and partnerships with international organizations. It has branches in different localities to enable it to better deal with its customer base in those localities. It especially has solid relations with Middle Eastern countries that both rely on its products and services.

Products and services provided

Its diversity in its products and services provision is remarkable comprising of many interrelated fields that vary from oil and gas to petrochemical industries, construction, power and water, private industrial projects and telecommunications. It has advanced its expertise in these fields offering innovative and progressive approaches in how it conducts its business dealings and how it delivers to its customers.

Workforce composition

Due to the diversified nature of the company, it comprises of a workforce of diversified nature according to their area of expertise and their level of qualification. This workforce differentiation occurs according to the different company divisions that include; project development, specialized services, chemical supplies, and equipment supply and after sales support, international company representation, construction and engineering services and labor supply. This enables the company to have a well-rounded resource team with a strong workforce able to tackle any issue relating to the company business.

1.2 Service inputs and outputs rendering the company a service company

International Development Company is divided into different divisions that jointly contribute to the company’s revenue. Among these divisions, some are related to the service field in the company. These divisions include project development, after-sale support of equipments supplied by the company, specialized services division, international company representation, construction and engineering services and labor supply (IDC website). In project development, the workforce in this division input their knowledge and innovation skills in research of the market requirements and come up with accurate reports hence bettering projects and resulting in accurate business decisions that raise the competitiveness of the products. This increases the value of the products in question as it is in accordance to the market needs and requirements therefore raising its market value and demand.

The company also employs project development in that the skilled workforce makes use of effective planning and management enabling it to be in complete control of its projects providing assurance to the clients while at the same time minimizing costs that would arise due to lack of proper implementation of strategy in projects. This translates in the returns where the preference of that product in relation to others rises in the market and the sales become higher increasing the revenue of the company. After-sale support service incorporated in the equipment supply department offers maintenance services of the products offered by the company. This requires capital input on the company’s part but the costs are recovered in the higher sales brought about by increased market gain as there is increase in consumer trust in the products due to assurance of post delivery quality service. The specialized services division offers information service to the public on key issues of importance to the company and the products it offers. This ensures that the customers are fully aware of the products and their use and operations and this is done in close conjunction with their international companies. This increases its market share, as there is international exposure to a wider market.

By offering representation to international companies it is affiliated with, it offers exposure and support to the companies it represents (IDC website). This is part of the company’s output. This creates a trusting relationship and supplies logistics and workers to the companies through the large work force team it owns. Thus, by involvement in service provision in the different divisions the company is able to better understand the market and provide goods of the expected high quality hence increasing its share in the market, which reflect in the company’s revenue. Also by representing international companies, IDC creates grounded relations with this companies that is vital in enhanced business relations and growth. Therefore, the companies input in terms of labor input, capital input, time utilization in relation to the services offered in the various divisions should be reflected in its number of customers and the responsiveness of the customers to its services for the realization of contributions.

1.3 Service strategy

Service strategy is a business strategy in the service industry that strives to optimize the company’s services by synchronization of partners, effective utilization of workforce, integration of different service parts and resource forecasting and pricing of services offered (Alexander and Hordes, 2003). The main principals in service provision are service assets, value creation, service structures and service types. The strategy should focus on return on the service investment and improved financial management in the company because of the service field. The most successful companies are those that align their strategies with wants, needs and expectations addressing a particular type of customer. Service strategies vary in relation to the different types of service providers due to the different level of uniqueness in the services provided.

Types of service strategies employed by different service providers

To begin with, there are four different types of service providers classified by importance of the service provided and uniqueness of the service. These are vendors, total solution providers, specialists and game changers in order of value potential and customer expectations and buying strategy employed by the buyers from these service providers. The different strategies employed by the different categories include the lean and mean strategy employed by vendors (Rackham and Vincentis, 1999). Here, the consumers attach little importance to this service providers hence for them to survive they have to employ tactics such as setting no nonsense goals, minimizing on operational costs, use of tactics such as promotions, employment of quality staff development to ensure that minimal costs are employed in service provision.

The second strategy is the niche strategy employed by strategists. This is a strategy employed when a company is viewed by its market as a specialized group meaning that they are particularly experienced in a specific field (Alexander and Hordes, 2003). The downside to this strategy is that the customers only view the providers as providing one particular resource thus trying to diversify in provision of service outside the normal may not be well received by the customer hindering diversification. The third strategy employed in the service industry is the big bang strategy, which is applicable by the total solutions provider. This is applied by the large organization where the customer will not necessarily see the service utilization but these services are vital to the buying organization providing for the overall consumer. Some of these services include brand development strategies for the company, customer service strategy and revenue forecasting by development of corporate business plans. Utilization of this strategy by the organization aids in lowering of costs and improves the potential income of the organization (Rackham and Vincentis, 1999).

Finally, there is the breakthrough strategy applied by game changers who are the most highly regarded service providers by customers. Game changers are viewed to be highly innovative and offer services that are highly critical for the success of a certain organization. Here the providers will have to come through with highly successful strategies addressing a goal-critical issue to the consumer. Consumers regard them at the same level with partners as their success depends on the accuracy and strength in the package provided.

Theories in service strategy

There is employment of theories such as the service recovery theory where the service provider interacts with the consumer to realize their expectations and tailor his services in a way that deals with those needs hence appeasing the market. Priority theory is based on prioritization of customer requirement related to the company’s area of operation and providing them in accordance to their importance (Alexander and Hordes, 2003). There is also the fuzzy set theory used to determine market position and strategy development for service provisions companies.

Importance of service strategy

Service strategies enable the company to provide services relevant to its market by application of the right strategy. Service departments compliment a production company enabling operations to flow smoothly from one department to the other. Another advantage of service activities is that they increase revenue opportunities especially when a poorly performing product gets serviced and upgraded hence it fetches higher prices in the market as it becomes of higher quality. Post-sale service performance increases customer loyalty. With information service availability, the company is able to deal with customer problems faster creating dependability. There is high worker productivity as there is no idle time with the different service provision departments in the company. There is also heightened accountability in the company and tracking of assets becomes manageable.

Service strategy in International Development Company

International Development Company is a large international company offering diversified services to large institutions and organizations alike. It is highly specialized in its dealings hence can be categorized under the category of game changers type of service provider. It offers different types of products each in its own division. This company has different divisions for each service type hence can deal with any problem related to a specific field in its own unique way. In this way, there is specialization within the organization itself with experts in a certain field being allocated in that field. The different service divisions in the company are project development, equipment supply and after-sale support, specialized services, international company representation, construction and engineering services and labor supply. This specialization ensures effective and fast response to issues relating to each specific division hence the overall benefit is felt in the company’s revenue realization.

Strategies employed in the different divisions

Project development

IDC being a company that has been in the service industry for over two decades has gathered high experience and has detailed knowledge of consumer needs therefore is in a position to offer services in accordance to customer expectations. The project development division is in charge of ensuring that the company stays relevant. It has a highly qualified research team that carries out extensive research to provide extensive, detailed and highly accurate market reports aiding the principal decision makers in making accurate business decisions when they are needed (IDC website). This ensures that the company’s activities and decisions are always correct and at the correct time therefore creating consumer confidence as the consumer realizes that their needs are always fulfilled.

The project development team also plays a role in effective planning on projects coming up with the most innovative and appropriate projects and system of running it. They aid in management of task force enabling the company to remain in full control of any project it partakes hence giving assurance to the clients. This results in project completion on schedule and in specification to the client’s satisfaction. International Development Company works in partnership with other international companies therefore by having a project development division, they are able to assist the partners on decision making on which projects will be more viable in the country since they possess a detailed account of the local market needs. They also offer detailed informative feedback on the progress on the project settled upon. Another strategic move employed by IDC is the provision of technologically advanced information management tools and management information systems that are up to scale and ensure no disruption in communication, which is a vital tool in the success of service provision.

Equipment supply and after-sale support services

IDC works in partnership with many international manufacturers and suppliers hence it is in their best interest to offer customer satisfaction on behalf of these partners. They are widely diverse with their products including; mechanical and rotating equipment, process machinery, electrical, control and instrumentals machinery, drilling and completion products and line piping and fitting products. The main service strategy employed by International Development Company in relation to this division is the provision of after sale support, for example shipment of these products, warranties in relation to this product assuring the purchaser of maintenance of the purchased good (IDC website). This works in creating customer loyalty to the company as they have confidence in the company’s ability to deliver and keep its word. This also aids to keep the company’s production team on their toes by creation of quality products to avoid the extra costs incurred in repair and maintenance of the product. This leads to production of high quality products helping the company create a good reputation for itself.

Specialized services

IDC being a company that associates with different international partners who are reputable companies worldwide, the company’s main goal is providing specialized expertise in the specific services required by the each company. Hence, the company incorporates new services as the company expands and the market base grows. The services that are unique to the different fields include, quality assurance and control, which ensures that the products released into the market are of high standards and high durability, geotechnical surveys, corrosion monitoring of the pipelines provided to ensure that the can resist corrosion preventing leakages and environmental pollution, safety consultancy by the different production divisions and partner companies.

Other services offered include constant environmental preservation and increased awareness of environmental protection, data management and consultancy by use of state-of-the-art technology to enhance effective information management, cathodic protection of the workers in the specific fields and third party inspection. All these procedures serve to enhance the quality of the products affiliated with this company hence cement its positive reputation. They also ensure safety conditions to workers enhancing productivity and smoothening communication procedures that serve in effective management and communication between the company, clients and customers. This builds a strong trust bond creating loyalty between the company and its market base.

International company representation

IDC provides representation for reputable companies which ensures that its standards are not compromised and while creating relations with these companies it grows hence enabling the company to expand with a reliable client base. By providing representation for these companies, it helps them expand their market base by providing exposure in many parts of the world hence while opening more opportunities for them; it creates a strong reputation for itself gaining the attention of large international corporations creating a potential market for itself. As one of its core services to the partner companies is provision of business development support and logistical services, it increases the skills and knowledge of its workers in the different fields who do researches on the new fields introduced by new partnerships increasing its workforce skill asset to the company hence increasing the company’s goodwill. A few of the reputable companies it represents are CONVERTEAM, MILTONROY-EUROPE (DOSAPRO), INSTITUTE FRANCAIS DU PETROLE and A.K. STEEL just to name a few (IDC website).

Construction and engineering services

International Development Company, through its strategic partnerships with various companies, has formed an alliance with prime international engineering construction companies; this has enabled it to gain possession of knowledge ability in engineering, project management, and all the steps involved in the construction and engineering service. This enables it to gain new strengths as it gains skills in new fields hence giving it an edge over its competitors in the field of game changing service provision. This also enables it in cost management, as there is no requirement of outsourcing due to the gained skills where the company utilizes its own skilled labor in the field. It acquires all responsibility for the completion of every project.

Labor supply/ human resource

A strategy employed in the labor supply division is the identification of specific needs required by the clients and providing the most skilled and competent labor in relation needs related to that field. IDC values its human resource and views it as the most important tool it possesses for its success in the constantly changing economy. Therefore, ICD ensures that its workforce is not only skilled but innovation oriented, dedicated and flexible to change. The company has also established a work force supply company (IDCMAN) supplying highest standards workers to the Oil and Gas industry in the Emirates (IDC website). This team comes from an ISO certified group with consultants in every field. This team’s skill and knowledge surpass customer expectation leading to customer satisfaction in the company’s ability to deliver. Therefore, the company has proved itself worthy of consumer recognition as one off the leading strategists by application of different strategies in different fields and divisions leading to the overall success of the company.

Methodology

In the research about International Development Company, different methodologies were applied, as it is a large company with different divisions where each division plays a role in the overall success. Hence, in order to have a comprehensive, not-biased understanding of the company different methodologies were applied. We conducted online surveys of consumer experience with IDC where we used social sites and the feedback obtained contributed in our conclusions. The major setback we experienced was the poor response from the public though the response we received was positive. We also did online research of the company on the internet and found quite enlightening information. Here we were able to have a comprehensive understanding on the operations of the company and its affiliates.

We also had printed questionnaires which we gave to random people to find out how well known the company was and whether and had its impacts on the common person. We also included the affiliate’s names in the questionnaires and though some people did recognize the company, some lacked any knowledge of the company’s existence hence it still has a lot of advertising to do. Some people were indifferent to the questionnaires and refused to participate. Of the hundred questionnaires we had prepared, forty-three were unresponsive whereas some responded indifferently. The difficulties we encountered included unwilling interviewees and responses that were not serious, that is, jokers among those who filled in the questionnaires. We analyzed the data according to the majority preferences and information obtained from the company’s online site.

Conclusion

In conclusion, it is evident that International Development Company is very thorough in its strategy application in its business dealings. It has well thought strategies applied to match every one of its divisions hence enabling it to offer services to specific clients in the specific ways that they expect. A widely diverse company knows how to integrate marketing, human resource and innovation skills to provide competitive products to the market (Alexander and Hordes, 2003). IDC has employed this tactic of diversification in strategy implementation to its advantage hence the increased annual growth in income and the growth in reputation.

Bibliography

Alexander, J. A. and Hordes, M., 2003. S-Business: Reinventing the Services Organization. ISBN 1-590-79054-5. SelectBooks. Print.

International Development Company. http://www.idcuae.com. Web source.

Rackham, N. and Vincentis, J. D., 1999. Rethinking the Sales Force: Redefining Selling to Create and Capture Customer Value. McGraw-Hill. Print