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Vitra
Tiles
6 . Lessons learnt
There were a substantial number of lessons learnt during
the implementation to date of this project.
1. Understanding of customer’s technology environment
& technical maturity
• The team found that in a number of cases some
of their customers were insufficiently advanced in their
own use of technology to take advantage of the systems
integration and benefits that Vitra was offering them.
They also encountered a certain amount of fear from
some customers who were resistant to technology. The
team found that by involving the sales/account management
staff in customer visits they were able to get around
some of these issues. The fact that the sales staff
have relationships with the customer is crucial to convincing
them of the benefits of the technology.
This means that Vitra will be unable to realise the
full operational benefits of moving all their customers
online. However, they have started to address this problem
by offering additional discounts for online ordering.
2. Language challenges
• Customer training was difficult with customers
in non-English or Turkish speaking countries. The technical
team eventually decided to bring the Account Managers
into the loop in order to make this easier. Also, a
certain amount of localisation was undertaken to develop
the order system. Whilst they originally just went with
English and Turkish, they decided to rollout in French
and German too.
3. Invest time in understanding customer’s requirements
• The implementation team invested substantial
time in developing a clear understanding of the customer’s
needs. This extended to running pilots with a range
of customers prior to the full rollout of the new systems.
4. Take advantage of knowledge that exists elsewhere
in the company
• Much of the success of the Vitra eBusiness project
can be attributed to the way they have leveraged skills
and knowledge elsewhere in the Group. For example, a
sister company, Intema, had developed skills in marketing
via new electronic media. This knowledge was instrumental
in Vitra being able to develop a leading edge “Virtual
Design Tool” for their customer website
5. Be flexible enough to grasp opportunities in mid-implementation
• The team were clear that you cannot necessarily
see the all the opportunities at the start of the project.
The challenge is to be focused enough to deliver all
that has been planned but to keep an eye open for new
opportunities that emerge, as you start to understand
more in the detailed implementation phase.
6. Any project involves evolution as opposed to a discrete
start and finish date
• The team also believed that any technology must
continue to evolve with the needs of the business. It
is perhaps shortsighted and unrealistic to think in
terms of being “finished” at a certain point
in the future.
7. Invest in training
• As part of the project implementation substantial
time and effort was put into training staff and customers
in how to take advantage of the new systems. It is easy
to underestimate this at the planning phase but it is
critical to success.
8. Increasing management understanding
• Due to the significant involvement of senior
management in the scoping of the eBusiness project,
Vitra found that managers increased their understanding
regarding the possibilities that eBusiness offers a
business. The result of this is that internal commitment
to technology as a strategic value driver increases.
7 . Future Plans
Alp Guldur the overall Project Manager for the implementation
will follow up this project by getting involved in a
substantial Group-wide Customer Relationship Management
project. This project will involve a substantial team
of people and is planned to start in Quarter 4, 2002
with completion planned for Summer 2003. Cem Onder will
replace Alp to continue the development and integration
of the existing systems.
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