Changing the Culture to a Customer-Centric Organization

Programs and projects are done for customers, whether internal, external, or hidden, and in our work, we need to actively engage customers to focus on them for business value. Our goal is to anticipate customer requirements and involve customers from the beginning and after program and project completion. 

The emphasis changes from a short-term customer relationship to a long-term one, with active customer involvement.  This approach causes an organizational cultural change as the customers are part of the solution from the beginning rather than receiving only progress reports or having meetings at scheduled intervals. With the complexity and rapid change, which are the norm and not the exception, the focus shifts to those customers who add strategic value rather than an emphasis primarily on customer retention.   

This presentation describes why a customer-centric organization is one to embrace, discusses key roles and responsibilities [business analysts; business development personnel; program, project, and portfolio managers; and operations managers] to be successful in this mode, and presents five key guidelines to facilitate its adoption.

About the Presenter
Dr. Ginger Levin, PMP, PgMP, OPM3 Certified Professional, has worked 48 years in the project field. She has managed projects, programs, and portfolios of various sizes in the U.S. Government and in the private sector. Dr. Levin also is an Adjunct Professor for the University of Wisconsin-Platteville in its MSPM program and works with doctoral candidates in project management at SKEMA University in Lille, France. She is the author, co-author, or editor of 20 books in the field and has presented at PMI Congresses since 1997 and to chapters throughout the world. She received her bachelors degree in business administration from Wake Forest University and her masters and doctoral degrees from The George Washington University where she won the outstanding dissertation award. As the second in the world to attain the PgMP, she enjoys working with others to attain it. Dr. Levin is an active volunteer with PMI, and in 2014, she won the prestigious Eric Jenett Award from PMI.