H-E-B’s purpose in focus at Elevation Forum event
“Only 8% of sales and marketing teams are aligned and 90% of sales leaders are not creating value in the eyes of the customer,” said Elevation Forum founder Dan Mack at his most recent event. “Alignment with another’s purpose is the catalyst for relationship transformation. And if you don’t stay deeply aligned you are more vulnerable than you think.” Mack’s focus on alignment was how he opened the event, which featured a community of entrepreneurial senior sales and marketing executives from the health and beauty industry.
The Elevation Forum began with a presentation and group discussion about the positive implications of retailer-manufacturer collaboration and higher-level co-creation. Mack emphasized that customers value someone who challenges their view of the world and who design solutions that meet customers’ needs. Almost three-quarters of companies that deliver best in class experience use customer feedback, and they incorporate the voice and insights of their customers, allowing the customer to co-create the experience to suit their needs, he said. “Half of all meetings fail due to too much talking ‘at’ before listening,” Mack noted. “The best organizations understand their customer needs instead of focusing on their own aspirations. They create meetings that don’t stir up imagination and curiosity.”
The forum’s keynote speaker was H-E-B’s vice president drug-beauty-financial services-optical and health & wellness Paul Gerner. Gerner passionately shared with the forum members a winning roadmap for building a purpose-driven relationship with H-E-B. The blueprint includes gaining a much deeper appreciation for their values and mission and how it affects their partners and consumers within the state of Texas & Mexico. H-E-B is a multi-format dominate player that competes in markets with some of the lowest grocery prices in the U.S. H-E-B desires that their manufacturing partners “level the playing field” allowing them to fulfill their mission of offering uncompromising value and connection with their communities.
The afternoon discussion asked, “How do we improve customer profitability and still thrive?” Mack shared: “Behavioral economics tell us not to assume that people are rational. We must understand ‘hard’ facts and act courageously. Failure to confront the truth about your profitability is a precursor to losing competitive advantage.” In a world of temporary advantage, we must reconfigure assets, people, and capabilities to seize new opportunities. Mack said. “We need to embrace a mindset of continuous reconfiguration of the P&L,” he said. “There is no such thing as fixed expenses anymore; everything is variable which encourages flexibility and agility.”
If you are interested in learning more future forum thought leadership events, contact Dan Mack or visit the Elevation Forum website.
The Elevation Forum began with a presentation and group discussion about the positive implications of retailer-manufacturer collaboration and higher-level co-creation. Mack emphasized that customers value someone who challenges their view of the world and who design solutions that meet customers’ needs. Almost three-quarters of companies that deliver best in class experience use customer feedback, and they incorporate the voice and insights of their customers, allowing the customer to co-create the experience to suit their needs, he said. “Half of all meetings fail due to too much talking ‘at’ before listening,” Mack noted. “The best organizations understand their customer needs instead of focusing on their own aspirations. They create meetings that don’t stir up imagination and curiosity.”
The forum’s keynote speaker was H-E-B’s vice president drug-beauty-financial services-optical and health & wellness Paul Gerner. Gerner passionately shared with the forum members a winning roadmap for building a purpose-driven relationship with H-E-B. The blueprint includes gaining a much deeper appreciation for their values and mission and how it affects their partners and consumers within the state of Texas & Mexico. H-E-B is a multi-format dominate player that competes in markets with some of the lowest grocery prices in the U.S. H-E-B desires that their manufacturing partners “level the playing field” allowing them to fulfill their mission of offering uncompromising value and connection with their communities.
The afternoon discussion asked, “How do we improve customer profitability and still thrive?” Mack shared: “Behavioral economics tell us not to assume that people are rational. We must understand ‘hard’ facts and act courageously. Failure to confront the truth about your profitability is a precursor to losing competitive advantage.” In a world of temporary advantage, we must reconfigure assets, people, and capabilities to seize new opportunities. Mack said. “We need to embrace a mindset of continuous reconfiguration of the P&L,” he said. “There is no such thing as fixed expenses anymore; everything is variable which encourages flexibility and agility.”
If you are interested in learning more future forum thought leadership events, contact Dan Mack or visit the Elevation Forum website.