Interclean, Inc. Case Study

SCENARIO: InterClean, Inc.

Company Overview

In the $8 billion dollar institutional and industrial cleaning and sanitation industry, success is no longer about which products best cut through the grime or kill the most germs. As the industry evolves, clients are more and more interested in not just products, but solutions and services that will streamline their cleaning efforts in the wake of more stringent requirements for environmental safety.

Health care clients, for example, are continually faced with new regulations governing the maintenance of their sterile environment. Cleaning companies can offer greater value to these clients by providing turn-key solutions that include product training for employees, regular monitoring and info-sharing of new relevant regulations and, in some cases, full cleaning service contracts. Retail customers have shown interest in similar operational solutions.

For InterClean, Inc., a major player on the sanitation scene, future profitability hinges on fulfilling this emerging need. Currently, the sales force excels at demonstrating and selling product, but under the newly proposed solutions/service model, reps will be grouped into multi-functional teams prepared to support InterClean's high-quality products with high-quality service. They'll be instructed in development of full-range service packages tailored to individual accounts. They'll be trained to engage directly with facilities managers, health care professionals, and operational executives in their customers' organizations. And this will all happen in 90 to 180 days, when a marketing blitz announces the launch of InterClean's new service focus.

THE PLAYERS

David Spencer, President and CEO: At age 47, David inherited InterClean from his father, who was responsible for the company's early corporate accomplishments. A successful businessman himself, David is driven to make InterClean an industry leader. He is ambitious, competitive and willing to take risks in order to grow the business and expand into new markets.

Janet Durham, Vice President of Human Resources: Janet began as a sales representative with InterClean 15 years ago, when she was 40 years old. Though she's worked her way up to her current position, she still has strong ties to many sales force members. She is pragmatic and very interested in using technology to automate the HR function.

Tom Jennings, Vice President of Marketing: David Spencer recruited Jennings to lead this new department just a year ago, when Jennings was 62. Tom's expertise lies in strategic systems planning and he'd like to move InterClean rapidly into strategic dominance in its industry. Tom views the current corporate restructuring as a obstacle to his goal, but a necessary evil that requires his short-term attention. It's his desire to move quickly, so that he can continue his plans for global expansion.

Sam Waters, Chief of Compliance: Sam has been with InterClean for two years, and holds a law degree.

Carol Stanley, Internal Consultant: David has asked Carol to conduct a skills inventory in preparation for InterClean's launch of solutions-based selling. Tom Jennings recommended Carol for the assignment, and Carol will report to Janet Durham.

Sally Lindley, CEO of EnviroTech, Inc.: Forty-nine-year-old Sally is interested in developing some joint ventures with other firms in the cleaning industry in order to optimally leverage her future power. Politically active, she is well-connected to key state and national elected officials in Florida.

Eric Borden, Ving Hsu, and Terry Garcia, Senior Sales Specialists at EnviroTech, Inc.: Veteran employees with a combined 30 years at EnviroTech, Borden, Hsu and Garcia anticipate playing key roles in EnviroTech after it's acquired by InterClean. In fact, they expect to be named the sales and marketing leadership team for the new company.

January 31, 2005

URGENT!

MEMO TO: All InterClean Employees

FROM: David Spencer

RE: Strategic Direction

As you are aware (because we've been discussing it forever!) our industry has been evolving in response to changes governing environmental safety. While this has created more work for our clients, it has simultaneously created new opportunities for us. For quite a while, I've felt strongly that the key to expanding our company -- both domestically and worldwide -- lay with the development of full-service solutions packages. If we are among the first to introduce all-inclusive service, the potential for growth and strategic advantage is huge. That said, I'm pleased to announce that in the next three to six months, InterClean will begin a media blitz to publicly announce this new strategy.

Clearly, this is a golden opportunity for anybody at InterClean who wants to help create and fill new and exciting positions of responsibility, and I'm asking for everybody's support as we move in this exciting direction. Our goal is to provide a full spectrum of cleaning services and solutions that will become our major avenue for sales. As we align our organizational structure around this vision, we will be reviewing our current staffing -- particularly in sales and marketing -- to determine if we have the skills in place that will enable us an effective transition. We'll need to determine the current strengths of our sales team, areas of needed development, and future staffing requirements.

Obviously, though we have a talented sales team, its operation will have to adapt to fit our new direction. Solutions-based selling will require our sales force to be more knowledgeable about emerging issues in sanitation, environmental regulation of cleaning and cleaning systems, and OSHA standards. Instead of merely knowing how a product works, they will need to understand the legal, environmental, safety, ethical and regulatory issues that affect sanitation and cleaning in varied industries and settings. They'll need to develop customized packages of cleaning solutions and systems -- not just a patchwork of tools and services -- which include products and processes that meet our clients' needs. Finally, since our clients themselves may need staff education and training, our sales force must become conversant in the language of each client's industry as it relates to cleaning and sanitation.

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