In his new book, Customer Driven Change, author Bud Taylor says "We're coming out of a recession that has been largely caused by short-term profits. We lost sight of why we're in business, and that's to serve customers. Business has to rebuild public confidence, and the fastest way to do that is to transform with customers as the number one goal."
According to Taylor, customer driven change begins with understanding the changes, values and business strategies that impact companies. However, those may vary from situation to situation: "I must point out that I'm not saying, 'Do what your customers are asking for.' What I am saying is to know the value proposition that you need to deliver to your customers; and then make sure that everything is aligned to that end."
However, Taylor admits there can be obstacles on the road to making long-term change within a company. He cites ineffective leadership as being among the top challenges for companies looking to make the change to being customer-driven: "…The success of change will be directly related to the commitment and capabilities of the leadership team. If you don't have the right leadership, then the legacy culture will win."
