This category asks how you identify customers and their requirements and manage relationships that keep them satisfied. Item 3.1 asks how you identify customers and define their needs. Item 3.2 asks how you win and keep customers and addresses customer satisfaction measures.
Describe how your organization determines requirements, expectations, and preferences of customers and markets to ensure continuing relevance of your products/services and to develop new opportunities.
This is the first item in the systems model of the criteria shown on the inside cover. This item asks who are your target markets and customers, and what do they want and expect from your products and/or services?You might list the targeted groups or market segments, and identify the priorities of each one. It is also important to explain how you determined the customer requirements and expectations. It is important not only to use several methods to identify customer requirements, but to use them often. Customers wants and expectations change frequently.
This item also asks about future customers, and what their requirements will be. These are tough questions to answer; however, the most successful companies today look at industry trends and predict how they will impact their products/services. Successful companies also look beyond current customers and identify new industries or types of customers. As with all Baldrige items that ask about approaches, it is important to show a trend of continuously evaluating and improving methods of identifying...
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