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As part of £400m programme to support critical UK assets, a major defence contractor had engaged a leading engineering services company to provide a managed service covering mechanical engineering and safety case aspects of the programme.
After several months the relationship was struggling. Only a fraction of the work expected had been placed and the lead engineers in the client organisation were unhappy with the quality of the service being provided. At this time the relationship between the two companies was strained and the future of the managed service was in doubt.
Directors from both companies sat on a Joint Management Board, and they were committed to making the managed service work. It was agreed that an independent specialist in Business to Business (B2B) relationships, RelationSHAPE would be engaged to work with both companies and identify improvements to the relationship and the performance of the managed service.
RelationSHAPE is a unique capability with over 20 years of proven research at Warwick, Gloucester and more recently UCL universities. This research enables both parties to understand the inhibitors and root causes which are preventing the relationship from delivering to its maximum potential. MP identified that the best approach for the managed service would be to use its RelationSHAPE process which enables the relationship to be characterised and measured.
The four step RelationSHAPE process was used to assess the relationship between the two organisations and measure soft issues using a technique called semantic differentials.
This process led to a greater understanding of the root causes and the actions needed to improve the relationship.
Through this process it was discovered that the root cause of the relationship breakdown was, not as first thought a poor quality supplier and a reluctant client, but a failure in planning and communication.
The reason for the consultant’s underperformance was the limited lead time provided by the client before issuing a request for work. This meant the consultant couldn’t free up expert staff to work on the task and the client’s technical leads were disappointed with the quality of the work produced.
Four actions were set, delivered by joint working groups, and this resulted in a 3-month look-ahead and a substantial pipeline of work which was dealt with by the consultant’s most experienced staff. Quality improved and soon the client was happy to place its critical work items with the managed service.
The managed service, which was close to being cancelled, went from strength to strength and is still thriving and providing critical support to the UK’s defence imperative.
The relationship between the two companies continued to develop and whilst more companies have been included, the essential format of the arrangement is still the same. The client is now recognised by the MOD as managing an extended supply chain and has been asked to take on even larger projects than before. The consultant has continued to develop its reputation and is now recognised as one of the leading players in the Defence sector.
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