Halcrow "repositioning" industry with client focus

Consultant Halcrow believes it is positioning the construction industry as the "solution rather than the problem" after two years of reshuffling itself to become more client focused.

Using its five-year Strategic Relations Development (SRD) programme, the group is now strongly targeting its 60% strategic client accounts in the hope of giving added value to the client and increasing its repeat orders by reputation.

Teams from Halcrow now boast closer client investment strategies, drawn up by studying the client's business needs, within 20% of their expectations - blowing most competition out of the water.

SRD developed after the group commissioned an independent report across 19 varied clients in August 2001 by asking how the group could improve their business and what they thought of Halcrow.

Common themes include knowing a client's business, delivering projects on time, shouting about the industry's successes and, although trustworthy, the industry needs to be "more exciting".

Progress since the report will be monitored and presented to the board in the summer.

However since the report, the group has now set out 10 principles of SRD, written by its clients, for external and internal use across Halcrow.

These are closely monitored by performance satisfaction tracking and internal workshops.

The commandments, which have to be memorised by workers and its supply chain, include getting closer to your clients than your competitor; maximise value to each client; share client knowledge with the team; and focus on 100% customer satisfaction.

Halcrow's director of SRD, Professor Patrick Godfrey, said: "With one big client the team went away and drew up an investment strategy in two hours. I think we are the only top three blue chip consultancy to take this route."