– by Noluthando Makhaza
Fundamentally, the main purpose of any business is to maximise profits, and one of the core factors required in order to achieve this is marketing, which is then closely linked to a competitive sales strategy. At a recent Management Development Programme module, Deon Govender from Winsoft, was invited as the guest speaker in order to provide his expertise on this encyclopaedic topic.
Over the past 17 years, Deon Govender has been assisting businesses harness the power of information technology and has supported organisations across Africa in achieving their goals by implementing world class business management software. He is currently the Sales Director at Winsoft where he is responsible for conceptualising, implementing and monitoring sales and marketing initiatives in order to increase Winsoft’s customer acquisition and market share.
Deon’s key focus areas included topics such as understanding value propositions and client needs; five customer buying decisions; identifying customer needs; customer relationship management; as well as developing a customer centric organisation. During his address, Deon stated:
“One of the key lessons I’ve learnt through working in different countries is that you can never consider a one-size-fits-all approach. If you want to be in business today, you have to have the customer at the centre of your universe. Understanding everything about your customer in order to make sure that you’re shaping your strategy all the time to cater for your customer and your future customer is essential.”
When delegates were asked to share their thoughts about the session they stated that it was indeed insightful and extremely relevant in their respective fields. Sthenjwa Majola, the Operations Coordinator in the Export Division at Transnet Port Terminals, considered the topic to be an eye opener as he deals with customers from time to time. As he was engaging with Deon he started developing ideas on improving his company’s customer approach and considered whether they are providing relevant services and what customers would like from the company as a whole.
The Management Development Programme (MDP) is uniquely designed to build your capacity to lead your organisation into the future. It will challenge your views about management, expand your horizons, and enhance your understanding of the relevance and role of managers in today’s organisations. To be part of the October intake, please contact:
Calvin van Doorn
T: +27 31 260 1728