BrazilMöbius helps Levi’s revamp its customer service model
European management consultancy Möbius has helped clothing giant Levi Strass & Co (Levi’s) plan a revamp of its European customer service operations.
More than 5,000 points of sale make up Levis’ European outfit – spread across the continent from west to east. In recent years, the iconic jeans brand has been looking to adapt to a world of retail in flux – changing a mile-a-minute from online to omnichannel to everything in between.
Having previously explored enhancements in outsourcing, digital transformation and talent development, the company decided to focus on customer experience – what has emerged in recent times as a core differentiator in a competitive landscape. Möbius was called on board to plan a revamp, and delivered a concrete roadmap – taking into account Covid-19’s impact on retail – that has since laid the groundwork for a state-of-the-art, future-ready customer service function.
Headquartered in Belgium – also home to Levis’ Europe head office – Möbius specialises in business transformation, digitisation and change management. The firm helps clients strategise their next move, and bring the subsequent plans to life.
Transformation plan
The approach was methodical with Levi’s. Step one was to understand the current state of affairs. For an internal perspective, Möbius consultants interviewed customer service operators across Europe – seeking details of their own experience at Levi’s and ideas on how to improve.
“This gave us a thorough understanding of how customer service experiences the current operating model, which bottlenecks they define and which opportunities for the future in terms of processes, roles and responsibilities, tools and competencies they see,” noted Suzanne Schöningh – the responsible project manager at Möbius.
Next was to find out how Levis’ customers and partners assess the status quo – a picture that was formed through more interviews and surveys. Other functions within the retailer such as finance, planning and distribution were also included at this stage, for a full overview.
This in hand: the consultancy crystalised key improvement areas; developed recommendations on best practice customer experience strategies; devised a multi-year implementation plan that accounted for pandemic-induced setbacks; and delivered a list of initiatives with their projected financial and operational impact.
Specific features include a detailed service catalogue differentiated by customer segment; a business structure with clearly defined responsibilities; and key performance indicators at every step of the transformation – among other tools.
Fast forward several months, and Levi’s are enjoying their new customer service model, and as a result are appreciative of the efforts of their transformation partner. “The Möbius consultant team impressed with both their understanding of the business needs and their ability to adapt and partner with us in a flexible and collaborative approach,” said Andrea Whitelaw, customer service director at Levi’s.
“As external consultants Möbius presented a balanced and considerate approach in first truly understanding the business needs, taking insights both internally and cross functionally, as well as externally with our partners, before developing their proposals to address the needs, all nicely framed in a very structured and thorough vision and Implementation plan,” she added.
