Managing Global Customers

Multinational companies need to manage their relationships with multinational customers in a globally integrated approach. This paper provides a systematic framework for developing and implementing such global customer management programmes. The paper is based on Chapter 1 of George S. Yip and Audrey Bink, Managing Global Customers: An Integrated Approach, Oxford University Press, 2007. The book takes a strategic, total business, and not just sales approach to managing global customers. It also takes a customer as well as a supplier perspective. The book provides guidance on both strategy and implementation. Lastly, the book takes a systematic and logic driven approach, yet provides many creative insights and practical advice. The primary supporting research is a study on global customer-supplier management with primary research conducted at 22 multinational companies, both global suppliers and global customers. This research involved personal interviews with over 60 senior executives, as well as a detailed multi-level survey completed by 27 executives. The authors obtained information on the way global customer-supplier relationship programmes can be implemented, the barriers that can be encountered and best practices that can lead to extra advantage.