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On Oct. 7, you're invited to spend
a day at a place that's probably
a lot nicer than your office...


Dear colleague,

When you're part of a support and services group, one of your most important jobs is to act as the "voice of the customer" within your company. You're supposed to keep up a constant two-way conversation with your users, listening for grumbles and talking about ways to keep everyone satisfied and loyal.
But it's easy to lose sight of this job when your day is filled with trouble tickets, meetings, budgets, and phones that ring non-stop.
That's why the First Wednesday Roundtable has created a very special "Voice of the Customer Retreat." On Tuesday, October 7, you get to play hooky from your office and spend a day thinking and talking about one issue—how to do a better job of understanding your customers and communicating their message to the rest of your company.

We don't believe people do their best thinking in windowless rooms, so we've found a more comfortable setting: the beautiful International golf club and resort in rustic Bolton, Mass. We've blocked out a program that will challenge and enlighten you all day long. And perhaps most importantly, we've built in lots of time for you share ideas and tactics with 120 other support and services managers from New England technology companies.

Despite the elegant setting, we've also managed to keep our registration costs down to just $285 per attendee. And that includes breakfast, lunch, breaks and first-class meeting facilities. You'll find we're definitely not cutting corners here.
Take a look at your calendar: On October 7, do you have anything more important to do than think about your customers?
If not, please join us for a day that we promise will be one of the most memorable and rewarding experiences of your whole year.



         Fred van Bennekom



        Jeffrey Tarter

  
     Phil Verghis



A New England landmark, The International is a world-class golf resort just 45 minutes from downtown Boston.

For conference attendees who want to stay overnight, The International features a 50-room Lodge & Spa for $179/night ($189/double occupancy). The resort also extends golfing privileges to guests.

The International, 159 Ballville Rd., Bolton, Mass. 01740; 978/779-6919

Directions



The Producers



Fred Van Bennekom
Principal
Great Brook Consulting




Jeffrey Tarter
Executive Director
Association of Support Professionals



Phil Verghis
Principal
The Verghis Group

"The Voice of the Customer"

A First Wednesday
Roundtable Retreat
October 7, 2008
8:00am–5:30pm

Agenda

8:00–8:45
Breakfast and networking

8:45–9:00
Welcome

9:00–9:45
Creating Customer Passion
Presenter: Marlene Bessett, VP Strategy, Xerox
Your ideal customers aren't just satisfied—they become evangelists for your company.

10:00–10:45
The Great Debate: Is "Buying Intention" Enough?
Presenters: Tina Taylor, GE Fanuc & TBD
NetPromoter advocates claim that the "one number you need to know" is "willingness to recommend." Not so fast, say the critics.

11:00–11:45
Compensation and Customer Satisfaction
Presenter: TBD, The Gantry Group
Many companies now tie bonuses to satisfaction scores. An expert talks about the right approach--and some pitfalls.

12:00–1:00
Lunch

1:00–1:45
Best Practices:
How to Build Great Advisory Boards

Giving customers a formal role in service and support design can pay huge dividends.

1:45–2:30
Best Practices:
Communities of Champions

With the proper encouragement, your customers can be a living knowledgebase.

2:45–3:30
Best Practices:
Global Perspectives

Overseas customers often have different notions of what makes them "satisfied."

3:30–4:15
The Action Plan
You've collected a wealth of customer feedback data. Now what?

4:15–5:15
Open Mike: Ask the Experts

5:15–5:30
Wrap-up

[program subject to change]