Key Accounts Management
Boost Your Sales by integrating Project Management Principles into your Key Account Management
In the industrial world, Key Account Management (KAM) is much more than a Sales activity;
it needs a formal structured approach and coordinated activities.
In essence, KAM should not be a tactical response to market pressure, but a fundamental strategy, where the concepts are mutually accepted by the Client and Supplier. Successful KAM requires a team effort across several business functions and is a long term process requiring sustained commitment.
Building a Key Account relationship with your client is a comprehensive project within itself, having objectives, stakeholders, activities, schedules and milestones; all elements that require detailed Project Management.
Project Management, as defined in ISO ‐21500, provides the optimum tool to help structure Key Account Activities.
The ISO‐21500 ‘Guidance for Project Management’ recommends that a project be managed through the application of five basic process groups (initiating, planning, implementing, controlling and closing) and ten subject themes (integration, scope, communication, stakeholders, resources, procurement, schedule, costs, risks, quality). A total of 39 processes that cover typical managerial aspects for most projects.
Following this framework, the structure and operation of your key account activities can be developed to ensure sustainable and controlled growth of your business.
KARccMA will help improve your Key Account Activities, based on ISO‐21500 Project Management principles.
Let’s consider an example, with a direct extract from ISO‐21500 ‘Develop project charter’ is just one of those 39 process steps. The purpose is to:
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authorise formally a project or a new project phase
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identify the project manager and the appropriate project manager responsibilities and authorities
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document the business needs, project objectives, expected deliverables and project economic aspects
The ‘project charter’ links the project to the strategic objectives of the organisation and should identify any appropriate terms of reference, obligations, assumptions and constraints.
In the KAM world, this example would be ‘Qualifying a Key Account’. Here the project objectives would be to protect existing business, expand it or to generate new business. Expected deliverables could be to grow
sales by 10% and bottom line by 5 %, all within the next 3 years.
Project manager responsibilities and authorities could be "Mr X will lead the initiative with the support of Product Management, Procurement (for outsourced items), Manufacturing and Logistics, all acting together with the common goal of building a KAM relationship with client Y."
Although in the short term structural improvement to the bottom line is unlikely to occur, KAIZEN improvements will be measurable within a realistic timescale.
Project Management knowledge and ISO‐21500 best practice will ensure success for your Key Account Management Initiative.
At KARccMA we take a holistic approach, integrating Project Management, Risk Management,
Communications and Contract Management into your Sales activities; integrated solutions, helping to deliver bottom line growth.