by Briege Kearney on July 29, 2009
Despite OFCOM stating that they are “happy with the status quo of the UK Mobile market’” there is continued speculation that Vodafone are still in discussion with T-Mobile and are about to announce a deal.
This would give Vodafone a leap from a 25% to a 40% share in the market, overtaking market leader O2 who currently have the largest share at 27%. France, Italy and Spain each have one mobile provider that has a market share of over 40%, so should OFCOM, Office of Fair Trading and the Competition Commission lose any sleep?
What will this mean for consumers? Aggressive pricing following asset and shared services disposal, or a gradual upward pressure on pricing due to reduced competition?
For some time now, emerging markets have been a focus for propping up basic mobile service profitability. How long can emerging products and markets be sustained?
The market has too many players to sustain longer term pressures on UK profitability and something has to give. What will happen and who could be next?
by Mark Adams on July 24, 2009
Recently I was fortunate enough to go to Dans le Noir with Blue Sky and a select number of guests.
I knew the concept was that we all had dinner together in complete darkness and that we could select one of four menu options, without actually knowing exactly what we were going to be served.
Before entering the dining room I felt a mixture of absolute excitement about having a new experience and absolute fear of the unknown. That got me thinking: how must our customers feel when they hand themselves over to us – putting complete trust in us to deliver what they want, when they want it and with an experience they desire?
At Dans le Noir we were all at the mercy of our waiter and had to trust his knowledge of the room layout and listen to and follow his instructions accurately. At the same time I never felt unsafe. Would our customers feel the same? How do we know? And do we ever ask them or stop and think about the trust our customers put in us to deliver?
I think we all took something away from Dans le Noir and it was probably a little different for each one of us. I know the importance of trust remains with me.
by Briege Kearney on June 25, 2009
A career highlight for me has to be meeting the astronaut Charlie Duke at the Talk Performance conference back in March at Lord’s Cricket Ground. Not that I’m a huge space junkie but his stage presence was incredible. His messages around creating a vision, total self belief and making sure you surround yourself with a team you trust might seem old fashioned but I left that day with a renewed sense of energy and focus. I made a commitment to myself that I would listen more to my team, take a keen interest in what they are feeling and be more aware of my personal impact. I know I haven’t always achieved it but now that it’s in my conscience I definitely aim to review my commitment at least once a week to help drive not just mine but my team’s performance.
What was your personal commitment and have you achieved it?
by Mark Adams on June 23, 2009
Earlier this month the results of the annual JD Power Customer Satisfaction survey were released for the UK mobile industry.
I always track how the UK mobile networks are performing. This is for two reasons: firstly having worked in the industry for 12 years I am always interested to see who’s on top, and secondly because I believe there is a lot to learn from the innovative customer experiences the mobile networks create.
This year, o2 have taken the Pre Pay crown from Tesco Mobile and in the Post Pay (Contract) sector Virgin Mobile maintain their first place for the third year in a row. What interests me about Pre Pay is both o2 and Tesco Mobile use the o2 network, so it’s something else that makes o2 perform better. For me, I think it’s a combination of the brand, how they manage and retain their customers and the iPhone that is driving o2’s performance and ultimately building brand advocacy.
Who do you think is best, and why?
If you want to know more, the full JD Power press release can be found here:
www.jdpower.com/corporate/news/releases/pressrelease.aspx?ID=2009100
by Briege Kearney on May 20, 2009
A survey shows that “effective management of change” is thought of as the most important skill needed to make a credible organisation.
The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) questioned more than 400 people from the HR community and found that 46% thought the top “skill for survival” is being able to manage effectively.
click here to read more…
