The train on which the new Business Assurance (BA) service of KTBA previously sat, proved to be too theoretical. So the bright minds of KTBA switched to a different track. ‘With this we transcend the current consultancy offering in the food sector’, said Arjan van Heerde (44), Sales Leader BA. ‘No question is too complex for us.’
‘Very well. The tool we used for our clients to screen organizations turned out to be too general and too theoretical. We have further developed it in such a way that we have grown to a higher level and now think more from the customer’s point of view. Other consultants also belong to this level. People who can think along strategically with customers at management level and take the lead when things get really complex.’
‘That with this we surpass the current offering in the market at the QA level of competitors. We respond to matters that are really important to the customer, such as offering support with regard to reputation management or matters that affect the company culture. The overview with six focus points (add the circle with the 6 propositions?) shows which issues we can handle. For example, we are also actively restructuring the QA/QC and labeling departments of our customers. No question is too complex for us. We really have a deep understanding!’
‘The biggest struggle has been internal. After all, we are the QA office that has had a QA specialist reputation in the market for 25 years and was also organized that way internally. This has created a strong profile and that is good. What we ran into, however, is that we were not organized for this branch of sport. We have also made many steps in this regard. That’s still a nice process. You can pioneer at KTBA. There is room for all of us to seek and find. We learn a lot, make mistakes, adjust and are successful in doing so. This also applies to our other locations in Belgium and Denmark, we are growing fast.’
“Sometimes I think, guys, it’s not rocket science. Surely we can organize ourselves in such a way that it fits in with our new mission? But I immediately blow the whistle on myself when this thought comes up, haha. Then I realize that strategic processes are simply more complex. Operating at a higher level requires a lot of patience, but luckily I am able to do that.’
‘We want BA to become as big a branch as QA within KTBA. In fact, how nice it would be if we could intertwine these two branches in the future. The nice thing is that we are already doing that carefully. This creates a stronger bond with customers and in a collaboration in which we can do a lot for them. We will continue to work on this in any case: broadening our services to a higher level so that we can do even more for our customers.’
Arjan van Heerde
Sales leader Business Assurance