Otisline case discussion Reasons behind launching OTISline: 1.

A centralized customer service system was deemed desirable because getting ne w contracts would only be adjudged based on through responsive call-backs by the company. 2. Reduction of response time which only a centralized system would make possibl e to do. A centralized system would enable the company to accept calls even duri ng non primetime. This didn t work efficiently for the company through local answeri ng services due to non alignment of interests. 3. Get timely feedbacks from the customers on service quality. 4. More aligned cost effective solution was needed. 5. The response on call-backs till now varied across locations and it was felt t o make it more effective to enhance customer satisfaction, the company needed to be more effective across all locations. 6. Of the 2300 service mechanics employed by NAO in 1985, most handled both call -backs and preventive maintenance. Adjustments in OTISline 1. Responsiveness to customer maintenance requests: The system not only improved and tracked the responsiveness to customer calls, but also provided reports of respo nsetime statistics that could be reviewed with customers. The company therefore began offering guaranteed response time to customers because of OTISLINE s capabilities. 2. Reliability for current and future elevators: OTISLINE dispatchers updated th e SMS to maintain data on actions that had been necessary to repair out-of-service elevat ors. Reliability data could be used by management to allocate resources to locations with recurring problems. Engineering could also investigate trends that could be an indicator of flawed design or problem. 3. Technological innovation: Introduction of the microprocessor-based control sy stem elevator technology unique to Otis. This technology not only helped Otis increas e the sales of the elevators, but also helped to shape the future of the service busin ess. The combination of sales and service allowed Otis to capitalize on the long term profitability in the market. This infrastructure further enabled OTISLINE with n ew ideas to transform the future of the industry and gain competitive advantage. (REM, in car phones, NES, hand held terminals) 4. Better Teamwork: OTISLINE staffed a group of highly skilled dispatchers and w as the first to offer professionally staffed customer service (with skills /college deg rees, provided in house trained). 5. Improved communication: Not only it improved communication between the customers and manufacturer, but it also provided the sales and service departmen t with an effective submission of various reports to the management. 6. Customer satisfaction: In addition to improving the customer satisfaction as measured by a reduction in both the volume of complaints and service calls, OTISLINE contributed to improved service quality and reduced service cost to compete with independent competitors. Top of the line customer service improved the elevator sales

as the customer felt more confident about the after sales services. E.g. emergen cy calls moving to the front of the queue, track call back activities, locating in-route mechanics, automatic servicing of elevators Changes in OTISLINE: Implementation of OTISLINE included both technical-change aspects and cultural change aspects. The difficulty in technical-change aspect was the migration of one comp uter platform to other, change in programming requirements, change in functionality o f jobs, and redundancy of certain professionals. The cultural-change aspect was shifting of resources to establish new helpful systems rather than application development resources to a utomate old manual procedures. We see it as a cultural change because the organization w as changing the way it was requiring its employees to do business. The success from the technical change aspect was the centralization of informati on due to OTISLINE, which provided improved visibility of service business and provide qua lity service to customers effectively. The success from the cultural-change aspect al lowed Otis to re-invent the culture with the implementation of the following six components: responsiveness, reliability, innovation, communication, teamwork, and customer satisfaction. The culture at Otis became synonymous with these terms, and employ ees appeared to be empowered. Customer Service: Prior to OTISLINE, each field office handled the calling and dispatching of a service mechanic. In addition, the preparation of reports was v ery time consuming because it was maintained manually, and callback reporting was routed upon request only. Customers are now directly linked to the OTISLINE. Customers call a central toll free number, and calls are distributed to the next available dispatcher. OT ISLINE can present a wide variety of statistical results, and has helped management maintai n a high level of responsiveness. OTISLINE could identify the location and equipment in m ultiple ways, and a service mechanic is dispatched appropriately to correct the problem. Marketing: New equipment sales and service marketing became more efficient with OTISLINE. Sales and Service Reps could call and access applications through OTIS LINE, which consists of integrated database management system designed to automate the production of status reports on elevator sales and service prospects.