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Technical B2B distribution and wholesale (PVH)

Treating customer value, logistics and leadership as one development task.

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  • E/D/E
  • Metro Group
  • WIKA
  • Schüco
  • Siemens
  • Porsche
  • Bayer
  • BASF
  • Henkel
  • Sony
  • McDonald’s
  • E.ON
  • Dräger
  • Sennheiser

Questions to start with

  • Which customer groups need what value?

  • Where do operational processes meet unclear leadership responsibility?

  • Which new tasks need a cross-functional structure?

In technical B2B wholesale, the value proposition comes from several functions working together. That is why we look at strategic positioning, reliable processes and collaboration together.

Understanding different customer expectations

How much do product range, availability, service and relationships matter to individual customer groups? Customer segmentation provides a basis for differentiating value propositions and the use of resources.

Tackling operational friction together

Complaints or conflicts in one function can have different causes. Diagnosis and structured feedback help to separate them. Organisational design and leadership are addressed together where the findings show a link.

Embedding leadership and new tasks

Case studies show how leadership structures, development and handover to internal teams can come together. They also show how a new cross-functional task was set up organisationally. Questions for your own brief can be drawn from them.

Developing sales and the value proposition

Platforms and digital marketplaces can change the role of wholesalers and what their customers expect. Our brand positioning links this with sales development, margins, succession and digital business models. This raises questions about future customer value, how to differentiate the offering and the capabilities needed to deliver it.

Bringing customer promises and operational capabilities together

Digital marketplaces, changing sales channels and margins are possible development questions in technical B2B wholesale. Innovative Customer Segmentation (IKS) helps to distinguish customer groups by the benefits they expect: for some, availability may be important, for others advice, service or relationship. The decision on target segments must fit with product range, sales and delivery.

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The documented logistics project shows how leadership, profiles and organisational development were connected in a specific case; its results are not generalised here. A target group strategy can start with customer segmentation, an interface in the value stream or the development of leadership. Which of these tasks is relevant in the company is examined through conversations and existing data.

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In practice

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Case study

Logo E/D/E

Developing strategy and organisation together in a trading group

How a trading group turned new market requirements into a vision of the future, clear functions and new ways of working together.

  • A vision of the future built from analyses and evaluated business model options, presented in July 2017.
  • An organisational design derived from that vision and approved for implementation by the relevant bodies.
  • Separate, documented functions in the merchandise area and clear responsibility for looking after members as a whole.
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Im PVH-Magazin

Insights for your questions

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Frequently asked questions

Why distinguish customer segments?

Because different groups expect different value from product range, availability, service or relationship. Innovative Customer Segmentation (IKS) groups customers by the value they expect rather than just by revenue or industry. The choice of target segments has to fit product range, sales and delivery; this determines how value propositions and resources are differentiated.

What role do digital marketplaces play?

They are a possible strategic shift, and we examine what they mean for the company. Platforms can change the role of wholesalers and what their customers expect. Our brand positioning links this with sales development, margins, succession and digital business models. This raises questions about future customer value, how to differentiate the offering and the capabilities needed to deliver it.

Is the logistics case a template?

No. It documents one specific brief with its own conditions: an organisational diagnosis, a newly adopted leadership structure with, according to the project report, twelve of 13 positions filled internally, jointly developed leadership principles and a leadership handbook informed by pulse-check feedback. After the handover, internal teams continued the leadership development.

What follows from the positioning?

Decisions on sales, delivery and the capabilities required. A target group strategy can start with customer segmentation, an interface in the value stream or leadership development. Which of these matters for the company is tested in conversations and against existing data. Diagnosis and structured feedback help separate operational friction from leadership issues.

What experience does transformis have in technical B2B wholesale?

Since 2016, transformis has supported EVOLUTION, the strategy and organisational development process of E/D/E Gruppe. According to Markus Peterhänsel in PVH-Magazin (2018), the Innovative Stakeholder Analysis gathered over 350,000 individual data points from around 1,500 decision-makers in 19 countries, supplemented by 60 personal interviews. The vision of the future was presented in July 2017, and the resulting organisational design was approved by the governing bodies.

Prefer to talk directly?

In an initial conversation, we clarify which decisions are coming up and which perspectives the next stage of work needs.

Jan-Niclas Bockard

Jan-Niclas Bockard

Director | Chief Operating Officer (COO) and Head of corporate strategy competence team

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Let’s talk about your situation and what you want to develop in your organisation.

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