Evaluation of Account and Client Management

Scottish Enterprise Ayrshire (SEA) aimed to implement the market segmentation process to identify organisations with the greatest potential for sustainable growth. The evaluation aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of the overall approach and the support provided to those local businesses that have been designated as ‘account-managed’ and ‘client-managed’.

The methodology consisted of: face-to-face interviews with 10 account-managed companies; telephone interviews with 20 client-managed companies; and discussions with some of the account and client managers.

SEA has 341 key companies, having doubled the number over the last 12 months. Existing companies should be assessed on a quarterly basis, but in practice companies have not moved between segments over the three years of the approach. The vast majority of companies appear to be engaging well with SEA. The survey shows 90% of account-managed companies have had a formal business review compared to only 40% of client-managed companies. The business review process is seen as helpful or very helpful to most companies. Those companies that have had a formal business review and action planning have a positive impression of the process. From sample, estimates the net economic impacts, including 1,222 employers. The account / client managers have been instrumental in: increasing companies’ knowledge of their market; consciously managing and embracing change; and developing the skills and knowledge of the workforce. NB the economic impact calculations in this report do not wholly adhere to the Scottish Enterprise Economic Impact Assessment Guidance launched in 2006, therefore please treat these figures with caution. Please use the "Contact Us" button if you need more information.

Recommends reviewing client-managed companies where SEA contact is minimal to see if there is sufficient purpose for them being segmented. There should be a proper review process on an annual basis to ensure that all companies are appropriately segmented. The number of account and client managers must be increased if workloads of active companies exceed the Consistent Customer guidelines.