client case study - Cogent Power
Ron Harper is the CEO of Cogent Power. He’s been in the industry a long time and he’s a visionary. When Ron analyzed the steel industry, he saw how terribly competitive it is and how commoditized vendors are. He decided his firm wasn’t going to race to the bottom with all the other vendors. He decided he would work hard to differentiate his firm based on delivering a compelling value proposition to his customers.
We shared our Winners’ Quadrant model with Ron. He committed to his account-facing team members engaging in Key Account Management; becoming Trusted Advisors and Cogent becoming a Symbiotic Partner with its clients and his firm becoming truly innovative. We educated the team on the Winners’ Quadrant and provided our Strategic Sales Training Program to the sales team.
This was a tough transition as it meant a wholesale change in how they went to market and how they delivered. It meant really listening to customers and really acting on what they heard. It also meant a challenging transition for his team. Not everyone was prepared or able to make the transition. Ron did not look back. He held to his vision and the team embraced it.
Within 24 months Ron has completely revolutionized his company. In his first year, the company grew 25%. In the second year, the company grew by almost 30%. Moreover, his team just closed the largest piece of business in the company’s history. This deal is a game-changer. Other major prospects are now lining up and asking about how Cogent might be able to help them. The Cogent team is engaged and triumphant. In a recent trade show, they showed up with a completely different message than everyone else. All the other vendors displayed their “product push” message. Cogent messaging was focused on how they can help their customers to be successful in a challenging market. Thanks to Ron Harper’s leadership Cogent is on the move!
