Managing Customer Value: Creating Quality and Service That Customers Can See (Hardcover)

by Bradley Gale (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
This work by marketing consultant Gale ( The PIMS Principles ) is arguably the most useful marketing study since the formative works of Peter Drucker, Philip Kotler and Michael Porter. The author outlines thought-provoking ideas on "relative quality and value as perceived by customers and . . . how to drive every part of your business from the knowledge those measurements create." Gale adroitly uses case studies and a well-crafted narrative to develop theories about creating power brands ("a name that means satisfaction, quality, and value to the customer"), assessing competing technologies and analyzing customer value. Gale's musings on superior quality driving the bottom line and shareholder value, ISO 9000 regulations, the Baldridge Award and TQM may shape business thinking for years to come.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Description

Even today with quality improvement the battle cry of American industry, the quality programs in most companies are limited to "conformance to technical standards," according to quality expert Bradley Gale. While some have ventured a step farther to measure customer satisfaction, few of them, Gale demonstrates, have attempted to track market-perceived "quality" -- how buyers select among competing suppliers, why orders are won or lost, and which competitors are succeeding in which market segments.

Using cases including Milliken & Company; AT&T, United Van Lines, and Gillette, Gale shows how leading-edge companies have gone beyond the minimal achievements of conformance quality and customer satisfaction to focus on the third, higher stage, "market-perceived quality versus competitors" and aspire to an emerging fourth stage, "true strategic management." Drawing on his extensive research at AT&T, Johnson & Johnson, Parke-Davis, and other world-class companies, Gale provides new metrics for market-perceived quality that are straightforward and easy to interpret. His set of seven integrative tools for customer value analysis makes up the heart of the "war room wall" to help guide business-unit teams in their effort to outperform competitors in satisfying customers. The great value of these tools is that they are derived from a future-oriented strategic navigation system that tracks competitive information and market-perceived quality. Learning to master this system accelerates customer satisfaction from a slogan to a science and leads ultimately to true strategic management -- the fourth stage of Total Quality Management.

The processes described in this book provide an insider's perspective on the criteria of the Baldrige Award. Bradley Gale's insights and innovative methods for defining, measuring, and improving market-perceived quality will create an entirely new thrust for the worldwide quality movement.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 432 pages
• Publisher: Free Press (March 28, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0029110459
• ISBN-13: 978-0029110454
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 6.5 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #411,421 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Practical and Useful, May 27, 2000

By	David Arelette (Yarrambat, Victoria Australia) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This book has much to recommend it - readable yet with somewhat of a quantitative approach to finding better ways to deliver value to customers.

Its' real worth is that it takes a view that requires the inclusion of the needs of the customer in the process of strategy development.

Too many books describe a process to improve the product or the supply chain without asking the most critical question - will anyone actually pay us for making these changes ?

If it has a (slight) shortfall, the book does not apply the same detail to integrating the needs of the customer to the decision making process. However, this is overcome by the sound way in which Gale seeks to assist us in finding ways to drive value for the customer.

Worth the investment - it does require some effort to read, but most worthwhile books are like that.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Still highly relevant today, March 11, 2005

By	Walter Reade (Appleton, WI United States) - See all my reviews

Managing Customer Value presents a simple yet powerful method to determine where your product falls relative to the competition with respect to quality and value. This exercise alone will most likely be an eye opener for any business. The book then provides the necessary steps that must be taken to shift the location of a product on the quality/value curve. Managing Customer Value is still highly relevant and best of all it is not that difficult to put into practice.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars If you need tools..., June 23, 2002

By	"industrialmarketing" (Lansdale, PA USA) - See all my reviews

Dr. Bradley Gale is one of the world's leading authorities on the process of Value Mapping. Value Mapping is the technique of turning customer feedback from customers into powerful management tools that point the way to improve profits. Value Mapping is an excellent approach for industrial marketers to include in their arsenal of analytical tools. This book is filled with examples and framework templates that show you how to do it. The key for those of us in industrial marketing is getting the customer data. It's usually more difficult in industry, and there is often low or no funding available for market research. Once your company decides to stop "flying blind" this book can be exceedingly valuable as a handbook that covers to do with the information.

Prentis Hall
President
The Industrial Marketing Practice Association...