Collaboration with the customer has become a key strategy for creating and maintaining a competitive advantage in the modern marketplace. Two emerging business models, Mass-customisation and the more advanced Customisation, place the customer at the centre of the product development process, actively involving them from the earliest stages and throughout the entire life cycle.
Evolving the role of the customer and the designer
This new approach has radically transformed traditional design paradigms:
1. Role of the designer: There has been a shift from the design of standard or partially configurable products to the creation of customer-configurable components.
2. Role of the customer: From being merely a passive buyer, the customer becomes the ultimate designer of their own solution, an active and integral part of the business system.
A new approach to value creation
An active, creative and social collaboration process is thus developed, where the customer interacts throughout the entire product life cycle and within the value chain. This mutual exchange of knowledge becomes the main engine for value creation.
The crucial role of information systems
In this context, information systems become key enablers. To be effective, they must:
1. Map the enterprise processes related to the product life cycle and customer relations
2. Integrate with existing enterprise applications
3. Incorporate customer knowledge into product development
4. Capture the ‘voice of the customer’ and translate it into concrete requirements
RuleDesigner: the platform for total collaboration
RuleDesigner has integrated this vision into a comprehensive technology platform, offering:
– Dedicated portals for product configuration
– Customised marketing tools based on customer preferences
– Structured sales opportunity management for customised products
– Sharing and management of job data
– Complete traceability of customer history, including enquiries, shared documents, products sold and maintenance work
– Browsable catalogues and online spare parts purchasing possibilities
With RuleDesigner, companies can realise and sustain total customer collaboration, turning product customisation into a powerful competitive advantage.
