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Fall 2006

A newsletter of the Carlson School Enterprises

he Carlson School has an impressiverelationship with the business

community, but that doesnt mean itcant improve. In the spring of 2006,then-interim Dean Jim Campbell

tapped the Carlson ConsultingEnterprise to formulate a customerrelationship management (CRM)strategy.

Who are the customers of a leadingbusiness school? Think of the degree-holder as the schools product, and itbecomes obvious: the companies thathire Carlson School students. Thisinnovative approach to evaluatingbusiness education allowed the con-sultants to apply CRM methodologies

to the Carlson Schools interactionswith its business partners.

CRM enables the Carlson Schoolto approach customers as a singleentity and provide them with more

valuable services, says Jim Campbell,retired CEO of Wells Fargo. Theobjectives of the project were three-fold: to define the current state ofcustomer relationship management at

the school, to benchmark and identifyCRM best practices in the educationindustry, and to develop a conceptualdesign with implementation strategyto improve the coordination and

effectiveness of managing externalrelations.The Consulting Enterprise team

defined a CRM frameworkdefine,track, share, and maintainwhichencapsulated the entire lifecycle ofrelationship management. The teamapplied this framework to aid in data

gathering and analysis. Next, the teamconducted 22 interviews to understandcurrent relationship management at theschool. The resulting information was

analyzed to identify the root causes forbehaviors.

To identify industry best practices,the team interviewed corporate relations

groups from 11 peer business schools,including the Sloan School ofManagement at the MassachusettsInstitute of Technology and theMcCombs School of Business at theUniversity of Texas at Austin. To

capture the voice of the customer, theteam conducted on-site visits to fourcompanies that hire Carlson Schoolstudents: Cargill, General Mills, Targeand 3M. The team also identified

professional services industries thatface similar challenges to academiain managing external relations. Tounderstand the practices of thesecompanies, the team interviewedexecutives from Accenture, CapGemini, and Deloitte Consulting.

The teams secondary researchefforts focused on CRM implementation, cultural and incentive change, bepractices, and technology. The teamconducted a half-day visioning session

with nine stakeholders from across thCarlson School to brainstorm CRM

vision, conceptual design, enablers ofdesign, and risks and barriers to thedesign. Finally, the team conducted 26internal buy-in interviews to ensurethat stakeholders were on-board withthe strategy.

T

Enterprise calendar year

The Carlson Consulting Enterprise has several project start dates available to meet your project needs. For more information,contact Laura TerWisscha by email at lterwisscha@csom.umn.edu or phone at 612-626 -0682.

Fall Semester Spring Semester

Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr Ma

Project Conducted(approximately 12 weeks)

Spring Full-TermProject Scoping

Fall Project Scoping

Project Conducted(approximately 12 weeks)

Spring Half-Term

Project Scoping

Project

Conducted(approx. 7 weeks)

Managing relationshipsCarlson Consulting Enterprise students bring their expertise home

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red Beier, professor emeritus of marketing and logistics management, has taken

on the role of academic director of the Carlson Consulting Enterprise.Fred brings tremendous expertise and a passion for developing students to thisrole, says Consulting Enterprise professional director Laura TerWisscha.

Beier received his doctorate in logistics from Ohio State University, and hejoined the faculty of the Carlson School of Management in 1967. His contributionsto the Carlson School include serving as associate dean of academic affairs for six

years, being instrumental in the design and implementation of the Carlson Schoolsintegrative curriculum in supply chain management, and serving as the first director ofthe Carlson Schools supply chain advisory board. His research has been publishedin major academic journals in the field of transportation and logistics, and he hasserved on the editorial boards of logistics and supply chain management journals.

While on leave from the University, Beier served as market manager for a trans-portation firm, where he developed marketing and competitive strategies for selectedindustries being served. He was also the first faculty fellow to the U. S. Departmentof Transportation. He has consulted with firms in a number of sectors includingtransportation, wholesale/retail distribution, manufacturing, and finance.

Beier replaces Alok Gupta, Carlson School Professor of Information andDecision Sciences, who now serves as chair of the Department of Informationand Decision Sciences.

CRM has evolved from a technology solution to a driver of change inorganizations, notes Sandeep Anand, 06 MBA, who led the team on the project.That seems to be the case at the Carlson School. The consultants developed aphased implementation plan with well-defined milestones, and they presentedthis plan to the Carlson Schools corporate council and board of overseers. Theconsultants recommendations included structuring an External Relationsdepartment to coordinate CRM activities; developing a key account strategyfor identifying key customers; and identifying roles and responsibilities to helpimplement CRM strategy.

We plan to begin the pilot stage of the CRM project by the end of the year,focusing first on how we can improve our internal interactions around issuesinvolving our customers with the intent to eventually move to a technology

enabler, says Deb Cundy, who joined the Carlson School in May as assistantdean of External Relations.

This project provided a unique consulting opportunity, says Joshua Loehrke,06 MBA. In our short time at the Carlson School and in the ConsultingEnterprise, its difficult to truly have a lasting impact on the school. This project

will benefit future students, as well as improve our relationships with theCarlson School as alumni and as potential employers.

CRM is a journey, not a destination, says Jim Campbell. The ConsultingEnterprise team has made a huge step in the right direction for CRM at theCarlson School.

Expert adviceCarlson School Professor Emeritus Fred Beier becomes newacademic director of Consulting Enterprise

This fall, the ConsultingEnterprise students are working

on a variety of projects.

Ecolab

Objective: New global marketopportunity

Expected Outcome: Strategy andbusiness model recommendationsfor new market opportunity

Thrivent Financial forLutherans

Objective: New market

opportunityExpected Outcome: Competitiveand industry analysis for newmarket and assessment ofalternative business models formarket entry

Select Comfort

Objective: Commodity profilesExpected Outcome: Predictivecost model for each commodityand identification of risk and

opportunities to manage supplychain

Select Comfort

Objective: Margin improvementExpected Outcome: Costingmodel and scenario analysis

with recommendations toimprove margins

Walker Art Center

Objective: Retail and member-

ship strategyExpected Outcome: Three-to-fiveyear retail store strategy andrecommendations for furtherdevelopment and investment;also, opportunities to increasemembership

Consultingfor success

F

Managing Relationships - continued from page 1

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Strategic Business Development(SBD) provides internal con-

sulting services to the companys 50-plusdivisions. This leadership developmentprogram exposes analysts to real chal-lenges facing 3Ms six global businesses.

This past summer, I had an incredibleopportunity to leverage frameworks andtools learned in the Consulting Enterpriseto better structure business problemsand provide solutions that clients value,says Nathan Windom, second-year MBAstudent who worked as a summer intern

with the SBD group.

Windoms undergraduate work instrategic marketing and his managementand IT consulting background provideda foundation of knowledge that allowedhim to apply the hypothesis-drivenframeworks taught in the ConsultingEnterprise. I used frameworks in thepast, but after my experience in the

Enterprise, I am more confident that Ihave the tools necessary to approach themost challenging issues facing businessestoday, says Windom.

Despite having three very differentprojects during his summer internship,he consistently started with the end inmind and used a hypothesis-drivenapproach to each unique problem.Another approach he consistently used

was the development of an issue tree andresearch plan. We were constantly toldof the importance of MECE (mutuallyexclusive, collectively exhaustive) in our

classes, so I developed an issue tree toensure I identified all of the relevantissues and that the main points did notoverlap, Windom says.

Grouping ideas allowed Windom tovisualize the problem in manageablepieces and direct further analysis in alogical manner. The frameworks and

tools used helped him with his analysisand provided an invaluable method toclearly communicate with clients.Windom says, My clients were aware o

what weve done in the past, what we neeto do in the future, and the expectationof what it will take to get us there.

The Consulting Enterprise helpedWindom identify approaches that canbe applied to any business challenge.The true value of the Enterprise isapplying what youve learned in class onreal projects, with real clients, saysWindom. I was impressed by the high-

caliber team I worked with on my lastEnterprise project and the way we usedthe tools and techniques learned to helpour client best address its tenure andretention issues. My experience in theConsulting Enterprise prepared me tobe successful at 3M.

Internship spotlightReal-world application of Consulting Enterprise frameworks

hanghai, China-based Jennifer Beske,04 MBA, serves as a business devel-

opment manager for MedtronicsGreater China division. She is charged

with developing business growth strategiesfor the Minn.-based medical deviceleader across China as well as leading

Medtronic Chinas mergers & acquisi-tion (M&A) group.

I look for ways that Medtronic cangrow its business exponentially in Chinaby serving and improving more patientslives with Medtronics therapies, saysBeske. I also attempt to define howMedtronic will be positioned in Chinasmedical device industry in the next five

years. Currently, Medtronic is a leaderin the Chinese market for most of itsdivisions and has had double-digit

growth in China in the last five years.

While pursuing her Carlson MBA,Beske participated in the CarlsonConsulting Enterprise. Beskes MBA-student experiences could seem remotefrom her current role. In fact, she findsthat the skills she developed while con-sulting on Enterprise projects have

everyday applications. As a businessconsultant, you acquire information andknowledge about the company andindustry that you need to analyze andtranslate into tangible recommendationsuseful to the client, she says. TheEnterprise reinforced my ability to deliver

value-added analysis and recommendationsto a client, to tell them a story abouttheir business and market that is bothmeaningful and actionable.

While participating in the Enterprise,

Beske led a team of student consultants

on a project with Minneapolis-basedRimage Inc., the worlds largest full-linemanufacturer of CD and DVD publishinduplication, and printing systems. Herteam produced lifetime value calculationas well as product positioning analysesand recommendations for the company

Soon after graduation, Beske startedworking for Medtronic in its corporatedevelopment group, where she partnere

with Medtronic leaders to execute in itM&A-related plans and deals. Goinginto my first job at Medtronic, I felt

grateful to have developed analytical anconsultancy skills from my ConsultingEnterprise projects necessary to executthese deals, she says now. Every deal

wasand still isa project.

Managing globallyJennifer Beske, 04 MBA, uses her Consulting Enterprise experience to build Medtronicsbusiness in China

3M

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Carlson Consulting EnterpriseCarlson School of ManagementUniversity of Minnesota321 Nineteenth Avenue South, Suite 3-306Minneapolis, Minnesota 55455-9940

Inside this Edition> Carlson School consultants provide a

CRM strategy

> Internship spotlight on 3M

> Fred Beier is new academic director

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ORG.

U.S. POST

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PERMIT NO

A unique solution to your business challenges

Using cutting-edge research and access to thought leadership, Carlson Consulting Enterprise students

partner with a team of experienced professionals to deliver bottom-line resultsat a tremendous value.

StrategyCompetitive Analysis

Cost ReductionPerformance Management

Business/Strategic PlanningIndustry Analysis

OperationsProcess Improvement

LogisticsManufacturing Processes

Supply Chain ManagementInventory Management

For more information, visit our website at carlsonschool.umn.edu/consultingor contact Laura TerWisscha > lterwisscha@csom.umn.edu > 612-626-0682

We deliver a disciplined, fact-based approach within:

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