Onduline France transforms its customer service
Onduline France, a manufacturer and distributor of lightweight roofing solutions, has completely revamped its customer journey. The transformation of its "sales administration" department into a genuine “customer service” is at the heart of this evolution. Leveraging collaborative efforts from its teams, Onduline has redefined its organization chart, established a job reference framework, implemented visual management, and undertaken process breakthroughs to achieve quick wins. This demonstrates once again how closely commercial performance, employees’ dedication, and customer satisfaction are linked. Feedback from Nay Tawile, General Manager for Europe, and Marie-Hélène Coudray, Customer Service Manager.
“As soon as we arrived, we initiated an internal diagnostic that highlighted deficiencies in the customer journey, from the sales call through to order payment," explains Nay Tawile, General Manager for Europe at Onduline, who has been in the role since 2021, just like the General Manager for France. This observation was later confirmed by a customer survey: “Order processing was rated as unsatisfactory, with respondents noting a lack of smoothness and efficiency in their journey.” In response, a transformation plan was developed, outlining five strategic axes, each divided into four projects. Quaternaire was then involved in the 'Better Service to the Customer' axis, as part of the broader project aimed at “transforming sales administration into a true customer service department.”
Three priority projects emerge
“We are the first link in the customer journey,” notes Marie-Hélène Coudray, Customer Service Manager. “Our shift towards more commercial functions — such as handling additional orders and follow-ups — perfectly aligns with our customers' expectations for product availability, deadlines, advice, and flexibility.” The initiative began in November 2022 with a brainstorming session involving various departments to choose the solutions, followed by the co-creation of a roadmap. Several priority projects emerged, with the launch of a “process breakthrough” at the forefront. Originating from the lean management approach, this method translates strategic vision into measurable objectives and identifies immediate transformation levers.
- ©Onduline France
“We identified five key areas: stock visibility in the ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning), the processes for 'Sales Forecasting and Inventory Management,' 'New Product Creation,' and 'Dispute Management,' as well as specific and customized orders,” explains Marie-Hélène Coudray, who also serves as the project manager. “We quickly implemented changes for the first area, achieving a quick win that motivated the team. For the other projects, we are working collaboratively by including a representative from each relevant department. Our goal is to refine our practices and improve our tools, such as making our quoting simulators more user-friendly and effective.”
The second project is implementing visual management. “This involves a dashboard that integrates the service's KPIs, customer or company events impacting their activity, and the team's morale,” explains Nay Tawile. Each week, the sales assistants update and discuss this dashboard under the guidance of their manager, Marie-Hélène Coudray, who has been trained in this management ritual. “They designed the indicators for this visual management themselves and are proud of it!” confirms Coudray.
The third project, taking effect in January 2024, is to reorganize the department based not on Regions/Clients units but on customer typology (see box). “We are moving from a multi-product, multi-market, generalist organization by zones to a structure organized by units, which offers better knowledge of products and professions,” emphasizes the General Manager for Europe. “Customer expectations vary according to distribution channels,” adds Marie-Hélène Coudray. “By specializing, we increase our expertise and can offer more supplementary orders while improving our understanding of customer needs.”
Operational efficiency will be further boosted by complementary actions: meetings with other customer service teams within the group, consultations with Quaternaire to assess the training and support needs of the seven sales assistants, and the establishment of pairings with the thirteen sales representatives.
“Encouraging teams to dedicate time to it”
The upskilling of the customer service team has been bolstered by tools provided by Quaternaire, particularly the ROP (Responsibility Objectives Performance). This framework, developed by the customer service manager in collaboration with the consultancy firm during several meetings, details the expectations for each position. The ROP served as the foundation for the creation of the job reference framework. It allows each team member to identify areas where they need to strengthen their expertise. Training and individual support will be offered throughout 2024. “It was important for us to use an external company, not only to benefit from genuine project management expertise but also to formalize the process and encourage the team to dedicate time to it,” explains Nay Tawile.
The management has set long-term goals for the transformation of the customer service department. “We aim to reduce the number of credit notes and order entry errors, while improving customer satisfaction, which we can evaluate through our surveys,” says Nay Tawile. “We also want to relieve the sales representatives of administrative tasks so they can spend more time in the field.” To support this evolution, a new CRM system was deployed in 2023.
The new organization
The customer service department is now structured in three units:
- Consumer business dedicated to large DIY stores (e.g., Leroy Merlin),
- Professional business dedicated to specialized distributors (e.g., Point P) and metalworkers (e.g., Arcelor),
- Business support and projects dedicated to technical and support services (order automation, pricing matrices, promotion tracking, and customer service development).
Onduline
- Industry: Manufacturing of lighweight roofing and cladding systems and materials
- Presence: 8 plants in 7 countries
- Workforce: 1,000 employees including 130 in France
- Turnover: €280 million, with a projectef turnover of €50 million in France for 2023
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