On Tuesday, August 20th the Boulder Area Professional Services Sector Partnership reconvened for their first regular meeting at Avocet Communications in Longmont to assess strategic priorities identified at the April launch, specifically “connectivity and marketing” and “talent development/HR.” The group heard from guest speakers and engaged in discussion around identifying action items related to these two priorities.
This meeting’s speakers included:
Lori Jones, President and CEO of Avocet Communications
- With the current client/buyer journey relying mostly on online searches and digital content, the challenges of customer acquisition include clients wanting more for less, increased competition, staffing, staying on top of trends, and demonstrating value.
- The customer journey includes 5 fundamental steps: awareness, consideration, preference, loyalty, and advocacy. Understanding customer behavior helps you personalize the client’s journey, eliminates friction points, and increases per customer dollar value. Your mindset and approach throughout the customer journey can adapt for better client acquisition and retention. See the slides linked below to learn more about finding the right fit client.
Jason Pemberton, Principal Facilitator and Coach at The Breakthrough.Co
- During the launch, the partnership showed a keen interest in exploring each other’s organizations and services. The first “partner spotlight” highlighted The Breakthrough.Co, an organization specializing in leadership training through an active learning system.
- A study shared during the presentation reported a 516% increase in ROI over a 10-year period from an improved performance culture focus. Most industries focus solely on technical skills when promoting employees, The Breakthrough.Co emphasizes leadership development to address ineffective management and reduce employee turnover.
Industry Partner Feedback:
- The professional services industry sees their network as their greatest asset. Partners want more chances to connect in-person, particularly with folks doing similar work. They would like to use sector partnership meetings to foster these interactions.
- Partners are exploring ways they would like to collaborate with community partners on workforce and education initiatives, small business support, and grant opportunities, among other projects. With a wide array of businesses ranging from banking and finance to consulting and staffing, the professional services group will continue to work to identify shared initiatives in future meetings.
Thank you to Avocet Communications for hosting and presenting at this meeting.