Pradyut Kumar Bordoloi

Entrusted with the responsibility of leading the customer service organization for the Pacific region in 2021, initiatives are taken to align the after sales support team in the following areas:

• Service Infrastructure - in line with global after sales strategy, established a standard process of appointing after-sales support solutions in Pacific region through a combination of hybrid, 3P outsourced or distributor lead operations. Assessments are done on a regular basis to ensure that after sales delivery are on expected lines and need for any course corrections are done in consultation with market leaders. Work in final stages to launch a service entity in Vietnam.
• Service quality & business processes - facilitated uniformity in the region by launching a business 'Playbook' in 2021 encompassing and standardising key business processes and global service KPIs. The customer facing metrics like NPS, first time fix, time to complete, CSI etc and process effectiveness are monitored regularly and improvement actions identified. To drive uniformity in technical and spares communication a repository is under development to support the Pacific after sales team and regional customers.
• Global quality management process - work closely with the global quality management team to drive product quality improvement and report any potential safety issues to the Global Safety & Regulatory Affairs organization.
• Customer grievances - turn around time for each case is monitored and exceptional tickets are escalated through a standard business process automated in CRM. Work in progress to create a 'Online reputation management' team to manage social media escalations in Pacific region.
• Warranty cost administration - a profitability for growth (P4G) initiative was taken to drive warranty cost by 10% over previous year. 'Zero defect' initiative is being driven with a few suppliers.
• Regional retrofit/refurbish solution - a refurbished/retrofit facility in line with global safety protocol and processes currently being planned in Singapore, due for launch in September 2022. facility will serve as a hub to rework finished goods before it is sold in Pacific market and to refurbish returned products before selling to graded dealers.

Contributed substantially to Whirlpool's stated goal of Best-in-Class Service for Southeast Asia in the following areas:

• Successfully executed transition from distributor led sales and service operations to 3P service operations in Singapore in 2017.
• Collaborated with Agape Connection People Pte Ltd to launch 3P call center operation under Yellow Ribbon Project (YRP).
• Worked closely with iZENO Pte Ltd to customize and launch Sugar CRM for Singapore in 2017. In accordance with our global IT strategy, worked closely with PWC team to transit to SAP CRM in 2021.
• Deployed key global metrics namely to track service delivery, and customer satisfaction in Singapore. Launched ‘111' Differentiated Service Program for ‘ special' customers, progress tracked thru monthly ‘ 111 score ' and ‘ Net Promoter Score' .
• In effort to reduce operating cost, claim management process was automated and governance process initiated to optimize and control warranty cost.
• Created Central spare parts warehouse to cater to need of Singapore 3P service partners. This would pave way for future regional hub for Southeast Asia region.
• Successfully created product testing and training facility for all approbation, product evaluation and capability development needs pertaining to Singapore market.

As Head of Service Quality entrusted with responsibility of executing Whirlpool Strategy and Service operations, following initiatives were taken to improve efficiency and productivity of field operations

• Established scientific basis for expansion of Whirlpool's service network, particularly in top 50 markets, including criteria to select Service Partners and Technicians. Outlined governing mechanism for top 200 Service Partners to enhance service delivery & process adherence.
• Led evolution of Customer Helpline (volume: 3 million calls), operated by BPO's in Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore.
• Knowledge Management Tool and E-catalog were developed to serve as repository of information for all technical and business processes. Defective handling process, repeat sales for consumables and preventive maintenance visits were automated.
• Assisted optimizing warranty & additional warranty cost thru service projects in collaboration with manufacturing quality.
• Actively involved in setting up two Service Academies in Gurgaon and Pondicherry where more than 3,500 participants are trained annually.
• Uncompromising Care, industry-first initiative focused on real-time customer feedback was launched to drive service experience and measure customer success.
• A dedicated Special Operations Support Team was formed at Call Center to contain grievances that could potentially escalate. An exclusive ' Online Reputation Management ' team and ‘ Angry to Advocacy Program' was launched to drive customer satisfaction in social media and recover disgruntled customers.