Integrated solutions development in Global business

The purpose of this thesis was to study how a manufacturing company can develop a solution for its products in the global market. This study was performed as an action case research for Hiab Multilift Demountables. Hiab Multilift’s problem was that when delivering their product, other suppliers took care of installation and installation costs were too high. The idea was to provide a complete product directly from the factory, that contains more services. Hiab Multilift Demountables engaged the thesis writer to develop a solution for their problem. Because of the global competition, the characteristics of the physical product are no longer enough to compete in the global market. In customer-driven businesses, there is increasing discussion about delivering integrated solutions instead of producing goods or services separately. Integrated solutions are a specific combination of products and services; It responds to customer-oriented business’s problems to achieve differentiation, added value and customer loyalty. To find out about the customer needs for an integrated solution and its value adding elements, the main data collection method included theme interviews that were conducted among the members of the case company’s business network in Finland, Sweden, England, Germany, Switzerland, Latvia, and the Netherlands, between September¬¬–December 2017. A total of ten interviews were conducted involving 20 interviewees. It was found that customer needs and requirements included: technical information and material, easy purchasing system, customized products, flexibility in production and deliveries, quality improvements in product deliveries, means to compete against local competitors, sales training, spare parts service, information about development of new products, marketing material, direct communication with customers, and development of the installation process. The results revealed that added value of providing an integrated solution to customers is to offer a comprehensive solution from one place. The findings suggest that it is not possible to develop one integrated solution in the global market. The reason is that customers’ needs and requirements are different in every country. Meeting the needs and requirements of each customer will help the customer to operate its own business easier and to generate more value to customer’s customers. This was related to how customers can compete more strongly in their own market area and generate income. Therefore, to improve its operation, the manufacturing company ought to strive to find out which parts of the solution could be standardized and to create an innovative integrated solution together with their customers