New Zealand Engineering 1997 May

Editorial

Poor salesperson, moi?

Why don't engineer-run firms impress other engineers ? That's the question I ask myself when I look at the results of our readership survey for members' impressions of their suppliers. Our 1996 survey asked members to tell us about their purchasing from, and impressions of, 105 firms including five engineering consultancies and contracting companies. With 560 responses collated the average satisfaction rating (positive over negative impressions among paying customers) for these five consulting and contracting companies is only 78 percent. This compares unfavourably with the construction materials suppliers where it was 93 percent. The only sector which scored worse was another engineering dominated sector - energy - with an average of 72 percent.

And it's not as if IPENZ members are insignificant customers either. Those 560 individuals racked up a total of 6,370 different purchase arrangements with these 105 companies, including 131 deals worth over $1 million. Extrapolate for the other 7,200 IPENZ members and you as a reader are a significant part of the economy. And yet when it comes to promoting themselves to our readers those who would seem to be most attuned to sell to their fellow members do exceptionally poorly compared to other industries. Why ?

Some of it may be historical. All the antecedents of the big pre-1984 state departments rated poorly suggesting there is some residual bitterness. Some of it may be political, foreign owned giant newcomers in monopoly industries (particularly energy) were very unpopular. But that doesn't explain why private New Zealand firms got dragged down as well.

While our information definitely proves, as we have long known, that New Zealand Engineering is the most efficient and effective means for informing major customers of marketplace developments, determining the exact nature of members' opinions of commercial suppliers will have to wait for a better readership survey. In the meantime I would like to thank all those who did take the time to fill in the survey. It certainly helps us to help you. I'll report more results as they are analysed in following months.