The twenty‐first century business frontier

The latter part of the twentieth century saw the transition from a sales‐oriented environment to a marketing‐oriented one. At the beginning of the twenty‐first century this is particularly developing in the direction of “customer focus”. Consequently, the key to achieving business success in the twenty‐first century is continual research, not only into customer satisfaction, but also into internal customer – employee – satisfaction. Success in the twenty‐first century will be judged on the quality and longevity of supplier‐customer relationships. With companies facing increasing economic pressure, customer and employee surveys can prove an invaluable barometer of the health of an organisation. And regular “temperature‐taking” will ensure that any fluctuations are proactively handled to maintain the perfect climate for cultivating customer loyalty in all economic situations.