Customer relations

The success of HUBER+SUHNER is directly linked to our ability to cultivate mutually beneficial and trusting relationships with our customers. In 2023, HUBER+SUHNER served a base of approximately 4,500 buying customers. However, the major proportion of our sales is linked to key customers with whom the Group has established long-term relationships. Customer relations at HUBER+SUHNER are structured along the company’s three market segments – Industry, Communication, and Transportation – with dedicated sales teams in key countries and around 400 sales employees.

Approach

Driving a seamless customer experience

Offering a valuable customer experience is key for growth (see figure 13: Customer experience journey). Taking the pulse of customers at decisive moments allows HUBER+SUHNER to consistently understand, follow, improve, and own all the touchpoints (e.g. during an online search, when receiving the company’s response to a request, when using our products, or when interacting with the company in the event of a complaint).

HUBER+SUHNER must be a competent engineering, logistics, and supply chain partner, constantly innovating and looking for highly customised solutions. Our focus on data collection and the evaluation process for an outstanding customer experience has been further developed through a new way of measuring the pulse according to twelve monthly touchpoints. After the go-live of our new website and e-commerce platform in November 2023, we will further expand our measurements of customer satisfaction for the digital channels in 2024.

Figure 13: Customer experience journey

Personal interactions remain paramount

Personal contact is crucial to building and maintaining close relationships with customers. They typically are assigned a single point of contact at HUBER+SUHNER for all their needs. Key customers are assigned a representative from executive management to encourage exchange and mutual trust with top management. Initial feedback shows the further improvement of customer proximity on the executive level.

Regulatory and sustainability requirements

As a business-to-business (B2B) company, HUBER+SUHNER must comply with regulatory and legal requirements. Therefore, we must be able to anticipate any developments at an early stage in order to develop our products accordingly. Detailed and transparent product information and labelling are therefore key to HUBER+SUHNER. The company also ensures compliance with standards and regulations such as registration, evaluation, authorisation and restriction of chemicals (REACH) and restriction of hazardous substances (RoHS).

By actively managing our focus on sustainability and constantly working to enhance our sustainability performance, HUBER+SUHNER also contributes to customers’ sustainability, which positions us as a valuable partner beyond technical expertise and product quality. Due to the sharp rise of sustainability regulations in Switzerland and Europe, we have seen an increasing number of customers requesting information about our sustainability performance and impact. We communicate our performannce via recognized platforms such as CDP, EcoVadis, and IntegrityNext.

Product-specific disclosures about per- and polyfluorinated substances (PFAS)

HUBER+SUHNER established an internal task force to monitor regulatory updates concerning PFAS restrictions. We have started a thorough assessment of our current product lines to identify any components or materials containing PFAS compounds. Collaborating closely with our suppliers and industry partners, we are exploring PFAS-free material perspectives. Additionally, we actively participate in the public consultation regarding the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) PFAS proposal.

Objectives

To further create a seamless customer experience and to continue to create mutually beneficial and trusting relationships, our objectives are to:

• Aim for 90 days to close a customer complaint
• Further build trust as a secure and professional partner for customers
• Cooperate with customers on specific applications and business cases
• Expand our customer base
• Closely monitor customers’ expectations regarding sustainability
• Continue to contribute to disclose our sustainability performance via mentioned platforms and reaching above-average performance

Progress

One of the indicators we measure is the average number of days until a customer complaint is closed. In 2023, the duration to closure of a complaint remained stable. Focusing on the full customer experience will help HUBER+SUHNER to gain a more holistic view beyond pure customer satisfaction.

Planned actions

To continue the creation of a seamless customer experience, our planned actions for 2024 and beyond include:

• Reducing the number of customer complaints by at least 5 %
• Initiating product carbon footprint (PCF) analysis in 2024
• Continuing the European Chemicals Agency’s (ECHA) assessment of PFAS which is anticipated to extend until June 2024. Following this, we will acquire further details regarding the impending restriction, which will enable us to establish transparent communication with our customers about PFAS

Stories from around the globe

Sustainability supplier award from Airbus

On 7 March 2023, HUBER+SUHNER received a supplier sustainability award at the Airbus electrical standard parts supplier event in Toulouse. We have been providing radio frequency (RF) interconnectivity technologies to Airbus for more than a decade, supporting major developments in its existing and future commercial fleet.

Read more in the media release.