Welcome to the Family

Recently I attended an Open House event hosted by one of our distributors, Hartwig, at their Technology Center in Houston, Texas. I met with some customers who have become good friends, and we reminisced about their Okuma journeys.

Catching Up with Family

One couple, who now has multiple Okumas in their shop, swapped stories with me about their trip with us to Japan a couple years ago. Another customer in attendance has a shop that’s growing by leaps and bounds, so it was exciting to catch up with them. I remember when they bought their first Okuma at IMTS several years ago, and today they have more than a dozen Okumas and are expanding into a larger facility. I see this story played out time and time again when people join the Okuma family.

Watch the Video: Hartwig Open House – Houston TX

In many ways, the Open House felt like a family reunion. Customers feel such a strong connection to Okuma, it never ceases to amaze me. Prior to joining the company, I spent many years in large corporate environments, and I remember experiencing a bit of culture shock when I first arrived here. It was so refreshing to see the value placed on personal interactions and cultivating customer relationships.

Transactional Relationships vs. Personal Relationships

It really comes down to two different cultural ways of doing business. Many corporations tend to focus on transactional relationships with customers, where the sales activity is front-and-center, and there’s an intense, but temporary, cycle of engagement. On the other hand, companies that focus on personal relationships allow engagement to develop and deepen over time. Having personal relationships means we invest in them, and we work with our customers to gain a deeper understanding of their business needs, and how we can support them.

In the transactional world, when the going gets tough (which it naturally will from time to time), things can get tense and difficult. However, within the context of a personal relationship, it’s more natural to try and work together to find a mutually beneficial solution to an issue or problem. This is a much more productive approach for all involved.

Helping Customers Succeed

For those who are in sales roles, both at Okuma and our distributors, there’s a strong desire to help people, and to approach things with a servant heart. There is a shared passion for helping customers succeed. We express our commitment to creating long-term, mutually beneficial relationships with customers through our mission statement, “We passionately pursue a customer for life.” And we walk this talk every day.

Our salespeople, when they’re visiting an area from out of town, get invited to have dinner at our customers’ homes. They visit customers on weekends because that’s when there is downtime. These interactions help us get to know our customers well, so we can best serve them.

We passionately pursue a customer for life.

Never Just a Number

Occasionally I run across someone who thinks they’re “too small for Okuma”, and therefore will never be important to us. But the reality is, we don’t operate like a big company. We care a lot for each individual and have a deep-down desire to make sure they’re successful. Because of our extensive distribution network, we have the manpower, the ability, and the desire to make things happen for each customer. Once a small shop buys their first machine from us, and they find out this is a reality, it’s a game-changer. I think this is one of the main reasons people stay with Okuma. They see they’re not just an account number, they become part of our family.

Here to Ensure Your Success

As I saw at the Open House, shops are already positioning themselves for a next phase of growth. As we ramp up the economy and shops make their next moves, we’re here to help ensure your success. If you haven’t had an Okuma experience yet, I encourage you to give us a try. I feel confident we’ll exceed your expectations, and I look forward to welcoming you to the Okuma family.

About Jim King

Jim King is President and COO, Okuma America Corporation.

Connect with Jim on LinkedIn.