What is operational transparency?
Operational transparency is showing customers the work being done for them, which can raise trust and the value they perceive. Ryan Buell of Harvard Business School developed the idea, first with Michael Norton in a 2011 study of what they called the labor illusion, then in a 2019 Harvard Business Review article. It also runs the other way, by letting employees see the customers they serve.
Why it matters to a revenue leader
Much commercial services work happens out of sight. Technicians test systems in mechanical rooms and leave a report the customer may never read, so at renewal the customer sees a price and little else. Showing the work, with photos and a plain summary of what was found and fixed, gives the facility manager evidence to defend the budget. That evidence supports renewals and price increases.
Example
Fictitious numbersAn HVAC maintenance company starts sending each customer a one-page summary with photos after every preventive maintenance visit. Over the next renewal cycle, its agreement renewal rate rises from 86 percent to 91 percent, and fewer customers push back on the 5 percent escalator in their agreements.
"What does a customer see of our work between the signed agreement and the renewal notice?"