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Stuart Gentle Publisher at Onrec

A Talent for Growth

Processes, quality and a true partnership are at the heart of DDI’s 17-year relationship with KnowledgePoint

Processes, quality and a true partnership are at the heart of DDI’s 17-year relationship with KnowledgePoint.

“We trust KnowledgePoint to deliver what we need. There are no checks from a Development Dimensions International (DDI) perspective – the materials just go straight to the client,” says David Mayer, global services group manager at Development Dimensions International (DDI).

DDI is one of the world’s top talent management consultancies, helping to transform the way companies hire, promote and develop their leaders and workforces. Working with some of the most successful global organisations across a wide range of industries, they have 42 owned or closely affiliated offices from Shanghai to San Francisco – and everywhere inbetween.

The logistics of running a company of this size are complex. Content must be translated into multiple languages but remain consistent across the globe. Leadership development courses and training workshops demand a range of quality materials from printed workbooks to CD-Roms and practical items such as scissors and post-it notes, for instance, to use in exercises to encourage innovation.

“When I first came to work at DDI, eleven years ago, KnowledgePoint was already a partner,” says Mayer. KnowledgePoint designs, produces and packages bespoke training content and accessories on demand, specialising in seamless, global, just-in-time delivery.

“At first KnowledgePoint only worked with us in the UK. Most of our materials were shipped in from the US and held in stock. When we needed something it was picked from the shelf but storage space is expensive and it involved a significant amount of co-ordination to make sure we could bring everything needed for a course together at the right time,” explains Mayer.

The course materials then all had to be shipped to a client, who in turn had to store it themselves until the course dates, running the risk of damage or boxes going missing.  All the planning and organisation involved took time – time that DDI didn’t have if it wanted to be flexible and respond quickly to its clients’ demand.

Enabling Growth

Fast forward to today and KnowledgePoint now delivers courseware and other components across DDI’s entire European operation. Orders are all processed online or through the integration between KnowledgePoint’s and DDI’s order processing systems, removing the need for any manual intervention and helping DDI to react faster to client requests.

Also, 99% of courseware is now produced on demand by KnowledgePoint. This means that nothing is held in stock and everything delivered just-in-time. On despatch, KnowledgePoint’s customer services team proactively manage the shipments, tracking every order three times a day

“Bringing DDI’s France and Germany offices on board meant a huge increase in the volume of materials, and new language requirements. DDI’s growth would have been more difficult to achieve without KnowledgePoint’s just-in-time service across Europe,” says Mayer. 

Three relationship outcomes

“It’s clear that KnowledgePoint helps reduce our costs as we now don’t have stock sitting around all the time with all the overheads this entails,” says Mayer.  But aside from costs, he gives three more reasons why DDI continues to work with KnowledgePoint after all these years; the partnership, the processes and the quality.
 

“KnowledgePoint has been highly flexible and it’s been a true partnership. If there have been issues, they have given their full attention to fully understanding and fixing them,” says Mayer.

Using the best and most efficient technology possible has always been a differentiator for KnowledgePoint. Its online ordering tool gives customers such as DDI quick and easy access to products around the clock, giving a greater flexibility in dealing with last minute requests. It can also integrate its order processing with a customer’s ERP or LMS system to automatically generate and transmit training materials, replenishment stock or ad hoc orders.  This also reduces internal administrative costs.

“These methods mean we can be more agile and turn our services around that much quicker,” adds Mayer.

But perhaps it is the quality of the materials produced that is the main reason the relationship has flourished. “KnowledgePoint is very similar to DDI in that our quality is our hallmark. This means we fit together well as we share similar values and culture,” he says.

To ensure standards are always maintained, KnowledgePoint has a rigorous reporting system on quality issues raised by both themselves and their clients, to ensure immediate corrective action. “However, all materials have been quite exceptional,” reports Mayer. 

Meanwhile, DDI and KnowledgePoint are currently exploring a number of opportunities to further build on their long-standing relationship. It seems that this relationship thrives on trust and a common desire to offer the best quality product and service. “By working only within the training marketplace, we understand the importance of correct, on time materials being delivered each and every time,” concludes Paul Gibbons, KnowledgePoint co-founder.