Founded 90 years ago, the Automobile Club du Luxembourg (ACL) is the country’s largest association in terms of members. It has 194,000 members for whom it provides assistance, advice, benefits and a range of tailor-made individual mobility services.
For many decades, ACL’s work was primarily focused on breakdown and advocacy activities for motorists. “With economic evolution and the perception of mobility in the broadest sense, we wanted to adapt to offer a new approach to mobility as a service,” explains Louis-Nicolas Bier, Quality Manager at ACL. This is a subject that is close to the heart of ACL, which is the first mobility club to be ISO9001 certified for all its processes.
From B2C to B2B
As early as 2016, a major strategic reflection was thus carried out with a view to evolving the club: moving from an approach centred around the automobile to an activity including all the cross-cutting issues related to mobility and other alternative modes of transport.
“At the same time, we have also broadened our range of proposals for companies, with solutions dedicated to SMEs for example,” says Bier. “This shift from B2C to B2B is a trend that can be observed in other countries too. In Luxembourg, however, the relationship with private individuals is still very much alive”.
It is in this context that ACL has entered into a relationship with Luxinnovation within the framework of the Fit 4 Innovation programme. All of ACL’s operational activities as well as its assistance processes – from the first call to the final invoice – were thus examined by Resultance, a consultant approved by the national innovation agency. “A roadmap was drawn up and a list of concrete actions established,” explains Arnaud Duban, head of SME Performance at Luxinnovation.
“This Fit 4 Innovation programme led to the implementation of our Next 24 Assist programme, which continues to develop. It consists of a repositioning of the digital tools that our operational agents use”, summarises Mr Bier. “The aim is to respond to customers’ needs with powerful and innovative tools available to our staff. This also frees up their time for their support activities and provides real added value. It is also a question of being perfectly interconnected with our international partners, who also have very high standards.
“A commitment from everyone”
At the same time, ACL has also embarked on another programme proposed by Luxinnovation: Fit 4 Service. The aim of this programme is to ensure that customers receive the best possible welcome and support, and that the Club’s expertise is recognised and beyond reproach.
As part of the evaluation carried out with Kuborn & Partners, another external consultant approved by Luxinnovation, the entire ACL customer journey was reviewed. “The expert put himself in the shoes of a customer and was able to identify, step by step, the strong points and the points to be improved among ACL’s processes”, says Lionel Cammarata, Senior Advisor at Luxinnovation.
“One of the main triggers in our approach is to ask the question ‘Why?’ in each of our activities,” says Bier. “In the course of our discussions, we realised that there was a real desire to move forward and a strong commitment on the part of each employee to unite around a common project. This commitment also gave rise to many new ideas for improvement to improve both the experience of our customers and the experience of our employees in carrying out their activities.
“Caring and proactive”
The quality of the relationship with Luxinnovation is one of the keys to the success of these projects. “We benefit from a benevolent and proactive exchange with the Luxinnovation teams,” says Mr Bier. “They have the ability to offer us the product or service we need at the moment it is essential. The support provided from the beginning to the end of the project is more than clear in terms of the different stages to be respected, whether it be for the financing part or the more operational aspects. No question was ever left unanswered and most of the explanations provided left no room for doubt.
Whatever the sector of activity of the companies supported, Luxinnovation’s multidisciplinary teams are always mobilised to provide the most comprehensive support possible. “We have specific and adapted tools to accompany SMEs on the road to innovation”, summarises Lionel Cammarata.