CSRN

Where did CSRN perform strongest and add best value to you as a client?

Since we worked with CSRN, there's been a multitude of benefits. They provide a great training for our consultants. They've obviously got quite a few corporate partnerships and we've heard from our consultants that they've been really beneficial. So they got that added value. Then secondly, benefiting our organisation is that we've certainly been able to acquire four different cases in Lebanon. Like that kind of said itself,just the scale at what they provided and how beneficial it's been.

Why did you decide to do business with CSRN?

I think really it's down to them being the only organization which do it in the same way. From top of my head I can think of two, so there's 180 Degrees Consulting, where to join that network you have to be part of a university organization, our organization isn't. It's open organization based across the globe. We are not a university specific, so we would not be eligible to join a 180 Degrees Consulting. Then secondly, they literally are the only group which do it in a way they do and that just worked really well for us.

What did you like in dealing with CSRN?

I think in general it's quite simple. The whole process, the onboarding process very professional. Everything was clear. I think there were a few things which probably could have been improved in terms of the actual ... software that they use. That would be one thing, which I think could be benefit the communication across all platforms have been great with CSRN. In general, it's always been clear, concise, but I think there has been times where that could also be improved. It is just about the balance. In essence, it can't always be perfect, but in general, pretty strong in terms of communication.

Any other things you want to say about project or supplier?

I've not worked directly with Yomna, but she's apparently doing really good. I've had a cool meeting with Jack and he's also been great. So really just positive opinions all around.

What clear advantages did CSRN bring compared to competition?

No one else does what they do in the way. Obviously, they have plan out to acquire clients and then offer training and clients and an element of expertise to different student led consultancy groups. No other organization does it. Well, there aren't really any direct competitors with them.

Where could CSRN improve and/or do better in the future?

As I mentioned the ... onboarding system, that there are improvements, but I think it was debate stage. So there obviously are going to be issues, but I'm sure they can be ironed out within the next couple of months. Potentially maybe some sort of really in depth onboard pacts that wouldn't necessarily benefit us, but that could benefit other consultancy groups which want to use their service. So, when we join, it's very much was approaching and having discussions, which was great. I really enjoyed that, but just thinking on their side of things, if they can offer a service pack, that could be very beneficial to any new organization who want to join and partner with CSRN.

What are your learnings from resolving your business challenge?

I think it’s provided us with a greater understanding on how consulting cases should operate.

What would you recommend to other decision-makers and why?

I think if there are any organizations out there which are really looking to get into the consulting ecosystem, that have not necessarily got its staff in sales or just need to go through a centralized system due to capacity problems. I think CSRN is probably the best organization which offers that service. I think a lot of student led groups are small and a lot of them probably do struggle with reaching out to clients. So, having this centralized system where you can go, collect a project and then take it and work on it it's in essence outsourcing. At smaller organizations, it would be something I would definitely recommend at least looking into, even if you already have your current client outreach system in place. There are also lots of benefits which do come from it rather than just doing it on your own. CSRN offer lot of training for the consultants. It's not just a onboarding system you're getting. You're also getting access to their training hub and their expertise, their knowledge and all of that other benefits.

What did you like in dealing with CSRN?

They provide us with a list of potential clients and then they put us in touch with the clients that we're interested in. I think it was very nice that everyone we spoke to was very passionate about the organization and they always seemed to be willing to go the extra mile to help. They had good knowledge about the projects that they were proposing and they're very responsive also I think it needs to be dealt with. So that's been quite a good experience working with CSRN in that role.

What was unique/special about CSRN?

I really like the fact that they were quite similar to us. All the people who work there are also students which are passionate about social impact causes. They come from different organizations originally, but they all come together because of this kind of passion. I think that was nice. They're both kind of passionate and relatable, I guess for us.

Where did CSRN perform strongest and add best value to you as a client?

The responsiveness, especially since we went for like a bit of a challenge, was good, that it was easy to keep in contact with them. The person that I was working to, one to one, we also have a kind of a WhatsApp group for more general questions. I think that's been really appreciated that they are easy to reach when necessary. That it's been really great, I guess, to be working with CSRN, I think overall. I really hope that they continue to develop because I think what they do is really cool.

Did you miss anything in what CSRN provided to you?

It kind of started off very good and we were very impressed by how organized they were. Then I think a bit further down the line, we realized that, there's still a young organization. I think they still have some things that they need to figure out internally. But I think they're being quite transparent about it, which is nice. But I think for us to be topic where I would like to see some improvement is in the way where as client, we have very limited information about clients before we take them on. So CSRN provide clients to us, but we only get to read this very short brief before we meet the clients. In our case, it didn't go so well with the clients. It was kind of we realized that's a bit too late to be able to go back. I'm afraid I don't have very good, actionable solutions because I've been thinking about it. But I guess maybe some more information about the clients would be quite useful for us in order to make a decision. Additionally, I think if that's not possible, because I see that as probably not being possible, maybe some minimum requirements that should be met by all the clients.

What issues did you have in doing business with CSRN?

We had issues with clients that were not very responsive, quite difficult to talk to in meetings because they had bad connection, or they were on the phone next to a road and things like that. I think maybe some setting expectations on their part and maybe a checklist of things that each client should have could have been quite helpful.

What would you recommend to other decision-makers and why?

I would suggest to think about why you're doing it, because I think that's something that we didn't really consider at the beginning and also maybe like what else some deal breakers for you to get into these projects and maybe try to seek some information about those before you commit. If the information is not there, it doesn't mean that they don't have it. Maybe you just need to ask the right questions.

What are your learnings from resolving your business challenge?

I think maybe this time, the learning has been that sometimes outsourcing probably isn't the right solution here. But if you do outsource, I think it could have been better managed also on our side, because we went into a new type of project that none of us have experience with. So when we faced some challenges, it was also difficult on our sides, and I think CSRN responded quite adequately when these things kind of happened. Maybe it would have helped to build a closer relationship with CSRN before we started the project as well. But it's very difficult because we have many different stakeholders. I'm kind of the manager and then I have a team with a project manager and a team, and that kind of the manager and they have a client. So it's many people. But yes, I guess maybe this relationship building, which we ended up having because of the challenge, was quite helpful.