It was March 2006 and the executive committee of Châteauform’, a specialized seminar and meetings venue headquartered near Paris, France, were gathered together for a brainstorming session for the company’s 10th anniversary. As part of the exercise, they were reading some of the “thank yous” from satisfied clients such as Société Générale and contemplating their achievements so far. The company had reported 30% revenue growth per annum since it opened the first site in 1996, and it was now about to open the 18th Châteauform’. But more challenges lay ahead, in particular to achieve the ambitious growth target of 38 sites by 2011. Doubling the number of properties in the portfolio in half the time it had taken to open them would certainly require creative thinking on all fronts, managerial, financial and practical. As Jerome Bidaut, head of customer relationships, listened to the discussion, many questions ran through his mind. He had been with the company since the beginning and had collaborated with Jacques Horovitz, the CEO, to finetune the concept. Client satisfaction above all had always been their priority. With the intended growth, a key challenge for Châteauform’ would be maintaining its client intimacy. How could it keep its value added and make sure clients did not become just another number?
