The year 2021 has been announced as a pivotal year for industry players. Following the health crisis, many companies have had to face new challenges in order to develop their activity. Among these dynamic players, RS Components, an expert in industrial distribution with 450 employees, has been able to pull out all the stops: evolution of internal processes, new service offer and, above all, an acceleration of the digitalization of their tools.
RS Components, the French subsidiary of the Electrocomponents group, is one of the leading distributors in the B2B market for industrial supplies and electronic components. Today, the company draws a positive balance of the past year, although it has been shaken by three phenomena:
- a health crisis that is still present: since 2019, RS Components employees have been teleworking. The logistics teams, representing a third of the company's employees, are on site to ensure deliveries. This change in work habits has played into the flexibility of the distributor and its supply chain. While some members of staff have been unable to work from home because of their position, their colleagues have been supported by the company in order to adapt to the new habits as well as possible. This strategy of protecting the employees paid off: the results were not impacted by the remote work and the RS Components teams were able to continue their activity in security.
- a shortage of components: this phenomenon is becoming more and more widespread and has been reinforced by the Brexit. The shortage of components and raw materials is due in particular to over-consumption in certain sectors, such as the automotive or white goods markets, simply because of the fear of running out. To overcome this situation, RS Components has been able to anticipate market movements and stock a sufficient number of items, for thousands of products, in order to ensure service to its customers. The company also got closer to its manufacturers in order to prepare them for the future demands of their customers. Stéphane Maffli, president of RS Components France, has recently taken the floor through a series of videos in order to explain the ins and outs of this shortage and to make the public aware of it
- and a growing demand from customers: if the health crisis has impacted the daily life of companies, it has above all accelerated their digitalization. RS Components has been digitizing its operations for years, thus taking the lead over the other players in the sector who are only just beginning their transformation. The RS Components e-commerce site was created in 1998. Stéphane Maffli has observed an increase of almost 5,700 new professional customers per month in 2021, for a total of 118,000 customers. These new requests caused by the health crisis, due to the closure of physical stores, are therefore mainly from web traffic, including from private customers.
"2021 has made us evolve in a positive way. We have learned to work remotely, to question our processes and to make decisions, which are not easy, but which have allowed us to avoid more important problems in the long term. Our teams have remained positive and motivated.says Stéphane Maffli.
As an innovative digital player, RS Components continues to adapt to the new needs of its customers and their new habits. The sales teams have put in place numerous tools to better understand their customers and to meet them digitally to counterbalance the "home office" phenomenon.
RS Components aims to acquire new structures in the next few years in order to continue its development in France and to continue to facilitate the activity of its customers by offering them a 360° solution. Indeed, the evolution of the purchasing behaviors of the professionals questions on the B2B. The health crisis has reinforced a need for autonomy on the part of customers, a need that is felt mainly in the Internet sphere. Today, all the big distributors have started to create their own digital platform dedicated to these professional actors. RS Components has not waited and has invested for a long time in a digital solution that not only allows its customers to be autonomous, but also to be reactive in case of problems thanks to a maintained human contact. RS Components is also continuing the evolution of its digital tools: implementation of an IAdvize chatbot based on artificial intelligence, management of customer messages on social networks, development of the responsive website, installation of the Optibelt bot for order management.
"Our strength today is to offer more than just a product, but a complete service adapted to our customers' needs. B2B is over. Now it's H2H: human to human.underlines Stéphane Maffli.
Education, a market with many challenges
Education is a priority for RS Components, a promising sector that represents its second customer. The Beauvais-based company supports universities and engineering schools on a daily basis with a range of products and services adapted to their needs. It is also involved in the training of students through internal recruitments and in various projects of challenges and sponsorships.
This student target represents the future of engineering for RS Components: not only are they its future customers, but also its future talents. In order to continue to develop their skills, the distributor invests in a number of innovative projects. The end of the year was marked by RS Components' participation in the Maker Faire Paris and the launch of the "Engineers of Tomorrow" competition, in partnership with Leroy Merlin and Sciences & Vie. The aim of the latter is to reward the most creative projects of students, researchers and other makers. Electronic kits, lab equipment but also the installation of a fablab for an amount of 17 000€ are at stake for the participants.
"Education is a major segment of our clientele; we support universities and engineering schools thanks to our product offer and our services and DesignSpark blog. We are also keen to develop our presence among young people, especially in high schools and colleges with local actions such as the blue-bot project or the support of connected projects.says Stéphane Maffli.
Socially and environmentally committed
The quality of work, the control of risks at the workplace, the respect of legislation and the environment, the development of the men and women who make up the company, etc.: these are some of the priorities that RS Components has chosen to integrate at the heart of its policy. These are some of the priorities that RS Components has chosen to integrate into the heart of its policy. It is worth noting that the health crisis has not slowed down the company's rate of recruitment.
"RS Components is a company that believes in and invests in its employees, and we also do our utmost to attract new talent and anticipate the jobs of tomorrow. Our difference is first of all our culture, working for RS Components; it's the guarantee to innovate and to search together for always more efficient solutions to satisfy our customers and to make all the teams proud.says Céline Centeno, HR Director for France.
In January 2022, the Electrocomponents Group has chosen to appoint Jordan Barry as Chief People and Culture Officer. His ambition is to make the company culture a real differentiator, where employees can be themselves and evolve in a more sustainable world. This appointment is the first step in the new ESG plan "For a Better World" presented last November by Andrea Barrett, Vice President of CSR at Electrocomponents. While this initiative comes from within the group, it is fully integrated into the vision of RS Components in France.
In France, Elise Rivera Saez, Environmental Quality Manager, works daily to improve the working environment of the company's employees and to apply the group's directives in terms of social and ecological responsibility. The "For a better world" plan is already being implemented at the Beauvais site.
"Today, customers are increasingly looking at their partners' CSR initiatives. At RS Components, we already have a dedicated team working daily to improve the working environment and the impact we can have on the planet. We also push our manufacturers and suppliers to join our dynamic to move forward together towards a "better world".concludes Stéphane Maffli.
The Beauvais-based company is looking forward to exciting projects for 2022. RS Components is also planning an extension to site 2 in Beauvais, which is currently saturated. Nearly 235,000m² will be dedicated to RS Components' logistics activities on sites 2 and 3.