Then, after having served in Korea as a telecommunications specialist during the Vietnam Era he was hired at UPS as a different kind of Quality Control Inspector – ensuring packages had correct addresses.  At UPS, he performed a number of responsibilities and was eventually promoted into management. 

As a young account executive he identified a key principle that would later become standard in the business world: spend more time with the large client.  He initiated his own processes whereby weekly visits were made to large customers; time spent analyzing distribution patterns, answering questions, providing solutions, assisting in technology upgrades and sometimes even helping to load packages onto trailers.  This experience eventually led to his being selected to serve as the first UPS Indiana District Major Account Executive, in a pilot project, with 100 Top Accounts from South Bend to Evansville.  As a result of this experience, and other programs nationally, UPS developed a major account strategy that they still utilize today.  During this period, he was asked to create a methodology for problem solving and developed the "Problem Solving Worksheet" that asked the employee to identify the problem in clear terms, list the causes of the problem and then offer a number of possible solutions.  The worksheet would be requested by the employee's manager who would then evaluate the possible solutions and in consultation with the employee decide on the best solution to fix the problem.  This worksheet was used effectively at UPS Indiana for years.

When UPS decided to automate their telephone centers circa 1986, Robert was asked to program manage the implementation of the new customer service office and handle training of employees as they transitioned from paper to computers.  He became proficient with IBM AS/400 and network troubleshooting as well as project management.  

Other projects followed including a special assignment in Europe where he program managed the installation of three automated call centers in Germany and helped design future enhancements to the systems.  He also did troubleshooting for the related project in England and got it back on track by designing the software for the call centers there and in Singapore, China.  He spent time designing the automated call center software for UPS’ Spanish call center in Madrid during a 6-week assignment there.  During this time, he also helped the German Customer Service department develop a computerized Complaint procedure, and he developed a prototype design for the first “Same Day” pick up service then under consideration in Germany.

When he returned to the United States, he was asked to create UPS’ first outbound telemarketing department in the Indiana District.  Mr. Villegas designed the system, hired employees, program managed the implementation and managed the department once it was installed.  During this time, he developed a computerized interface that enabled extraction of package volume and revenue from UPS’ SQL database that enable him to provide specific weekly and monthly sales results for each person in the department.  New package revenue numbers developed from this interface proved that the outbound business to business approach for UPS was a viable idea.  Eventually, outbound calling centers were developed nationwide. 

Eventually, he was asked to become the Call Center Manager in the facility he helped to build a few years before.  As Call Center Manager, he developed Gantt charting worksheets in Lotus 123 that served as the national guideline for creation of a Call Center Scheduling Program for UPS.  These worksheets, like the software program they gave birth to, shaved significant hours from the time and expense required to adequately plan and schedule call center operations.  In addition, this enhanced scheduling capability made it possible for the Indiana District Call Center to experience significant cost benefits as well as six second average waiting time during peak calling periods.  Today, Gantt charting and computerized scheduling is a normal routine in call centers all over the world.

As Indiana District Call Center Manager, Mr. Villegas did double duty as the District Telecommunications Manager where he was involved with auditing district telephone costs and working with a number of telecommunications providers to evaluate and purchase communications options.  During this period, he became aware of new digital messaging systems that were coming onto the market.  He quickly identified the opportunities presented by this technology and worked with operations people to implement a communication system where a small number of UPS drivers would have these communications devices in order to receive messages about necessary route changes - to help UPS be more responsive to customer needs in a number of key delivery areas.  After a few weeks, he received a visit from a corporate communications specialist that evaluated the program.  Today, every driver has a digital communication device that he/she uses to communicate directly with UPS corporately.  This device is certainly more sophisticated than the "off the shelf" technology that was around in the early '90s.  Current systems are used now to communicate with the driver as well as to download package delivery information and feed it into a database that makes "live" package tracking a reality.  To this day, Mr. Villegas doesn't know if he was the first to use messaging technology at UPS, but he does feel the pride of thinking that he was among the first to have the vision of mobile communication as a way of providing better services and accurate package information to customers.  The old days of being "honest" with the customer and telling them "We don't know where your package is" are over.

It was during this period that Mr. Villegas had the opportunity to enjoy the involvement of UPS at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.  Back in 1987, he had recommended that UPS develop a program of hospitality at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway during May when the activities surrounding the Indianapolis 500 took place each year.  The program proved so successful that it was continued and eventually other UPS Districts were performing similar hospitality events coincident with local national events.  During one post-race analysis, it was proven that customers that were invited to hospitality, food and racing at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway gave UPS more revenue than those that were not invited. Using database analysis, UPS learned that it had received a 57% increase in revenue from customers entertained at IMS compared to those that were not entertained.

During a trip to Cleveland for an Indy Car Race in the early '90s, he had an opportunity to meet with Jimmy Vassar and Adrian Fernandez, both up and coming race car drivers, and learned about the benefits of sponsorship and the excitement of being “in the pits” as compared to being in the stands.  On the return trip, he wrote a feasibility report that was sent to Corporate that recommended that UPS should get involved in motor sports sponsorship.  The response: “UPS will never sponsor a race car.”

Needless to say, history has written a different story, and the UPS Sponsorship Program now in place has proven to be a huge success.  In 1996, Mr. Villegas took his experiences at UPS and retired early to pursue both his writing aspirations and his motor sports interests.  He started New Century Marketing Concepts in order to help drivers and teams obtain sponsorship.  He quickly learned that what race teams needed, particularly smaller teams, were tools that could help them compete with the big corporations.  Since then he has written a number of documents for precisely this purpose and compiled them into a book called “The Fundamentals of the Sponsor Search.”  He has also helped teams in a number of racing series with the development of their sponsorship proposals.  In addition to these “fun” activities, Mr. Villegas offers services, not only to small sports teams, but to small businesses, franchise start ups and charitable institutions by helping them create their basic business documents and proposals.  As he looks back on his career, he sees the time spent in Europe as his most enjoyable, but with fond memories of working pit side during and an Indy Car event.

He remembers the old account executive days when he realized that he had to spend more quality time with the larger customers and sees that developments over the years have created such concepts as "SPIN Selling" and “Managing the Major Account,” and he feels a sense of being there first.  He also feels a sense of being there first in recognizing that small businesses, even big businesses, can benefit from those concepts.  And he feels a sense of being there first in recognizing the eventual power of the Internet and wireless digital communications to help facilitate business relationships that might never have happened.  As of this date, Mr. Villegas has spent time earning a college degree, living in Florida, working in San Francisco, Manhattan and many other places on behalf of clients.  It has been memorable, to say the least. 

If you’d like to learn how Mr. Villegas can help your business in this New Century, please email or call 1-317-881-3826.

To meet Vice President of Operations, Roberto Villegas III, click here: http://www.insmkt.com/profile2.htm.