How do I check how a fulfilment business onboards new clients?

Onboarding is where a fulfilment business wins or loses a client. Ask whether the steps are written down, from the signed agreement through product intake, data setup, test orders and the first live shipments. If everything lives in one manager’s memory, make a note.

Take two or three recent clients and read their files from the first conversation to the first invoice. Compare planned and actual timing. Look for delays caused by missing data, mislabelled stock or integration problems, and check how the team responded.

With the seller’s permission, ask clients about the experience. A new client who struggled but stayed tells you something different from one who left within a few months. Check for any promises made in sales that operations could not deliver. Finally, ask what onboarding costs the business in staff time and whether clients are charged for it. Your accountant can help you understand that cost, and your lawyer can review a sample agreement. Ask whether the business turns down clients that do not fit its processes. A team that screens at the start usually has fewer messy launches than one that says yes to everything. Ask how the team handles a client that sends stock without notice.

Key takeaways

• Read the written steps and compare them with two or three real client files.
• Ask recent clients how setup went and look for promises operations could not keep.
• Find out who runs onboarding and what it costs in staff time.