What is CRM?

At it's core, a Customer Relationship Management system is simply a customer database with powerful workflow and reporting capabilities. A CRM combines:

The key to a successful CRM implementation is how this technology is implemented to solve a specific business requirement or issue that introduces value to a particular organisation.

In order to identify these specific requirements, it's important to ask "Why do we want a CRM system?". Implementing a CRM has it's own challenges, including training of staff, user adoption and cost. As a result, there is always a goal or driver for implementing a new CRM - our goal is to identify what these goals are in order to ensure that they are met.

Key areas that should be addressed when planning a CRM include: 

Key goals in implementing a CRM?

It the goal to improve sales performance, improve the management of relationships, manage staff performance, streamline and enforce business processes? There are a range of applications of a CRM and it's critical to identify the primary goals.

What does management need to see from the CRM?

This is critical for a number of reasons. The first is that any CRM needs to be driven from the top of an organisation. Without the backing of management, a system will typically fail. As a result, it's important to ensure that a CRM system provides clear value to a business.

This generally comes down to reporting and business analysis that improve visibility and decision making within the business. Its critical that these reports are identified first and foremost to any CRM implementation as this often affects how the system is implemented.

Does the organisation have well defined processes?

Without well defined processes, a CRM simply becomes a data repository. It's important that a companies processes are defined and the CRM is desgined around those processes. Often, this means that process analysis is required as the first phase of any CRM implementation.

What is the information that needs to be tracked within the CRM?

In order to drive user adoption, it's important that a CRM captures the information required by the organisation. This should be tied in with the removal of redundant information within CRM records. This will avoid confusion and make the system more intuitive to use.

Keep it Simple

The key thing to always ask when defining processes and requirements is "How can this be made simpler?". A business will often have processes that can be simplified. Refer to the following examples of how business processes are driven through simple processes within CRM.