Why lasting CRM success is more about how your organisation “thinks” about CRM than it is about the technology you use or the money you spend.
After nearly 30 years helping companies to implement CRM success, I can tell you that there is a very simple concept that all the most successful companies understand (and the less-successful ones do not).
The companies that make the most of CRM view it as an initiative or a strategy, not merely as software to install and maintain like Word or Excel. These companies think of the software as a business outcome execution engine. For them, “Go Live” is the start of the journey, not the end.
There are two top-level concepts that are always present in some form in organisations that achieve long-term CRM success.
Business Outcome Framework
The first concept is the Business Outcome Framework. The framework is used to:
- define the most important outcomes for the business
- prioritise the outcomes based on impact
- brainstorm tactics to implement that will impact those outcomes
- agree on metrics to measure success
A CRM-Ready Organisational Model is then used to determine configuration, training, reinforcement and review.
The CRM-Ready Organisational Model
The “CRM-Ready Organisational Model” is a way of organising resources and scheduling to support your CRM initiative. It includes three main components.
- An organising structure that includes:
- the Leadership or Executive Team
- the Core Team of Subject Matter Experts (SMEs)
- the CRM administrators
- A training system that consistently delivers:
- persona training (roles, positions, etc.)
- appropriate training
- multiple types of training (application, process, reinforcement)
- A cadence of accountability including:
- scheduled meetings with the Core Team and administrators
- scheduled meetings with the Leadership/Executive Team
These concepts support the implementation of a CRM system and allow an organisation to drive incremental changes to both the system and overall business strategy. If done right, CRM success can lead to long term change and a more efficient company.
