Because of the human element and change management considerations, many industry consultants believe that CRM software implementation is as much art as science. In science, consistent input and efforts can accurately predict and replicate the outcomes of pre-defined actions and events. In art, however, we model the best representation or expression based on the variables and diverse conditions at the time. The outcome is uncertain and we often make adjustments or adapt to new ideas, new information or new human capital as we make progress. These factors highlight the complexity of CRM software deployment.
CRM Implementations
CRM software implementations and upgrades require a mix of art and science to sift through business and technology complexity and craft sensible approaches, backed by proven methodologies, project management, change management and capable resources which collectively align business and technology objectives, mitigate risk and achieve forecasted results.
A CRM Implementation Special Report
CRM Software Implementation: A Best Practices Approach
CRM implementation expert Denise Holland delivers this How To advisory which breaks out CRM implementation best practices into the categories of:
People – honing in on executive sponsorship, user adoption, change management and training programs
Processes – showing how business process automation can deliver the single biggest payback on your CRM software investment, and
Michael Krigsman, CEO of IT advisory firm Asuret and author of the ZDNet blog, IT Project Failures, helps put the alarming CRM failure statistics into perspective, shares risk mitigation strategies, provides insight on the critical success factors that lead to rewarding CRM deployments and offers advice on when and how to best leverage CRM consultants.
A CRM software implementation can offer an ideal time to revisit and possibly reengineer business processes, and in effect create a tremendous synergy by introducing both streamlined processes and software automation technology in unison. Consider these 5 process improvement steps to add consistency, reliability and scalability to your CRM deployment.
A decade ago, CRM earned a bad reputation when Gartner reported that 50% to 70% of CRM installations failed. In 2009, there was a 47% fail-rate in CRM implementations, according to Forrester. Drilling deeper, though, only a few factors cause most CRM failures. Recognize the most salient success factors, and avoid the most repeated mistakes, and your CRM success rate increases.
Assembling the right CRM implementation team is a clear precursor to implementation success. However, making sure you have the right people on the bus, and everyone sitting in the right seats, is often a challenging exercise in organizations with scarce resources and limited internal experience. This article suggests several facets team leaders should consider when assembling the team.
Mitigating user adoption challenges during CRM implementations should be part of the advanced planning performed by all project managers and steering committees. With changes to customer strategies, business processes and staff responsibilities, proactive change management can make the difference between CRM success and being lumped into the all too cited CRM failure pool.
Customer Relationship Management (CRM) implementations always seem to begin with the greatest intentions. Unfortunately, challenges arise, and often escalate; sometimes to the point of CRM software implementation failure. This article examines past CRM software deployment failures in order to identify top risk areas and the mitigating factors to avoid disappointment.
Data conversions routinely result in setbacks and project delays to CRM software implementations. Far too many organizations fail to survey their data quality in advance and then ultimately discover their dirty data, duplicate data, incomplete data and bogus data when they go to convert, thereby, putting the project schedule at risk. Here are the lessons learned to tackle your data conversion.
The first customers your CRM system will engage are your own staff. You need to sell them before they can use CRM to sell anyone else. In other words, as the CRM champion, you need to change perceptions so that, to your sales reps especially, they are empowered and there is no alternative to the combined CRM strategy and supporting software system.
CRM Implementation News & Views
7 Warning Signs to Customer Churn
CRM + BPM = Customer Experience
CRM consultant Mark Price shares 7 warning signs that your customers may be about to desert you, and adds a measurable scale to score your company's risk. Go To ...
Forrester's Bill Band illustrates a convergence of CRM and BPM to support better customer experiences and deeper customer engagement. Go To ...
Sigh. CRM is NOT Dead, OK?
Steve Jobs Theory of Customer Relations
Its a new era but as I've said, its evolutionary for CRM—thus the rise of Social CRM, designed for engaging customers in a changing business world. Go To ...
What happens when the CEO of a major corporation decides to deal directly with customers? Not large customers, but ordinary ones. Go To ...
More References
CRMsolution.com offers concrete advice regarding CRM strategy and objectives, several best practices and a comprehensive Blueprint which includes the business case for CRM as well as number of key success and failure factors.
CRMmanifesto.com offers the brilliantly simple "CRM truths" and key principals which should be kept front and center during any CRM software implementation.
CRM Software Implementation: A Best Practices Approach 
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