All These Acronyms - CRM Defined
Posted by Randy Wadle on Mon, Dec 13, 2010 @ 01:49 PM
Is it me or does anyone else feel that just about everything in life that is described in more than two words has an acronym these days. Acronyms in the technology sector alone could compete with many full blown languages. While these often sound cool and make some people feel smart, sometimes they are not a very effective way to communicate. I believe that sometimes acronyms take simple things and make them more complex. Other times, acronyms take something sophisticated and dulls it to fit within a broad definition.
“CRM” is a great example of an acronym that often has very different definitions depending on who you are talking to. Most people know that the letters stand for Customer (or client) Relationship Management. But when you dive under the covers to determine what that really means to them, often the gaps between answers is as wide as the Grand Canyon.
I recently read an engaging article (cio.com URL below) that provides a very simple and thought provoking answer to the CRM definition. According to the author, CRM can be defined as “Conducting affairs with someone purchasing a commodity or a service”. This definition leads us to the conclusion that EVERY business does CRM in some form or fashion. Some do it efficiently and successful, others don’t. When you break it down, CRM can be defined as how good you are at doing your business.
When developing plans for a new business, most entrepreneurs think hard about defining the important processes that will be needed to build and deliver products and services to their customers which will result in the business making a profit. But once “business” starts happening, “it” often gets in the way of figuring how well those processes are working. Many businesses struggle with change and therefore continue using processes that were developed before the first customer was sold. These processes may have had flawed designs in the first place or may have worked for a small number of transactions but don’t scale well.
Another intriguing concept brought forth in this article is that CRM is an evolutionary journey. “CRM is not a destination; it’s a journey!...Just like the constant evolution of company culture, CRM evolves; it lives and must be nourished to blossom.” Most business leaders would agree that a culture that adapts to change is critical for success. A culture that focuses on the success of the customer relationship will clearly need to change as quickly as the needs and expectations of the customers change. In some industries, this may force providers to continually adapt and change at a rapid pace. Without a strong CRM framework of processes and flexible supporting systems, continual rapid change will be unsustainable.
“Experts of the trade have established that CRM will cease to be the opportunity for competitive advantage. Rather, lack of it will bring about competitive disadvantage.” Everything moves fast in our culture today. Customers expect their providers to be able to keep up, and in most cases to be one step ahead, of their needs. The companies that can adapt their processes and supporting technology to meet this expectation will thrive. Those that can’t keep up may look to this definition of CRM…”Competition Ran MeOver”.
Source: CIO.com: http://advice.cio.com/per_arild/crm_what_s_all_the_hype_about?page=0
Posted by: Per Arild in Best Practices
“What's all the crm hype about? Everybody does it but not all too well. Food for Thought”