February, 2004 SAI-045
Understanding the devil
This is a report of the Cranfield CRM Research Forum’s work in 2002/3.
The research agenda, shaped and agreed by the Forum’s members, was designed to further the group’;s aim to facilitate excellence in CRM. As such, it sought to answer three research questions that arose from the earlier research, namely:
a) What is the most effective way to organise for CRM?
b) What is the best way to justify CRM investment?
c) How can CRM analytics be improved?
The implications of this work for practitioners are wide ranging and important. CRM is best implemented by the deliberated management of cross functional teams, varied according to project stage and recognising key HR and management prerequisites. CRM is best justified by a process specific to the company involved. Managers can best achieve justification by adapting that process to the internal context of the company. CRM analytics can be improved by the application of motivationally based segmentation. However, the optimal level of value creation is dependent upon data acquisition that is atypical of many organisations.