The basic idea behind CRM - making data on all customer interactions available to everyone who is customer facing - has to be a good idea. If that data is then turned into information that offers insight into customer needs, wants and interactions, then the benefits for product and service development seem clear.

The failure of many CRM investments to yield anything other than small tactical benefits is therefore puzzling. The money and resources involved are huge and the projects themselves are very disruptive. I am personally aware of one large UK PLC at the moment where the executives feel that the whole business is at a stand-still as a switch-over to a new system is implemented and that has been the case there for several months. These systems get the focus, the investment and senior sponsorship that they need and yet they regularly fail to deliver.

When I came across my first couple of dissappointing CRM results I was inclined to analyse the problem as a system problem. The vendor had over-sold the system. The implementation team had made the system too complex. The change management and training programme had not had enough resources dedicated to it. Then I worked with an orgainsation where the sytem achieved great results. When I compared the systems implementation, I found that, in common with the other organisations, they had encountered many of the problems I mentioned above. So my thoughts moved on to the strategy behind the move to CRM.

After several more observations of good and bad experiences, I have come to the conclusion that the CRM systems will work for organisations where the customer is at the heart of the organisation and will not work for those organsiations who only say that the customer is king. (I haven't come across any commercial organisations who say that the customer is not king). Where senior management pay lip service to real customer service, then failure is inevitable.

These companies tend to be sizeable and process driven. They often have impressive metrics for customer service. Phones answered on time, products manufactured with 0.01% defects, no queuing time in store etc.. However they achieve these excellent results from their processes by only doing things one way.....their way. If you observe their board meetings, they will have reasonably talented sales and marketing people, but when things get tough it will be the operations VP who will end up getting the resources or setting the agenda. To their customers, such a company looks like a music company run by deaf people. (No offence to deaf people intended)

So if you are faced with implementing a CRM installation, or with improving the results from a dissappointing one, ask yourself if this could be the problem. Observe the senior management and see how they think and behave. If this is the problem, the next question you must ask is can it be changed. If the CEO has not changed recently or is not actively pursuing a change agenda, my view is the chances are slim. Walk away!

If you have had simular or different experiences, please post