102 6.9 LDOs and CRMmThe bottom line
6.9
LDOs and CRM--The bottom line
This chapter has said much about what CRM shouldn't be, from the perspec-
tive of a large distributed organization. Let me state what it should be. First,
CRM is increasingly about integration, about systems feeding off each other,
where such feeds enrich the organization's ability to know a customer better or
to service his or her needs in a more appropriate way. To an extent this
requires an LDO to understand the interplay between complementary brands
and to put in place the processes (and platforms) to ensure that opportunities
are maximized.
Increasingly, the clear glue that will unite operational systems will be
SOAP and XML and standard messaging platforms. If applications can be
assembled just in time for different communities of interest and can share
common operational systems, the customer can have an enriched experience.
However, integration for integration's sake should be avoided at all costs. The
holy grail is about understanding what customers want from their brands and
putting in place integration procedures to ensure that they are supported
across touch-points. Portal technologies can also play a key part here where
there is a human touch~a contact center or support center--involved in cus-
tomer servicing processes.
There's more to it than that, of course. However, the only point I seek to
make here is that LDOs face a process challenge, not a technology challenge,
in implementing effective CRM. A CRM suite will, in all likelihood, not
enrich the customer experience. However, if implemented in the context of a
process review, as a point product in a wider CRM initiative, it might help. By
the same token, other key point solutions are likely to play their parts as well.
However, they need to be put in context and integrated where appropri-
ate~where it makes business and customer sense.
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