Destiny not Destination
Transition that keeps your CRM relevant
An often neglected aspect of CRM projects is the need for a transition approach to stay relevant in a changing world in the long term.
It’s easy to forget that when you develop software and roll it out, the users may not be on the same page and need to catch up.
It’s also easy to think that the job is done once the software has been developed and the users are trained. But the world doesn’t stop changing at that point.
Long term Return
Managing Transition
Leaving the old world that you know works, however inefficiently, for a new world that you don’t know is traumatic.
It is likely that people will experience phases of feeling incompetent with the new system before reaching the level of unconscious competence that they had with the old, familiar way of doing things.
We recognise that this is a dangerous time—almost a time of grieving—when it is easy for users to slip into denial and fall back on the old system that they know how to use.
During this time, CRM projects run into the sand, which is why we have developed a Transition approach.
New World Support
Our approach of delivering smaller transitions, which the end-user has a hand in designing, makes the transition much easier to achieve.
At each stage, we offer training and close go-live support. However, we go a step further and provide managers with regular clinics and updates so that they can support their staff.
This includes a set of resources, including notes and videos, that they can use in team meetings when issues arise.
We also help the team create a communication plan that shares good news from other teams and helps spread best practices for using the new CRM tools that they have available.
Long Term Returns
Your market changes, new entrants with disruptive ideas appear, and new alternative products and services are constantly offered to clients.
That means your CRM, as implemented, has a shelf life unless it is a living system that can adapt to new realities.
To do this, we plan a series of Town Hall meetings with stakeholders to share stories about their experiences and develop agendas for change.
That keeps your investment relevant and delivering long into the future.
Securing the Future
We are a Human lead rather than a technology lead practice. However, our role is to develop the tools your people need.
We recommend ZOHO as the platform you should use because it offers the best security for your future. It constantly keeps up with market changes and spends £100m’s every year on development.
It also offers a wide range of integrated applications and developer tools, so we and you can be confident that any future challenge can be addressed and your investment safeguarded.
ZOHO Secures your Future
ZOHO is not only the biggest tool kit on the market for business, it commits to spending 80% of its income on development. As it has over 100m users world wide, that is a considerable investment, and so you can feel confident that it will provide a technical solution, long into the future.
Transition to a new CRM and keeping it relevant
With all the excitement of developing a new CRM system, it is often easy to forget that while you have been on this journey for months, the rollout could be the first the users have heard of it. They need time to catch up, so a transition process needs to be planned.
From a human perspective, users need to go through the phases of learning about a new way of doing things (unconscious incompetence, conscious incompetence, conscious competence) to arrive at their current unconscious competence.
You can think of this as almost a grieving period during which they may experience denial and anger. That is why this is a crucial stage that needs to be managed well.
The 4D CRM approach has been designed with this in mind. Early engagement has given them the opportunity to start thinking about the future, and phased Agile delivery means that each transition is less of a shock.
Another forgotten aspect of CRM is that the world continues to turn after the software is implemented. That means you must plan for its long-term development to keep it relevant in an ever-changing world. Generally, there is no plan to do this.
Tell me about Transition
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