‘Put the employee, not the tool, at the centre of the change strategy’

09/07/21

Three tips for successfully implementing a CRM-system

Purchasing a CRM system represents an important step towards offering customers better, faster and smarter service. Nevertheless, PwC expert Vanessa van de Wiel often sees systems failing to deliver after roll-out because end user adoption falls short: ‘A CRM platform in the cloud is a great way to boost business, but if employees don’t use it enough, the results will be disappointing.’ Van de Wiel offers three tips for getting the implementation process right.

Optimise employee experience

Vanessa van de Wiel highlights the importance of BXT in the customer transformation journey, in which organisations put the customer first: ‘Working on a digital transformation requires defining a 'Business' objective. 'Technology', like a CRM platform, is the means to that end and. The 'eXperience' is about both the customer experience and the experience of the employees who are using the technology. The employee experience should be optimised from the start of the transformation to achieve the objectives.’

Ready, willing and able in a culture of change

According to Van de Wiel, organizations undergoing a digital transformation must make sure their people are ready, willing and able to work with the new CRM platform: ‘Ready means that employees have acquired the skills that they need to work with the new platform. Willing is about employees being motivated to change because they have been involved early on, have claimed ownership and know how the change will benefit them. Able means that employees have the opportunity to go through the change – they are allowed time for training, management role models the right behaviours and the old system is switched off to prevent double work.’

Three tips for change management

Asked whether she has any tips for making digital transformations a success, Van de Wiel gets right to the core: ‘Put the employee, not the tool, at the centre of the change strategy. In other words, anticipate how people behave when faced with change. They’re the ones who will be doing the work. The tool is only that – a tool.’ These are Vanessa van de Wiel’s three tips for managing change during CRM implementation and for optimising end user adoption.

1. 'Create a movement' – define a shared vision…

‘Create a movement that engages everyone who will be working with the CRM system. Start by defining a vision, i.e. what the organisation aims to achieve with the platform: what will change in the business, how will the customer and the employee experience change? Be consistent with the organisation’s purpose and strategy and don’t aim too low: it’s not a vision if it’s only about employees performing their processes in the new system. To ensure that comprehensive vision has broad support, we often hold a number of co-creation sessions with managers and representatives of end users.’

… with appropriate behaviour and KPIs

‘The outcome of these sessions is a written version of the vision, the behaviour needed to achieve it, and KPIs to measure progress. An example of behaviour would be customer contact employees entering all the information into the CRM system so that their colleagues have access to it as well. An example of more prescriptive behaviour is to agree that any information not in the system will not be discussed at sales meetings. The KPIs are about the commercial outcomes of the process – such as conversion, pipeline health, cross-sell, up-sell – and about the process itself, such as how customers rate the relationship, talent retention and how employees rate their work experience.’

2. 'Make me care' – use a campaign to fire up enthusiasm

‘Investigate what employees need to be ready, willing and able to adopt the new behaviour. Involve the HR and communication departments, managers and end-user representatives. For example, create personas for different user groups and describe what "a day in the life" is like once they’ve adopted the new way of working. Then create an internal marketing communication campaign for end users and managers. Treat employees like customers, inform and motivate them by showing them the potential of the new approach. One element, for example, would be a "Let it go" campaign encouraging end users to delete any spreadsheets they keep outside the CRM system from their computers’.

3. 'Help me learn' – offer training, identify champions…

‘Ensure that employees are properly trained in the new way of working. The big vendors have their CRM platforms in the cloud and they are constantly issuing updates. That means that even after the system has been rolled out, employees must be kept abreast of new features. Designate “champions” who are the contact persons for everyday use, even beyond the implementation phase. Use innovative technology in training, for example Virtual Reality, which is proven to help people better remember what they have learned. Try our online escape room by having teams work with employees worldwide to carry out assignments in Salesforce. It’s educational and fun!’

… and keep monitoring with the digital enablement tool

‘Even after going live, continue monitoring how employees are using the CRM system and update communication and training where necessary. For example, try our digital enablement tool, which uses algorithms to measure user engagement. Automated user journeys can help to optimise use. How does it work? Employees who aren’t using the necessary functionalities properly or at all are given targeted training, an inspiring vlog or other tools to help them get back on track. This can be done without human intervention and in compliance with the privacy rules. The tool is also useful when companies are struggling with disappointing data quality and poor KPI scores after implementing a CRM system.’