The decision to implement a Hosted Customer Relationship Management solution has already been made based on the benefits CRM brings; the ability to manage and view the entire client lifecycle from sales to marketing to service delivery, accessible by both onsite and remote workers, a hosted solution so no requirement for expensive onsite hardware or software, and presence of workflow capabilities to drive efficiencies throughout the organisation whilst improving the overall customer experience.
The question that now must be answered is how to encourage employees to engage with the technology and adopt the CRM software that has been chosen to help move the company forward. It’s a well known fact that employees are often unwilling to embrace new working methods and technologies as they tend to constantly look backwards to the system they historically used as opposed to looking forwards to understand how CRM will help make workflow processes easier and more efficient.
There are a few simple steps that the team at Genesis Communications has identified as helping with the employee engagement process when implementing Microsoft CRM 4:
1. Appoint CRM angels
The first step is to identify the key stakeholders who will use the Hosted CRM 4.0 solution on a daily, or regular, basis across all departments within the organisation. Looking at the list, the next stage is to identify individuals who may be likely to be resistant to the change and ask them to become CRM angels to involve them in the process from the very beginning. By selecting these individuals to test the CRM software and provide feedback on their experience it will help to encourage them to feel that they have a responsibility to ensuring the implementation of the CRM system is a success. In addition, CRM angels provide the organisation with early adopters who can be called on to assist others in learning how to use the CRM system once it has been rolled out.
2. Listen to what employees have to say
Employees are key to making Hosted CRM work and their thoughts, views and experiences are valuable in the feedback process. Showing a genuine interest in what they have to say and by acting upon the information provided can result in employees feeling engaged with the CRM system and with the implementation process as a whole.
3. Training, training and more training
It can’t be stressed enough as to how important training is when rolling out a new CRM solution as it is only through giving employees the knowledge they need to operate the CRM system can the business maximise the benefits offered by Microsoft CRM 4.0. Fortunately CRM is based on Microsoft technologies and uses recognisable and familiar interfaces which makes training a straightforward task. Use the CRM angels as part of the process as having in-house trainers helps to continually cascade the knowledge throughout all departments.
4. Offer Team Rewards
A little bit of bribery can go a long way! Set milestones for teams to reach in the early stages of CRM adoption and reward them when they are achieved. Once the teams are comfortable with completing the goals set then the tasks will become second nature to them so the organisation achieves the desired outcome and the teams feel rewarded for being involved.
By considering utilising some of the recommendations above, CRM implementation can be a simple and effective project allowing the benefits of CRM to be realised quickly. Genesis Communications, as a Microsoft Gold Certified Partner, has helped hundreds of businesses to find, win and grow customer relationships through implementing a Hosted CRM 4.0 solution. Why not read the case studies on the Genesis website to find out how CRM and other Hosted Solutions were adopted by employees in businesses such as Citroen, Pall-Ex and Carrot Pharma Recruitment?