Realising the Benefits from Relationship Management

Improving business performance through effective customer relationship management is a realisable goal with significant benefits, says Nigel Webb.
Any process or technology directly linked to the financial health of a business generates strong debate and rightly so. When it includes the, often emotional, management of the customer relationship, it can really overheat. The critical question for many businesses remains, how do you measure, improve and accelerate business performance using relationship management? Business leaders often attempt to justify their approach based on revenue growth alone.
Addition of the quality of the customer relationship, delivery of the best experience and optimisation of sales and marketing opportunities, creates a strategy based on performance management that will deliver far greater value to the business. To uncover the justifications, cost savings and overall impact that can be readily realised from performance management we need to examine four key areas.
Executive visibility
A major source of management frustration is poor visibility of critical and accurate business information.The delays and re-work required to identify the correct and current information are time consuming, resource intensive and frequently unobtainable within critical timescales.
Elements of guesswork, or at worst incorrect interpretation of key metrics, are often the only basis for apparently sound decisions. Good visibility from improved business views of information and status has an immediate and positive business impact of 5% to 8% on costs.