Making Customer Relationship Management Effective in Organisations

This paper seeks to develop a better understanding of Customer Relationship Management (CRM) adoption by organisations and their employees. Specifically, it aims to investigate antecedents of CRM adoption as a multi-stage... [ view full abstract ]

This paper seeks to develop a better understanding of Customer Relationship Management (CRM) adoption by organisations and their employees. Specifically, it aims to investigate antecedents of CRM adoption as a multi-stage process (employees and organisational). Employing a mixed-method approach involving ten organisations across four differing sectors, a conceptual framework was suggested and then tested. Structural equation modelling was used to test the hypotheses on a sample of 301 practitioners in a developing country. The results reveal CRM adoption as a multi-stage process, with differing influences at each stage. Employees were found to appreciate the CRM benefits if their organisation developed clear objectives for CRM, strategically measured its performance, emphasised segmentation analysis and managed customer knowledge. Besides, organisational deployment of CRM strategies is influenced by the development of clear objectives for CRM and the ability to manage project changes effectively.