CRM UK - the official blog of the CRM specialists at TSG

Concentrix Support Christmas Opening Hours

With Christmas fast approaching we would like to make you aware of our support desk opening times for the festive season:

- Thursday 24th December             08.00 - 14.00

- Friday 25th December                 CLOSED

- Monday 28th December               CLOSED

- Tuesday 29th December              09.00 - 17.30

- Wednesday 30th December          09.00 - 17.30

- Thursday 31st December             09.00 - 14.00

- Friday 1st January                       CLOSED

From Monday 4th January, we will be operating as usual.

We would like to wish you a very Merry Christmas and looking forward to supporting you in 2010.

Latest job vacancies: MS CRM Consultant, Developer, Hardware Engineer, Business Development Manager

Despite the current economic climate, Concentrix is still growing! We’ve added four new jobs to the vacancies section of our website:

C#/ASP.NET Developer

Hardware Engineer

Microsoft Dynamics CRM Consultant

Hardware Sales Executive/Business Development Manager

The deadline for receipt of applications for each of the jobs is 31^st January 2010. No agencies please. For the right candidates, Concentrix provides a pleasant working environment, strong career development opportunities and competitive salary and benefits packages. Please click on the above job titles for more information.

CRM in Education - New Case Study

We've recently released a new case study, available on our website, looks at the effective use of CRM in higher education. The case study, one in a series on successful CRM implementations, focuses on Darlington College, a large Further Education College in the North of England.

A CRM system was an essential factor in Darlington College's drive to extend and improve business performance, primarily within Employer Engagement.

The case study explains how the college deployed Microsoft Dynamics CRM to help them engage more effectively with the local business community, streamline internal processes and increase competitiveness against other training providers.

Like many other colleges, Darlington College needed to maintain focus on their core student base. However, with increased competition from private training providers, the college also put great importance on engaging with the local business community to provide training for employees. The case study describes how the CRM software provides a central database to store and manage contacts, accounts, course and communication information, delivers better tracking, management and reporting, and improves performance and process efficiency.

Commenting on the case study, John Odell, a senior CRM consultant at Concentrix said “Concentrix has successfully deployed CRM systems in a variety of educational establishments. Darlington College is a great example – the CRM system helped them achieve excellent results in terms of employer engagement, and has helped them achieve an outstanding Ofsted report.

Established in 1999, Concentrix has delivered some substantial projects into UK colleges and training institutions. And, as a Microsoft Authorised Education reseller, Concentrix were able to pass on significant educational discounts to the college. As well as CRM in education, Concentrix has produced a variety of other CRM case studies focussing on sectors including manufacturing, logistics, membership management, retail and others.

Role Tailored Functionality within Microsoft Dynamics NAV

Often in our lives we are so busy doing the things we do, that it takes us considerably longer to complete tasks than it should. However, if we removed all the clutter from our minds, often we would be able to get things done much more quickly, as we would concentrate on the task in hand and not get distracted!

Microsoft have taken this concept and applied it to Microsoft Dynamics NAV, in the form of role tailored functionality.

So what is Role Tailored Functionality?

Essentially with the Role Tailored functionality Microsoft has removed all the distractions from a users workstation. Microsoft Dynamics NAV hides 90% of the features which users don’t need to see and this highlights the actions and information that they do need.

So how did the Role Tailored Functionality Emerge?

Microsoft invested a large amount of time and resources into finding out what people did in their jobs, how they performed the tasks they needed to do and ultimately why they did the things that they did. The culmination of the research was that Microsoft defined 61 distinct job roles covering essential job functions in areas such as Finance, Sales, Marketing, IT, Production, Logistics and Customer Service.

How does Microsoft Dynamics NAV work?

Microsoft Dynamics NAV users login to their role centre which shows them their own user profile and personal place within the business management system. It then displays the tasks and activities which they need to perform, providing them with an overview of what they’ve done and what they still need to do. Essentially, Microsoft Dynamics NAV enables users to focus on the tasks they need to undertake and hides everything which they do not need to see, enabling them to work more efficiently, effectively and more productivity.

Benefits of Role Tailored User Experience

The role tailored functionality supports the role of users as it helps users:

- Perform tasks efficiently and effectively, by removing any surplus clutter.

- Easily find the information they need to perform tasks

- Provides them with a complete view of their workflow

To find out more about Role Tailored functionality within Microsoft Dynamics NAV please contact Concentrix on 01509 410500 or email [email protected]

The Evolution of CRM – Part 2 of 3

The demand for CRM has significantly increased over recent years. What’s more, the type of company implementing CRM software has changed. Traditionally only large companies with significant budgets implemented CRM. This wasn’t because smaller companies didn’t want to implement a system but because they couldn’t afford to. However this is no longer the case, CRM has evolved and there are now different implementation options available which make CRM solutions affordable for all.

Implementation Options

For the majority of companies, there are two main implementation methods:

- On Premise CRM

- Hosted CRM

So what are the differences?

On Premise CRM is the traditional method of implementation, but it also requires internal hardware & resources. However, CRM has evolved; there is now a hosted option available. Hosted CRM has made implementing a system much more available to all organisations.

While both forms of implementation provide a way to mange key customer facing aspects of an organisation from within a CRM solution, some companies are more suited to the on premise solution and other are more suited to the hosted alternative.

For smaller businesses the hosted option provides a cheap method of implementing a CRM solution at the same time as benefiting from the real business gains. For larger organisations the on premise solution is often the more appropriate option; however the hosted solution can be used as a starting point.

Benefits of Hosted CRM

- Quick to set-up

- Low initial set-up costs

- Unlikely to need extra hardware or infrastructure

- As soon as you have bought the licence you can use the software

- No lump sum payment

Benefits of On Premise CRM

- Greater control of the system

- Easier Integration

- More Secure

- No Monthly Fees

- Total ownership of the solution

- Unlimited customisation potential

It is clear that the decision about which implementation method to choose is not an easy one and will often depend on the specific requirements of an organisation.

For help, advice or more information regarding the implementation method which is right for your organisation, contact Concentrix on 01509 410500 or email [email protected]

Concentrix Membership Management System

Concentrix has developed a Membership Management System for clubs and sporting bodies. Based on Sage CRM, the system makes it easier for organisations to manage its members. Sage CRM is a globally recognised powerful and flexible CRM system used by thousands of businesses and organisations throughout the UK. Concentrix has adapted Sage CRM to meet the needs of clubs and sporting bodies, so they can:

- Manage clubs and individual members along with a full view of events, training and payments

- Follow the participation of individuals throughout their involvement in the club

- Provide a self-service website to allow members to login from home and access the service at their convenience

- Produce reports on all members and affiliates to provide information on overall membership status

- Manage, analyse and report on Key Performance indicators (KPIs)

- Find and access information quickly

The system can be significantly customised so that it will meet the precise requirements of every organisation. However, the basic framework of the system should provide enough scope for the majority of clubs and sporting organisations.   The Standard functionality includes the following:

Membership

Once an individual has joined a club, the Membership Management System will automatically assign them a membership number.

Calendar

The system has a calendar embedded within it. This provides the ability to insert any events or activities relating to your organisation.

Payment History

Within the system there are different types of payment option available, in order to accommodate different types of membership.

Documents Area

This area is extremely useful as a store of information.

Venues Area

This section shows all of the venues a club has an affiliation with.

Self-Service

Members also have access to a self-service area which gives them the ability to change certain aspects of their details. However the aspects which they can change are defined by the organisation.

The Benefits to You, Your Members, Your Club and Your Sport:

The Concentrix Membership Management System will improve the efficiency and effectiveness of each organisation through increasing the consistency of member information as well as access to it. What’s more, it will enable you to quickly analyse, manage and synchronise your activities across all points of contact. The system is easy to use and has a wide variety of features and functions which will help you build stronger relationships with existing members, target new members more effectively and drive your organisation forward. The system has a number of different benefits including:

- It enables you to build and strengthen your relationships with members, keeping them interested active and involved

- Increase your club-wide awareness of members needs

- Provides access to the system anywhere in the world, providing you have an internet connection

- Manage and track all current and historical membership details

- Deliver superior service to members

- Monitor data proactively

For more information about the Concentrix Management System, please contact Concentrix on 01509 410500 or email [email protected]