Qualitative Analysis of Different CRM Evaluation Models

*Christoph Weiss, Johannes Keckeis and Manfred Kofler*

#### **Abstract**

Customer relationship management (CRM) systems help companies to manage their business processes. Specially for sales, campaigns, contact management, etc. The simpler and more efficient the business processes are executed, the more profitable these companies can be. Therefore, the process of selecting and evaluating a CRM system is an important success factor for each company in every industry and in every company size. The qualitative analysis of CRM evaluation models examines the necessary phases and activities for selecting a new CRM system. It is important to go through the relevant phases in the selection in order to be able to make a decision in a structured manner.

**Keywords:** analyze, business management, CRM, customer relationship management, criteria, decision, evaluation, evaluation models, normalize, market information, model, negotiation, project, requirements, selection, solution, system

#### **1. Introduction**

A customer relationship management (CRM) system is a business management software [1]. CRM software solutions usually include relevant modules for managing and executing business processes in a company such as operational CRM processes (marketing processes, sales processes, or service processes), analytical CRM processes (target group analysis, cross-selling analysis, or customer risk analysis), comprehensive processes (customer value analysis, customer segmentation, or customer characterization), or strategic processes (strategic analysis, strategic conception, or strategic controlling) [2]. A CRM system helps various parts of sales and marketing departments of an organization to organize and share data and knowledge, reduce costs, and improve the management of their business processes [3].

Various architectures of CRM systems exist on the market: proprietary CRM systems, modules as a part of ERP systems, and original equipment manufacturer (OEM) systems in enterprise system landscapes. CRM vendors and implementation partners offer similar bundles of functionalities in their software-products: a set of application modules that fit together. Each module includes a variety of functions [3].

There are different approaches for evaluating and implementing a CRM system. Thus, software evaluation is not a simple technical activity; it is a decision process including subjectivity and uncertainty with no possibility of arbitrary reduction [4]. As listed in the Appendix, several authors developed evaluation models with different methods between 1998 and 2017. These models are structured in different phase sequences and are used as a base for this paper.
