260 Al-Shammari
Copyright © 2005, Idea Group Inc. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written
a competitive edge over the customers is our database. Nobody will know our customers’
behaviors, who they are, where they live, when they make the call, but us.”
Additionally, when market researchers go and interview people to generate knowl-
edge from customers as part of the VOC initiative, the results of interviews cannot just
be taken as the right solutions. The KCRM intends to make a contribution to that, but
again the challenge is to analyze the CRM reports, and to extract knowledge from
customers the way users want when there are so many variables to consider. For example,
when studying the potential demand for a new product, the need is to understand and
make the best guess for a market demand, and if the tool is not used properly, then wrong
results might come about.
CASE DESCRIPTION
The desired goal of the customer-centric KM plan of GTCOM was the acquisition
of cross-functional customer-centric knowledge in order to help it sustain competitive
advantage in a highly competitive and dynamic business environment. The focus of this
part of the case study will be on providing details of the KCRM components as well as
evaluation of the progress made leading to an identification of new or remaining
challenges.
KCRM Strategy Fit within Customer-Centric KM Plan
In 1998/1999, GTCOM foresaw that knowledge was key to being able to establish
long-term relationships with customers and improving profitability in the impending
competitive environment. In 2001, it decided to initiate the development of a threefold
KCRM strategy composed of the EDW, operational CRM, and analytical CRM projects
to be able to manage its customer-centric knowledge resources.
The development process of the customer-centric KM plan involved several
decisions and activities, which are as follows:
- Transformation toward a customer-centric organization
- Organizational restructuring to align its structure with the new business strategy
- Streamlining the value chain of most processes
- Formulating an action program or business case which involved the following
activities:
a. Correction and cleansing of customer data (e.g., customer names, addresses,
ID numbers, etc.)
b. Enhancement of customer contact channels
c. Establishment of KPIs to include factors such as return on investment (ROI),
head count reduction, speed of customer service, and response rate to
customer calls
Although GTCOM has no solid overall KM plan, a customer-centric KM plan
derived from the vision of improving customer relations has been articulated. Real
customer relationships are formed through interaction and by anticipating user needs,
not by providing custom products. Therefore, KCRM has been adopted as an enabling
strategy for the achievement of that vision. The KCRM strategy will provide GTCOM
with a mechanism to further understand customer behavior and anticipate customer