A CRM-system (Customer Relationship Management System) supports the company in commercial and organisational project management. It stores sensitive customer and contact data as well as employee data in compliance with data protection regulations, documents and archives interactions with customers and suppliers, and records the working hours of all employees in an HR module. A CRM-system provides sales management with insights, can operate with social networks and simplifies team communication. Cloud-based CRM-systems also offer an important orientation on the way to mobile working, home office and customer lifetime value.
First of all, a CRM-system contains a central customer file in which e-mails, telephone calls and orders are bundled. In addition, there is the associated appointment management. In the CRM-system, tasks, e.g. for production and marketing, can be created, scheduled, prioritised, delegated, processed and booked with times and tracked within the production chain. Milestones that trigger further tasks can be set and an alarm function can be set to remind when deadlines are due and to indicate whether capacity planning is still within the set parameters. A CRM-system manages all document and file types. Protocols of sales meetings are thus not only stored on the individual employee computers, but can be retrieved centrally by all authorised employees.
CRM-systems are structured differently depending on the requirements of the sector (e.g. industry, trade, agencies, etc.), but they fall back on generally valid and legally prescribed structures, e.g. in commercial accounting, in data protection-compliant marketing, in media planning and in the area of human resources. All data recorded in the CRM-system can be queried, read out, exported and further evaluated by Controlling as reports. Production data can also be read directly and automatically into a CRM-system and processed further via targeted API interfaces.
All manufacturing companies have to react quickly to new developments while keeping an eye on costs. Modern machines as well as well-trained employees are a central element in this. In addition, there is a 360-degree view, where the focus is not on sales or marketing, but on the customer and his individual needs. This essential view is provided by a CRM-system, with the help of which data can be integrated and specifically processed. This support begins with customer acquisition and continues through to after-sales service. Finally, the CRM-system manages merchandise management and links information from accounting and production, thus offering uniform management of all recorded data. Fast, clear and uncomplicated, it optimises customer-relevant processes from marketing, sales and customer service to research and development. This results in a very high quality of service and customer satisfaction. On top of that, the time-saving factor and the associated cost advantage increase.
Industry 4.0 is already the future of German industry. Many companies have already implemented data processing and digital automation. As products and quality standards converge, the (most perfect possible) service during and after the processing of the order is increasingly decisive. An industry-appropriate CRM-system, which is used extensively in data collection and exploits all evaluation possibilities, provides a clear and uniform knowledge base for all employees who must have access to customer and product information in all phases in order to provide competent service.
CRM software connects employees in the company as well as individual departments and different branches worldwide. Through software enhancements, extensions and interfaces (for example in central accounting or local production), operational staff have access to a constant information pipeline. All relevant information is centrally bundled and quickly accessible, both in the company and for the field staff.