National Survey of Mid-Market Information Technology Decision-Makers Underscores Strong Demand to Connect CRM Across Their Businesses

Business Wire, Oct 9, 2002

Business Editors

DENVER--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 9, 2002

Study Commissioned by J.D. Edwards Finds Customers Need

Integrated CRM and SCM Systems

Results from a new national survey indicate that IT managers believe order fulfillment is key to excellent customer service, and that integrating customer relationship management across their critical business applications enables them to fill that need. The survey of more than 150 IT purchase decision-makers, conducted on behalf of J.D. Edwards & Company (Nasdaq: JDEC), also highlighted the important role that integrated supply chain and CRM solutions play in quality customer service. Data collection was conducted by Decision Analyst, Inc., a leader in Internet-based research systems headquartered in Arlington, Texas.

The Role of Integrated CRM and SCM in Providing Excellent Customer Service

The survey results indicated that mid-market companies are eager to integrate their CRM and SCM applications. Three-quarters of the 150 respondents have either already integrated their CRM and SCM solutions (26 percent) or plan to in the near future (49 percent). They also are very aware of the customer benefits that come from successfully completing such a project. Ninety-one percent of respondents said it was extremely important or very important that back-end fulfillment systems have sufficient inventory to meet customer needs. Moreover, tailoring processes to the individual needs of the client or customer was extremely important to 49 percent of respondents and very important to 42 percent.

About Extending CRM Implementations to the Back-End

Despite their embrace of the integration of SCM and CRM, companies still have to find a way to get around a few obstacles. According to the J.D. Edwards Collaborative Customer Relationship Management Survey, there is tremendous opportunity for enterprise solution vendors to service the mid-market if their solutions can solve the following problems facing the industry:

-- Being able to leverage the investment in the future. Seven in 10 said they view integration with future software investments as a major consideration when purchasing systems today.

-- Being able to leverage existing investments in software. Half cited integration with legacy software as a current stumbling block.

-- Long-term cost. Sixty-nine percent of respondents are still attempting to manage long-term costs - selecting and deploying a solution that will not become obsolete. Two out of three respondents cited the complexity of customizing CRM solutions as a challenge in meeting operational needs. Purchasing costs posed a hurdle for somewhat fewer (56 percent) respondents.

-- Support. Two out of three (66 percent) felt vendor support should be improved to enable effective integration of SCM and CRM.

"Without question, the mid-market is ready to integrate their existing investments, but they want to do it without incurring the same expense that usually comes with replacing an entire system or customizing software to a great extent," said Joel Reed, director of CRM product marketing for J.D. Edwards. "Where larger companies can afford to do this, mid-market companies cannot. In the slowing economy, it will be up to the software vendor to overcome these obstacles for their customers. J.D. Edwards has historically taken on the burden of integration on behalf of its customers, and we think this survey validates that our experience will reward us in the near future."

Manufacturing Industries vs. Service Industries: CRM Differences

The research results suggest fundamental differences in CRM deployments between manufacturers and their service industry counterparts. While more service industry companies cited "quality products and services" as the most important priority for customer service, manufacturers believed "on-time delivery" was most important. In addition, manufacturers were at least 10 percent more likely than service providers to seek the following benefits from CRM: order-promising capabilities (11 percent more likely), more accurate inventory fulfillment (13 percent more likely) and shorter lead times (12 percent more likely).

"The central role of the supply chain in manufacturing enterprises dictates a different kind of CRM - one that is tightly woven into the enterprise's SCM solution, providing sales staff and often the end customer with the visibility they need," said Joel Reed. "As the manufacturing sector's adoption of CRM solutions matures, we believe collaboration between manufacturers, suppliers and retailers will take on increased importance in creating profitable, loyal customers."

CRM Successes Thus Far

The survey results indicate that a large percentage of respondents can point to improved customer collaboration from CRM implementations. Among respondents who had deployed CRM systems, 94 percent stated that their CRM solution had enabled them to better collaborate with their customers. Respondents also stressed that they have achieved more success with CRM projects that were limited to customer-facing functions or simply focused on one segment of the enterprise.