CRM - June 2008 - (Page 18)

MARKET FOCUS: GOVERNMENT CRM: In the Public Interest Government’s technological future is beginning with service sites and outreach programs to serve constituents Kost notes that the citizen-informane of the first words that comes to mind when think- tion 311 systems (or their equivalent in ing about government is other countries) have made municipalbig—likely followed by level governments among the heaviest slow, inefficient, and other less compli- users of CRM. “Local governments are mentary ones. To combat this negative the only ones widely using CRM at the image—and to serve citizens while do- enterprise level,” he says.“At national and ing so—governments ranging in size state governments, certain agencies use it from small municipalities to federal in- for high-volume customer service, but stitutions have increasingly been turn- usually for only one kind of transaction.” One example from across the pond is ing to technology to reach more people more easily. CRM has become a criti- Medway, which became one of the largest unitary authorities in cal facet of those efforts to make sense of the tremen- “CRM, to be effective, England due to a 1998 reorganization that united the dous volume of inquiries previously separate adminisreceived, and the data in- almost always trations of the City of Rochvolved. The gap now, some requires significant ester and the boroughs of Gilexperts say, is the distance cultural or behavioral lingham and Chatham. As a between the mere digital unitary authority, Medway nature of e-government changes by Council serves a population and the more-complex re- government.” of a quarter of a million peoquirements of what’s being called interactive government, or ple, providing the full range of local government services, including educai-government. “As we get further into e-government tion, environmental, social care, housand i-government, CRM will be crucial,” ing, planning, and much more. After the unification, Medway was says Alan Webber, senior analyst in Forrester Research’s government practice. left with several legacy processes and “Government by its nature is inherently technologies. After reviewing its CRM poor at listening, [but] is beginning to efforts during a 2006 performance understand what its ‘customers’ want.” assessment, Medway Council saw inefSo when did CRM technology first ficiencies and instituted a program start catching on in the public sector? called Customer First to upgrade and “It’s still not catching on in some, but consolidate inherited working practices where it is particularly strong is in local and systems to maximize the customer government in the United Kingdom as experience. Medway upgraded from Onyx eShop a result of a national strategy to improve the responsiveness of local au- to Onyx OneServe 5.0, as the platform thorities,” says John Kost, group vice on which to build a multichannel conpresident of Gartner CIO Research. tact center that delivers consistent, effi“That all started in the late 1990s. In the cient, high-quality service. The center U.S., CRM became a major addition provided the first point of contact for a to tax-modernization systems starting range of council services including enviabout 2000 and then with 311 systems ronmental services, council tax, housing benefits, and social-care inquiries. about the same time.” 18 CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT | JUNE 2008 O The upgrade and other developments under the Customer First umbrella have been financed by the council on an invest-to-save basis, with an expected return of $1.5 million by 2010. Besides sound financing, the Customer First program has since received several “Excellence in Customer Service” awards. The next phase of development will include greater focus on self-service. Medway is certainly not alone—and some municipalities are making even better use of CRM’s possibilities. Kost says that several state government economic development agencies are using CRM to manage relationships with businesses contemplating a move, and this is where deal-making comes into play. “Most governments use the service component of CRM,”Kost says.“Economic development agencies are actually using the sales component—a rarity in the public sector.” There are still barriers to adoption for government agencies, though. One is typical in any vertical—IT driving the deployment. “CRM, to be effective, almost always requires significant cultural or behavioral changes by government, but not that many government officials are willing to manage those cultural changes,” Kost says.“Thus, CRM deployments are often left to the technologists—and the tool doesn’t always live up to its potential.” Another common hurdle to be overcome is the calcified process found in many agencies. Customer isn’t a word associated with government very often; the typical term when discussing government CRM is constituent, but the result is the same. “There’s already a negative mindset against government,” Webber says.“How do you balance this?” Mainly, he says, front-desk personnel must remember that everybody is a customer: “You can’t turn a segment of the population away if it fits your purview,” Webber says. —Marshall Lager Lagan Oracle’s Siebel VENDORS Northgate Source: Gartner TOP TO THE PUBLIC SECTOR 3 www.destinationCRM.com http://www.destinationCRM.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of CRM - June 2008

CRM - June 2008 Contents Front Office Reality Check Customer Centricity The Tipping Point Making Mashup Masterpieces Trouble in the Air CRM on Twitter Is SaaS Ready for Its Contact Center Close-up? CRM: In the Public Interest Required Reading Lollipop Loyalty Best Practices Series: CRM & eCommerce eGain NetSuite Infor Longwood Software Vovici The Second Coming of 2.0 Believe the Hype About Hosted Contact Centers All Talk So Hot It’s Cool Linksys Gets Shaken, a Community Is Stirred The Risky Risk Business Awana Hears a SaaS Sermon Secret of My Success Re:Tooling Scouting Report Pint of View

CRM - June 2008

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