In a nutshell

Client: leading distributor of office supplies
Number of users: tens
Solution area: CRM
Products applied: CRM, Lotus Notes

Implementation time: 4 weeks
On CS Development's behalf: manager, programmer, administrator
On the Client's behalf: person responsible for CRM
 
Initial status
The client is a leading distributor of office supplies with once central office in Prague and tens of employees.  The client's information system is connected to its head office abroad. A fairly extensive sales force operates in the domestic market, using the information system regularly.

The client has a separate customer database and systems of electronic mail, fax communication, time planning (management) and document administration. The number of customers is increasing and so the operations are getting more complex and time-consuming; as a result, the effectiveness is deteriorating.

To handle this area of problems, we recommended a CRM system developed by CS Development. The system would unify the customer database (contacts) with the records of history of customer communications regarding the respective projects. Another advantage of the system is the possibility of group work and information sharing. One of the important aspects is that the respective employees can be deputised for, a thing that was very difficult to ensure in the old system. On top of that, the new system enables continuous replication of data and so all the company's branch offices have access to continuously updated information.
 
Implementation description
The CRM product is based on the Lotus Notes platform, i.e., the client's existing technological platform.

Having conducted a brief analysis together with the client, we defined the types of activities and agreed to extend the portfolio of such activities. We also defined the methods of monitoring the activities through the system, as well as the access rights and roles of the respective users.

Then we agreed on the CRM system outputs and incorporated corporate identity elements into them (letterheads, addresses). Then we made basic templates for frequently used types of documents. Once the application was prepared as described above, we imported all of the existing client databases into it and interconnected all of the required data.
The CRM application was then installed onto the server and the respective client PCs. Then we set access rights and initialised the client part.

At this stage the system was ready for launch and we could start training the users.
 
Key benefits
Significantly increased effectiveness
The integration of the customer database with the system of electronic mail and fax communication made the interactions with customers more effective and enhanced the quality of customer services
Simple and effective information retrieval
The integration of the systems described above has made it possible to retrieve information across all the systems (information on clients, e-mails, faxes, contracts, minutes of meetings, etc.)
Faxes and e-mails sent directly from the application
All users have access to the system and can share information effectively
Mobile operation
Sales reps, notebooks / mobile devices, in-field synchronisation
Unified style of the company's communications
Consistent with Corporate Identity
Replication of data between branch offices
Data security
Single users as well as user groups