Customer Relationship Management (CRM) & Corporate Renaissance | M.L. Agrawal

Business in south Asia is currently at a low ebb. So is the corporate confidence. There is a clear and present danger from the forces of global competition, to the corporate sector in South Asia, if it does not re-invent itself and engineer massive renaissance. The risk mandates not only a better management of macro parameters of the economy but also necessitates a new strategy at the firm level. The strategy is customer relations management (CRM). The concept of CRM is premised on a simple logic of business- it must keep tracking customers once attracted; retain them in business portfolio; and, profit from their growth. Shorn of all managerial jargons, CRM epitomizes a ?marriage of relationship marketing with the emerging information technology?. The paper describes the concept and mechanics of customer relationship management; illustrates how CRM helps corporate renaissance in hard times; and finally, recommends a line of action for an effective CRM implementation towards a quicker corporate renaissance. Alongside, the paper urges business schools of South Asia to incorporate CRM in their teaching curricula so that the business and academics can continue to stay relevant to each other.