Luminous had a homegrown CRM solution. What was the need to replace it?
While we had a homegrown solution, it was not integrated with SAP. Information was residing in silos and one system was not talking to another. We had no visibility into transactions, finance and online inventory. It was then that we decided to go for SAP CRM. We are one of the few companies in this sector to have implemented such a large CRM. It was a complex project that included 800-900 engineers in the field. Projects of this magnitude involve a lot of change management and take years to stabilize. However, we did it in a short span of time. It took us just seven months to complete it and ensure it was delivered as per the business leaders’ requirements. We went live in October last year.
How difficult was it for you to convince the top management for this change?
In all my IT leadership roles, I have been responsible for IT transformation and strategizing for business. If a CIO works like a technical person, he will neither get a buy-in nor justify the investments. In my various roles, I have never imposed technology on business. It is important to provide insights into the cost of technology vis-à-vis having a problem. For instance, if a sales person has to come back to office at the end of each day and put in his expense, collections etc, it is a hassle for him. If a CIO provides him with a mobility solution, it makes life easy for him. IT is no longer a technical function. Today, IT is leveraged for business strategy, and many companies have acknowledged it as a profit center.
What innovations have you done to maximize returns from the implementation?
We have integrated the CRM with our field service team. Luminous was the first company in the sector to have introduced customer satisfaction code. Whenever a customer is logging a call, a satisfaction code is sent out to the customer, which he shares with the visiting engineer if he is satisfied with the service. As we have integrated our entire call center with the CRM, it gives us the visibility to measure customer satisfaction. It gives us end –to-end integration, right from the time when a call lands at the call center till it is closed. In the end it is all about giving satisfaction to the customers. This functionality ensures that they feel interested and empowered, and thereby related to the company. The mobile-enabled sales team has complete visibility into various financial parameters such as transactions, stock requirements of dealers and distributors. They no longer have to call office for such details.
What should a CIO look for in a CRM solution?
I would recommend CIOs to keep it simple. You have a business problem available to you. It is up to the CIO to deep dive in it. Shortlist a few technologies that take care of the future growth of the company. Also look at technology that is easy to manage. There are solutions that are easy to deploy but tough to manage. Always go for technology with a focus on pre and post implementation. It can’t be a decision only on cost, feature, ease of implementation and future. It has to be holistic decision making.
