The availability of internal IT resource is a key factor to consider when selecting a potential CRM solution. Initial project roll-out and on-going support and administration will require IT expertise; sourced internally or externally. Your choice of deployment model, therefore, should reflect the availability of in-house IT staff.
Deployment CRM must be capable of being deployed quickly and easily. As such, customers should be up and running in days and weeks rather than months. Shorter implementation timeframes equate to lower project costs. They also reduce project risk and facilitate an earlier return-on-investment in the solution lifecycle.
On-Demand deployments remove the need to install software locally or carry out hardware and software installation and configuration in-house. On-Demand, therefore, is particularly suited to organisations with limited or no internal IT resource. Companies with limited internal IT resource may also consider on-premise CRM solutions which are fully web-architected.
Web-architected, on-premise solutions provide a distinct advantage over traditional client/server products and leverage similar economies of centralisation as on-demand solutions. This means that they can be entirely deployed from a central location without the need to invest in expensive and maintenance-intensive technologies, such as Citrix or Microsoft Terminal Server.
Ease of ongoing support and administration
Regardless of whether your CRM solution is deployed on-demand or on-premise, you should ensure that it delivers adequate performance and availability to meet your user’s needs. Day-to-day activities such as provisioning new users, importing data, writing reports or carrying out upgrades, can equate to a significant increase in IT workload over the lifetime of the application. Moreover, when an issue arises, there should be a clearly defined support structure in place which provides issue resolution on a timely basis.
On-going administration can represent a sizeable burden for companies deploying an on-premise CRM solution for the first time; particularly in the case of SMBs which generally operate with limited IT resources. On-Demand represents an attractive proposition for these companies. On-Demand CRM solutions, however, are entirely reliant on external resource for support queries.
Companies considering on-demand CRM solutions, therefore, should carry out a detailed review of the vendor’s support services and clearly understand service level obligations across: (1) scheduled availability, (2) case response times and (3) application upgrade roll-outs. Customer reference calls should be used in the evaluation of any potential service provider’s support provision.
Equally, companies considering an on-premise solution should ensure that there is a realistic understanding of the additional support burden associated with the roll-out of the new application. Again, fully web-architected on-premise
CRM solutions provide a distinct advantage over traditional client/server-based systems by minimising, or totally removing, the administration that is required at the client end, and facilitate upgrades, patch updates and new user provisioning from a central point.
Both on-demand and web-architected on-premise CRM solutions are particularly suited to companies with mobile employees or multiple offices over a broad geography. They also benefit organisations with a large number of employees where regardless of the number of location or access scenarios, typical client/server deployments can be difficult and expensive to maintain across every user desktop.
On-the-ground support
Even if your company has sufficient internal IT resource to deploy and manage your new CRM installation, the availability of local, on-the-ground expertise from your CRM vendor, or certified partner, is reassuring, particularly when you are investing in CRM for the first time.
Multi-lingual support may also be a factor for companies with offices across several locations. Local expertise can be used to (1) resolve support issues, (2) train new users or (3) provide consulting services around the further extension and optimisation of your CRM system.
Where on-premise CRM solutions have traditionally been supplied and supported through local vendor offices and partner networks, on-demand providers have adopted a more centralised model of service distribution and support provision. As a consequence, they generally do not have the same level of expertise available regionally as their on-premise counterparts.
Recommendations
1. You should give careful consideration to a broad variety of factors that may impact upon roll-out complexity and cost, as well as on-going support and administration. These include: (a) geographic distribution of offices,
(b) workforce mobility requirements and (c) number of users.
2. On-Demand is particularly compelling for companies with little or no internal IT resource.
3. On-Premise may provide a more effective solution for companies with internal IT staff where the additional support requirements can be integrated easily into existing internal service level agreements.
4. Local consulting and support expertise available from your potential CRM vendor or its certified partner network should be examined, regardless of deployment model.
