CRM replacement accounts for 29% sales growth “By replacing our CRM system, we are vastly more professional in how we operate with our clients, and have seen a 29% increase in sales since its implementation.”
Company Nam e Business Development Division, College of North West London
Company Nam e
Business Development Division, Industry College of North West London Education
Industry URL Education www.cnwl.ac.uk URL Business Challenges www.cnwl.ac.uk •
Cumbersome CRM system with no links to other systems
Business Challenges ••
Hours spent manually Cumbersome CRM system adapting data deliver the with no links toto other systems reporting required • Hours spent manually • Did not support multiple adapting data to deliver the contacts and discussion with reporting required large corporate clients • Did not support multiple • No insight to understand contacts and discussion with individual sales performance large corporate clients • No insight to understand Business Benefits individual sales performance • Sector leading accountability and reporting Business Benefits • Meaningful KPIs • Sector leading accountability • Realtime tracking of sales and reporting performance • Meaningful KPIs Sales targets smashed by •• Realtime tracking of sales 29% performance Positive impact upon college’s •• Sales targets smashed by reputation amongst 29% employers and students • Positive impact upon college’s reputation amongst www.avrion.co.uk employers and students
www.avrion.co.uk
- Paul Skitt, Acting Head, BDD
Com pany back ground The College of North West London has a dedicated employer-focused division called BDD (Business Development Division) which provides employers and individuals with advice and training. They provide solutions for businesses: developing the workforce through training which can lead to improved productivity and achieve company objectives. This also helps the individuals who attend the courses at the college, as they attain skills and qualifications that will stand them in good stead for life. BDD is set targets by the government and the college and, as it operates in both the public and private sectors, has to demonstrate full accountability, operational efficiency and commercial understanding.
Out with the old inefficiencies BDD had been struggling with its old access based CRM system as it was progressively failing the team’s needs. Not only was it cumbersome to operate, it had no links to any other systems, and could not support multiple contacts with some of the colleges key employer partners. The managers and the team were especially frustrated with not being able to keep in contact with each potential course attendee, and it not providing the reports required by government. “It had reached the point where the system was not being used effectively and I could understand why.” explained Paul Skitt, Acting Head of BDD “We felt a new more flexible system was required to meet our constantly changing sales focus”
A suitable scoring matrix Having presented the business case that secured agreement to invest in a new system; Paul then specified what BDD needed their new CRM system to deliver. They wanted a system that was user friendly, felt intuitively familiar to Microsoft users, would be flexible and could be customised to their market sector. After his initial investigations, he selected four CRM systems to be demonstrated; being a mix of web/non-web based, “education sector specific”, and rental vs. licence options. Each demonstration and proposal was scored against the matrix that defined their needs. Avrion’s proposal was the clear winner as they had listened to and understood what the college wanted and presented a system that fulfilled those needs.
All systems go From Paul’s perspective, the transition to the new CRM system was remarkably smooth. Their specific user needs were addressed, the old data cleansed, options fully explored and staff training delivered.
Two years on, he says he is satisfied that he listened to avrion. “We initially wanted to have every element of the new system being used from day one.” Paul explained, “Avrion advised us to introduce it in stages so that our team became steadily familiar without feeling overwhelmed by all the changes.”
The biggest benefit for Paul is the ease with how the system enables him to keep each faculty, department and funding stream provider fully informed of the team’s performance according to their agenda. He is regularly required to change how the information has to be reported. Because the underlying work establishing how activity is recorded by the team was designed to BDD’s needs, the impact of these demands is minimised. “We use Crystal to adapt the reports so that they are at a click of a button, while my team can continue to focus on their work.” For the team, Paul now has the time to coach each team member based upon real time information about how they are doing. The coaching has further improved their performance and is a key factor in the department’s success.
Take the time to complete the cost-benefit analysis As a college funded by the tax payer, Paul operates in an environment where every penny is assessed for the value it delivers. When completing the cost benefit analysis of how the investment has supported BDD, even Paul was taken aback. “I knew from the day-to-day operation that we’d become vastly more professional in how we operate with our clients” he explained, “the cost benefit analysis showed that since replacing our CRM system we have seen a 29% increase in sales”.
W hy avrion? With avrion, you will attain a prospect and customer management system that can make your business more efficient. We support you in line with your business needs, so that you gain a robust, cost-effective solution. We are clear about how we work as team, with our suppliers and with you, our clients. We only recommend CRM applications that we have evaluated and approve of. Assisted by our avrion client care process, our teams deliver the right results across a wide variety of industries and organisations. Our avrion client care process has been designed so that the work is as simple and painless as possible for you ensuring our responses are perfectly aligned to the complexity of your needs, making certain that nothing is overlooked and that every CRM solution is a success. Please visit our web site (www.avrion.co.uk) to understand more about how we work, and why we are consistently recognised as a leader in our
“Avrion’s solution has been a boon. We are now one organisation, in control of our revenue streams, and have enhanced the reputation of the college.” - Paul Skitt, Acting Head, BDD industry.