Motivations and Enterprise-wide Implications of CRM Point Solutions.

This paper explores the motivations and enterprise-wide implications of the rapid emergence of CRM point solutions rather than enterprise-wide CRM solutions as the CRM implementation strategy of choice for many organisations. This paper identified four key motivations for CRM point solutions: 1, reduced business risk; 2, less costly in time and money; 3, benefits realized more quickly; and reduced technical risk. Based on five case studies of large organisations that have implemented CRM point solutions, we identified four types of enterprise-wide implications that may inhibit CRM point solutions: customer strategy, technology infrastructure and architecture, data infrastructure and architecture, and organisational change. Any one or combination of these implications were shown to inhibit extending a CRM point solution to other parts of the enterprise.