Final Term Assignment: CRM Implementation Challenges in Russia

This case study analyzes the challenges and opportunities of implementing Customer Relationship Management (CRM) strategies in Russian firms, particularly focusing on the experiences of Mashkin Group. It addresses the economic changes in Russia since 1991 and how they impact CRM adoption. The study identifies key mistakes made during Mashkin's CRM implementation, such as disorganized data transfer, inadequate training, and a lack of focus on customer needs. It also explores current trends in the Russian market, including the dilemma between operational effectiveness and strategic focus, the limitations of the Application Service Provider model, and the need for improved operational efficiency. Furthermore, it discusses cultural differences, technological advancements, and implementation concerns that organizations may face when adapting to CRM technology in Russia. Desklib provides access to this case study and a wealth of study resources for students.

Running head: CRM
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Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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Executive Summary
The given report throws light on the concept of CRM around the globe. CRM is a software
which is generally used by the firms in order to engage in stronger relationships. The report
follows a structured format whereby the different aspects relating to the CRM software will be
discussed and the condition of CRM in Russia has been discussed. A conclusion summarizes the
findings of the analysis.

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Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................3
Answer to Question 1......................................................................................................................3
Answer to Question 2......................................................................................................................4
Answer to Question 3......................................................................................................................5
Answer to Question 4......................................................................................................................7
Conclusion.......................................................................................................................................8
References........................................................................................................................................9

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Introduction
Customer Relationship Management can be defined as an approach which is adopted by
the organization in order to interact easily with the different customers and to analyse the data
with respect to the customer`s interaction earlier. In the given technology, the company makes
uses of various technologies in order to maintain a sustained relationship with the customers with
the ultimate focus being on the retention of the customers and driving the growth of sales
(Kumar and Reinartz). The given report will be discussing the various aspects of the case study
and analyse the same.
Answer to Question 1
With basic changes in the structure of the government, the economy of Russia has
changed considerably. The economy of Russia has become a market based economy and this has
been able to open the doors of the country to various investments and foreign capital
opportunities (Trainor et al.). This has given rise to different facets of the economy and hence, a
good Customer Relationship Management software will be able to benefit the company in a huge
way and using the Customer relationship Management tool will be able to assist the company to
not only interact with the existing customers, but also go a long way in helping the other prospect
customers (Koegler et al.). CRM not only helps in learning the customer`s needs but also
analysing their wants as well as expectations. The acquisition and retention of the customers has
various positive impacts on the firm including an increase in the profitability of the organization
(Khodakarami and Chan). Hence, the firm should be able to apply a good CRM technique and
follow a strategy.

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First of all, the given organization would be required to identify and prioritize their CRM
needs whether they are short term or long term in nature. Secondly, the view should be
sustainable and strategic. The focus of the firm should always be that the tactics need to fir into a
long term program.
Thirdly, the information needs to be such that everything about the consumer is known.
Hence, the company should engage in social listening and find more details about the consumer
in order to engage them in the program and make them response (Ramchandani and Ghias). The
third step is to have all the resources in check like a quality infrastructure and technological
facilities which will help in implementation (Siu et al.).
Lastly, the company also needs to have a good human resource management team with
proper training being provided to ensure success in the long run.
Answer to Question 2
When the Customer Relationship Management was carried out at Mashkin, there were a
large number of mistakes which were committed in that program. The first mistake having been
committed was that the files comprising of the details of the customers were transferred without
any chronological order (Eichorn). All the details were added without consideration of the
frequency of relationships or the number of years they have been associated with the particular
company. This made it extremely difficult for the different users of the system to use the given
technology and made the entire system even more inefficient than its previous states (Jin).
The company, Mashkin was not capable of providing enough training to the different
employees. The different employees always need to be provided with accurate training and this

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makes them capable enough to carry out the operations. However, this was not the case with the
company and the training was incomplete. For this they were unable to perform well in the long
run of the business.
Furthermore, the financial advisors and the sales people who were involved were not
willing to make use of the given system. They were still used to using the old technologies and
hence, the preferred making use of that system only (Armstrong et al.). Another mistake the
company made was that they were willing to support only the business`s needs and requirements
but were not willing to look out for the needs of the different consumers. And as the different
customers tend to form the basis of the relationship, then if the concentration is not correct, the
whole system undergoes a huge change.
Lastly, the company lagged a good IT system which wold have helped the firm to
prosper. Lastly, if the company would have had a god organizational structure which supported
learning and growth, the company would have been able to perform well. Had the Mashkin
company been able to bring about new equipment’s and offered extra training to the department
then, the system would have been successful (Saarijärvi, Heikki and Kuusela).
Answer to Question 3
With the emergence of various markets, all businesses have been involved in great
competition and due to this there has been a considerably increase in the customers and their
well-designed CRM based technology. Hence, this increase in the number of customers has
opened the opportunity for the branding and sales (Choudhury and Harrigan). At Russia, there
has been a huge emphasis on collective approaches to the business and thus the support on the
human assets has increased considerably. The stress on the supply has increased due to this and

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therefore, the consumer demand has increased. Although more awareness with needs to be
present, the following has been stated to be the different trends in the given scenario:
The CEO of various businesses are in a state of dilemma with respect to operational
effectiveness and strategic focus (Rosman and Stuhura). Around 60% of the different
organizations do not tend to re-inforce their strategy and hence, there does not exist any relation
between the motivation and achievement of the goals. This shows that the indicators of progress
must take place in the software and utmost priority must be provided to them
The second trend states that the Application Service Provider model will not be able to
catch on in the given country. This is because there is a poor bandwidth and the cost of traffic
and the last mile is a lot more. For the management which is at the top, it becomes more difficult
to see to it that, they will be easily able to invest in CRM and thus spending money on another
expenses on the ASP solution, will not be considered as an option.
It was also observed that the primary need of the given companies in Russia is to see to it
that the overall CRM goals are lowered and the operational level is considered first The
operational effectiveness of the companies is very weak and thus it is necessary to see to it that
the operational efficiency of the companies have been improved and thus, the focus needs to be
assured. This is because CRM needs huge investment to be made and this needs operational
efficiency needs to be adopted instead (Saarijärvi, Heikki and Kuusela).
The best CRM Company in Russia is Sales Logix is Best Software. The company has
been performing considerably well and thus for this reason, the company has a major market
share in the market. Although Microsoft has been trying to get into the given sector, it has not
been successful in doing so.

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Answer to Question 4
It was previously discussed that the implementation of CRM is not that easy and that
there were various problems which any organization might face in general while implementing
the CRM technology. The given list of problems may be additionally faced by the organizations
in Russia in trying to adapt to the CRM technology:
Cultural differences
The culture of America is very different from that of that Russia and thus this could lead
to certain problems in implementation of the CRM software and the customer perspective of the
Russian consumer market. It needs to be understood by the management that the different CRM
systems cannot replace the human aspect of the customer relations. The local talent needs to be
more utilised by the firms to implement customer relations.
Technological advancements
The technology in Russia is not as well developed as in other parts of the country and
hence due to this, the technology used in the CRM may not be understood well and grasped by
all. Thus, the local talent which may have been appointed for this reason may face problems in
the same domain.
Implementation concerns

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Furthermore, there could take place problems in the implementation aspect as well and
this can take time which will haul the entire procedure. This can then lead to problems and add
up to the costs of the firm in the long run.
Conclusion
Therefore, from the given analysis, it can be stated that Customer Relationship
Management forms an integral part of the organization. Through the new software of Customer
Relationship Management, firms can go a long way in strengthening their relationships with the
customer based. However, the condition of CRM is not that well developed and the firm may
face large number of problems when trying to implement the CRM system. The report discussed
these problems and highlighted the current state of CRM in general.

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References
Armstrong, Gary, et al. Marketing: an introduction. Pearson Education, 2015.
Choudhury, Musfiq Mannan, and Paul Harrigan. "CRM to social CRM: the integration of new
technologies into customer relationship management." Journal of Strategic Marketing 22.2
(2014): 149-176.
Eichorn, Frank L. "Internal customer relationship management (IntCRM) a framework for
achieving customer relationship management from the inside out." Management 2 (2018): 1.
Jin, Kang. "Customer Relationship Management." 디디디디디디디디디 13.3 (2013): 21-34.
Khodakarami, Farnoosh, and Yolande E. Chan. "Exploring the role of customer relationship
management (CRM) systems in customer knowledge creation." Information & Management51.1
(2014): 27-42.
Koegler, Alexander, et al. "Providing customer relationship management application as
enterprise services." U.S. Patent No. 8,396,749. 12 Mar. 2013.
Kumar, Vineet, and Werner Reinartz. Customer relationship management: Concept, strategy, and
tools. Springer, 2018.
Ramchandani, Jayant, and Asif Ghias. "Customer relationship management system for physical
locations." U.S. Patent No. 8,600,804. 3 Dec. 2013.
Rosman, Randal, and Kurt Stuhura. "The implications of social media on customer relationship
management and the hospitality industry." Journal of Management Policy and Practice 14.3
(2013): 18.

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Saarijärvi, Hannu, Heikki Karjaluoto, and Hannu Kuusela. "Customer relationship management:
the evolving role of customer data." Marketing intelligence & planning 31.6 (2013): 584-600.
Saarijärvi, Hannu, Heikki Karjaluoto, and Hannu Kuusela. "Extending customer relationship
management: from empowering firms to empowering customers." Journal of Systems and
Information Technology 15.2 (2013): 140-158.
Siu, Noel Yee-Man, et al. "New service bonds and customer value in customer relationship
management: The case of museum visitors." Tourism Management 36 (2013): 293-303.
Trainor, Kevin J., et al. "Social media technology usage and customer relationship performance:
A capabilities-based examination of social CRM." Journal of Business Research67.6 (2014):
1201-1208.