Our American business culture is increasingly focused, somemight say obsessed, with client engagement. And we work hard to track and document each clientinteraction.

In many ways, this obsession represents the maturation andevolution of basic CRM principles: knowing your members' needs sothat you can respond appropriately when the time is right. Forcredit unions, the goal is to ultimately increase the performanceof different channels as well as the penetration of products andservices.

The market for CRM systems grew 12% last year, three times theaverage of all other enterprise software categories. While theconcept of CRM is nothing new, the infrastructure behind it isgetting more intricate.

The credit union's transition to more-effective CRM practicesrests in truly turning the member service representative into atrusted adviser, positioning credit union staff as much more thanjust product-pushers. This means developing a lifetime sales cycleconcept, whereby interaction with the member along with lookingmore globally at the credit union's CRM strategy are key.

Primary attributes to a credit union's successful CRM deploymentinclude:

1) Executivesponsorship. Credit union executives need to walk the talk,institute employee training, reinforce support of CRM goals andfinancially support the strategy;

2) Cross-institutioninvolvement. Take the CRM system as only that: a system. Atop-down, side-to-side approach in employee engagement is required;and

3) Evaluativeconsiderations. Look at how it impacts member on-boardingand how it can be applied to planning.

Start at the Top

Achieving employee buy-in for a CRM system starts with creditunion management taking ownership of it. There, at the very top,executives must develop a strong statement of purpose and missionfor what should be accomplished, then communicate that vision ondown to the branch level.

This type of top-down acceptance throughout the credit unionensures balance. Key decision makers stay involved to direct andinfluence all CRM objectives, and those with frontline exposureunderstand the critical importance of what happens at the memberlevel.

Execute Vertically and Horizontally

While ownership of a CRM system's effectiveness must begin atthe high level where it is first identified as a key successstrategy, everyone is ultimately involved in CRM. Bring eachsucceeding organizational level into the CRM effort: CEO andCFO to senior lender, branch administration, call center,operations and bookkeeping, MSRs and tellers.

CRM is not exclusively a retail branch responsibility. Creditunions must also look across the organization to draw inparticipants from HR, lending, eServices, call center operationsand finance. Together, all these groups touch the member over therelationship lifetime.

Branch managers need to participate and interact with CRM everyday, based on key management expectations that have already beencreated and are being reinforced. Direct mail and other marketinginitiatives need to be communicated to frontline personnel at alltimes. A CRM system is the logical answer to supporting theseobjectives.

Next Page: Right Time and ROI

Right-Time NeedsAssessment

The CRM concept is about getting to know each member well enoughto best recognize his or her actual product need(s), and at theright time. One of the tools for right-time needs assessment is thenew member on-boarding process.

We only get one chance to make a good first impression. What areyou doing in the first 90 days of new member acquisition?

Part of the product welcome strategy should be two-fold:cross-sell initially AND retain the member for the long term sothat he or she can take advantage of additional products andservices. Lay the groundwork early for a deep (many products)relationship and a long, lifetime relationship.

ROI

Every credit union (and often every credit union executive)takes a different approach to the ROI from CRM calculation, andthat is OK. Concentrate on what is measurable: client satisfactionscores before and following introduction of the CRM strategy, netnew loans, eStatement sign-ups, bill pay activations, etc.—examinebefore-and-after results.

Depending on the credit union or executive's focus, a usefulparameter is often the number of referrals and the closure orsuccess on those referrals. Look at visible MSR activities that canbe measured and reported. Confirming the performance of newmanagement directives in support of CRM is another good metric.

Be certain to focus on information that is relevant to membergrowth and long-term relationship profitability. Whatevermeasurements are applied, the goals to achieve must be made clear.Plan to document the frequency and outcome of those activities pre-and post-CRM introduction. Regardless of how complex the CRMsystem, it can be simple to produce positive and worthwhileresults.

The CRM system is often seen as a silver bullet; the recurringplanning, time and financial commitment for CRM implementation canbe overlooked or misunderstood.

Instead, I estimate that 80% of the real work occursafter the CRM software system installation iscomplete.

Relying on your CRM system to do all the work will certainly setyour expectations around it up for failure. Instead, create valuearound it as a learning tool for new and changing insights intoeach member relationship, which will directly impact how employeesacross your credit union can improve their own performance andmembers' satisfaction.

Steve Sherman isSynapsys product manager for Symitar, a creditunion core processing subsidiary of Jack Henry & Associates ofMonett, Mo.