- You say that a person can lift himself by the hair?
- Definitely! Every sane person is simply obliged to do this from time to time!
What problems did covid self-isolation reveal?
It so happened that during the crisis, the demand for CRM systems increased a little - people come (what I say - they call and write, of course) and literally doomedly report that during the time of remote control they realized how important it is to work in a single information base and control transactions. The requirement is now the simplest: centralized and streamlined business management. Do you think this is correct? And what else can help companies in the difficult post-visual environment? What happened inside the business?
Labor imbalance
The shift of employees to remote work caused a wave of compromises. On the one hand, CEOs of small and medium-sized businesses decided to give employees the credit of trust and did not expand their control over work activity, as some large companies (and sometimes even smaller ones) did. On the other hand, it must be admitted that the human factor, combined with general stress, took its toll and various side effects began in relations between workers and employers: procrastination, redistribution of time and energy in favor of homework and family, and the formation of skills to avoid work. Another extreme has appeared: some of the remote employees began to load themselves with tasks and “out of boredom and loneliness” work not 8 hours, but 12,14 and even 16 - for them, work has become the best time killer and an ideal way to get away from dialogue with themselves.
And it seems that everything is cool: some work a little less and a little worse, others selflessly work for themselves and for that guy, the balance of forces and labor resources is observed. But, alas, both of them are real people with a complex nervous system and psyche, so soon both groups of employees can burn out and begin their path to depression. And depression is 100% unfit for work, almost grief for the employer. And let me remind you once again: depression is not sadness with chocolate and ice cream, it is a serious disorder, an illness with all the consequences.
Chaotic job searches
Company employees assessed the employer's behavior during self-isolation and began looking for work. And if for all industries as a whole it is unpleasant, expensive, but not fatal, then for the sales sector this situation can become fatal. The most valuable salesperson is the one who comes to a new job with an “established base”. Behind these words is hidden a banal transfer of clients to a new company, in fact, theft of the client base. The legal practice on such issues still remains murky; an entrepreneur's appeal to the court does not guarantee anything. This means that the only way out is to protect commercial information and by all means to fight such plans at the root.
Remote work
In some regions of Russia, you can safely work, in some, the removal of self-isolation is at stages 1-2, some companies have allowed partial or full remote work, some have introduced remote Friday on an ongoing basis. One way or another, remote work is now with us for a long time - and not because the covid will not leave us, but because some employees, companies, managers have found their advantages in this format of work - all of us are waiting for new patterns of office and home-office interaction. And already now there are questions that need to be addressed here and now.
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- How to take care of the front office work (salespeople, project managers, client managers, etc.) so that they can work efficiently from anywhere without affecting the quality of their external interactions?
- How to keep the team and not go broke on hiring and training replacement for those who decide to leave for one reason or another?
The office is full of surprises
Going to the office is also associated with both additional costs and stress (disinfection, tests, purchase of new equipment, rearrangement of workplaces, etc.), and stress from the staff. You need to be prepared that the signs of post-traumatic syndrome (namely, the state of a huge share of the world's population is closest to it) will have echoes in a year or two. Here is the minimum that most likely awaits all of us.
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The combination of these situations does not bring anything good to the general atmosphere of the team. After almost a half-year break, a powerful factor of team building is needed, a common project that will restore corporate roles and return the team to normal working rails.
What is the safest place for your operational work?
To say that all problems will be solved by the software in general and the CRM system in particular is sheer slyness. No, you need to act comprehensively. And first of all, you need to fight the human factor using the methodology and psychology of management.
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An interesting tool for organizing a team can be ... a CRM system . If you have ever tried to choose this software, you probably noticed that only one name remained of CRM: now these are universal sophisticated combines that allow you to manage clients and centrally solve other operational tasks: from managing business processes and warehouse to technical support. and staff training.
So, what crisis tasks can a CRM system close?
Traditionally, we will list solutions based on RegionSoft CRM, but most modern CRMs are capable of the above (with rare exceptions). The difference is in how detailed and deeply you need to close the operational work - alas, we cannot be responsible for other market decisions.
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- CRM brings employees together. They work in a single system, they comprehend it from scratch, learn and find themselves in relatively equal conditions in the face of the interface of the new program. The process of selection, implementation and customization of CRM significantly increases communication within the team, produces a business spirit and in general, you remember that ...
Not for "my own benefit", but for the benefit of everyone in the company
How to solve problems and not lose your last budget?
At the beginning of the article, I asked the question whether it is right to have such a modest requirement for CRM: centralized and orderly business management. Yes, that's right, because this is the basis for putting things in order in the company's operational work.
Let us establish three theses, which we will accept as an axiom before our reasoning.
- Free CRM with a high probability will not solve any problems - it has many limitations that will amaze you more and more.
- The cost of a CRM system ( details here ) = cost of licenses + cost of implementation + revision + cost of add-ons and widgets.
- A CRM system is a project that requires money. The actual cost depends on your requirements, the number of users, etc.
So, what we have: money is needed for CRM, the crisis has eaten up the budget, but without CRM, employees, especially remotely, have disbanded and got out of hand. What will we decide? Implement, but with nuances - so as to save money and / or postpone spending for later.
Do not hurry
Implement the CRM system gradually. Don't order everything from business processes to revisions at once. Stop at the main thing: the first licenses, training, configuration, data transfer, necessary integrations (with which you will actually work) and priority technical support for 2-3 months. This will allow you to start working quickly and productively, and to the decision to develop CRM or leave it as it is, because it's good to come later. Thus, you will significantly reduce costs at first and first let the CRM system earn for itself.
Look for a developer
Try to buy CRM not from vendor partners, but from a CRM developer. The fact is that it is not profitable for a partner to simply lease CRM, his gain is in the first set of configuration and implementation, which ranges from 80,000 to 300,000 rubles in excess of the cost of CRM. By the way, the package of services can turn out to be both ultra cool and a set of links to videos on YouTube. In this regard, of course, the developer himself bears high reputational risks and will do his job responsibly and professionally.
Distribute the load on the budget
Rent a CRM monthly if you are not ready to pay for the entire project at once or for 1-2 years. It will be a little more expensive than "wholesale", but you can refuse to rent if you realize that CRM still did not suit you. Let's take an example: you need to buy 10 licenses of the most popular RegionSoft CRM Professional with the ability to work remotely.
If you buy right away, you will spend 126,700 rubles for licenses. This is not very much for CRM and is generally beneficial (pay once), but significant for the budget of small and medium businesses when considering the size of a one-time payment for small businesses.
If you rent a CRM, then you will spend 10 566 per month for everyone, this is a normal waste for a small company that will allow you to use new software, develop and not invest a lot of money at once.
Well, the installment plan in 6 payments is also quite portable (considering that in 6 months you will no longer need to pay, and the CRM will be yours entirely). True, as a result, a small overpayment will turn out - like any installment plan, because the vendor also insures itself against the non-payment crisis. Nevertheless, this format is chosen by many companies - it is not burdened for the budget.
By the way, you can play around with the prices yourself in our interactive calculator (no registration required!).
After you have already started working in CRM, you can gradually start expanding the software and the necessary changes and improvements, templates, etc. Thus, you will make the implementation better, the relationship with the vendor will be more long-term, and the workload on the employees will be light.
Not a single crisis has turned out to be eternal: we have gone through 2008, 2014, 2018, we will go through now, especially since there are certain prerequisites for the fact that this time the way out of the peak will be somewhat more dynamic than the usual crawling out of stagnation. It may turn out that already in September and December, and even more so at the beginning of next year, small businesses will feel a sharp, post-shock demand for everything that is possible both in B2B and B2C. Having a CRM in such a situation is a great way to earn more and not lose the team, but even strengthen. Don't waste your time.