Current and Future State of CRM: What are its Implications?

In our society, technology has found itself as the root cause of a certain level of modernization. It wasn’t long ago when people heavily depended on bank tellers to complete cash transactions at a bank. Now however, much of the bank teller’s job has been automated in the form of ATM’s and electronic kiosks at drive through lanes. Automation is the current trend, and more departments are going to experience it. To those wondering which area or department may be hit next by a wave of technological automation, the answer is quite simple: CRM. In its raw form, CRM, which stands for Customer Relationship Management, is a “system for managing your relationships with customers” (Hubspot). Essentially, it is a software intended to help companies maintain strong relationships with their customers, customers being a critical part of the process. A good CRM system should benefit both the business and the customer. However, this is easier said than done, making the million dollar question the following: how can CRM systems be improved to truly benefit both the business and the customer? This paper will demonstrate that the answer is quite simple: automation. Through secondary research, as well as interviews conducted with various business professionals, I will demonstrate that automation and integration can make the process much more efficient and can erase a lot of errors in the process. Automation is the future of business, and this fact is not any less true in the CRM field.