Assessment of Requirements
The first stage of the implementation process is an assessment of requirements designed to provide all parties with sufficient information to make informed decisions on how to proceed.
The assessment will generate the following deliverables . . .
- A high level data entity diagram detailing the major data entities required to support the functionality
- A high level process map of the functions the system must support classified as critical, essential, and nice-to-have
- A summary of applications the system has to interface with and the “touch points”
- An assessment of the capability of the existing IT infrastructure to support current CRM systems
- A high level assessment of the quality of the data in existing systems
- A summary of the shortcomings of the current system and how they could be addressed
- A high level cost / benefit case
- An assessment of how your requirements map to some leading CRM applications e.g. ACT!, GoldMine and MS Dynamics
- Budget level estimates for implementing a replacement system covering . . .
Once your requirements have been assessed then informed decisions can be made about the . . .
- Software application to be used
- The system’s functional and data boundaries
- The parameters for measuring the implementation’s success
A high level project plan can then be established detailing tasks , responsibilities and time scales.
