Customer relationship management (CRM)

Find Customer Relationship Management (CRM) resources here: news, analysis and case studies on CRM software choices and implementing CRM. Find out how UK companies and organisations are harnessing CRM to drive forward customer-centric business strategies. Understand CRM market trends, and how organisations are managing the customer experience for competitive advantage.

Feature 27 Nov 2023
The future of business software

The enterprise application software market has changed radically. We look at what is driving IT investments Continue Reading
Feature 17 Nov 2023
Why is diversity important in marketing?

Diversity marketing can help marketers improve personalization, connect with younger audiences and increase brand loyalty. However, inauthentic efforts can erode customer trust. Continue Reading

News 09 Aug 2022

Tata teams with Genesys to boost enterprise engagement with enhanced InstaCC Platform

Global digital ecosystem enabler partners with cloud-based customer experience orchestration to further transform customer engagement across platforms ranging from social to mobile Continue Reading
E-Zine 09 Aug 2022

Eurotunnel’s digital journey for the realities of post-Covid travel

In this week’s Computer Weekly, the travel industry was devastated by the pandemic, but we find out how Eurotunnel is turning to digital to better engage customers in the post-Covid world. We examine the impact of the economic slowdown on the tech giants. And we explain all you need to know about data gravity. Read the issue now. Continue Reading
08 Aug 2022

Channelling customer focus

Adapting to the realities of post-Covid European travel, Eurotunnel is revamping the customer experience - as product and experience director Ian Rabagliati explains. Continue Reading
News 05 Aug 2022

CIO interview: Stephen Booth, CIO, Coventry University

After more than 20 years at the university, the CIO is still taking on new responsibilities – including his team becoming a commercial entity and acquiring its own software Continue Reading
Tip 04 Aug 2022

How to market a loyalty program effectively

Loyalty programs boost customer retention, but organizations must first convince customers to sign up. Marketers can incentivize referrals and use mobile apps to gain enrollment. Continue Reading
News 04 Aug 2022

Bayern Munich sides with Adobe to enhance global fan experience

Bayern Munich is using Adobe’s Experience Cloud and allied software to better connect with its fans in Germany and worldwide Continue Reading
News 03 Aug 2022

Twilio eyes CDP opportunity in APAC

Twilio is tapping opportunities in customer data platforms and will deploy APAC instances of its Segment platform next year Continue Reading
E-Zine 02 Aug 2022

How to create a datacentre capacity plan

In this week’s Computer Weekly, planning datacentre capacity is a growing challenge – we ask the experts for the latest best practice. Victims of the Post Office IT scandal explain why they think they were targeted for speaking out. And we look at the digital skills gap in retail and find out how employers can source talent. Read the issue now. Continue Reading
Feature 29 Jul 2022

Customer loyalty vs. brand loyalty: What's the difference?

Low prices can generate customer loyalty, whereas reliability and reputation foster brand loyalty. To maximize customer retention, organizations should strive for both. Continue Reading
E-Zine 26 Jul 2022

Inside Russia’s Ukraine information operations

In this week’s Computer Weekly, we get the inside track on Russia’s disinformation operations attempting to spread propaganda and cyber threats about the invasion of Ukraine. Our new buyer’s guide looks at customer and employee experience management. And we assess 10 top Kubernetes backup suppliers. Read the issue now. Continue Reading
News 25 Jul 2022

CDO interview: Ian Rabagliati, product and experience director, Eurotunnel

The Channel Tunnel operator is coming to terms with the realities of post-Covid European travel, and focusing on customer experience to bring it closer to its passengers Continue Reading
Feature 19 Jul 2022

Employee experience joins CX for total enterprise view

Total experience is emerging to join up employee and customer experience for organisations intent on being holistic and progressive Continue Reading
Tip 07 Jul 2022

5 best practices for customer journey mapping

As CX teams create customer journey maps, they must set clear goals, collect feedback and embrace creativity. Failure to follow best practices can leave teams with inaccurate data. Continue Reading
Answer 30 Jun 2022

Why are loyalty programs important?

Loyalty programs can help organizations retain their most valuable customers with special offers. Additionally, they can gather useful marketing data, increase referrals and more. Continue Reading
Feature 28 Jun 2022

Composability set to be next big thing for digital experience platforms

Digital experience platforms are the latest word in increasing customer loyalty by engaging across all channels. Gaining real-time views of customers while managing data compliantly is critical Continue Reading
Tip 24 Jun 2022

4 real-world customer journey map examples

Real-world examples of customer journey maps in action can help brands understand how customers feel amid the buying process and benefit customer relationships moving forward. Continue Reading
News 22 Jun 2022

How TDCX is building a people-centric business

Every digital tool deployed by the Singapore-based services firm is aimed at augmenting the performance and experience of its employees, says TDCX’s group CIO, Byron Fernandez Continue Reading
News 17 Jun 2022

Fintech firm chooses Salesforce software to support growth

Revolut is to use Saleasforce software to support sales and marketing as part of its expansion plans Continue Reading
Feature 14 Jun 2022

The link between employee experience and customer experience

A customer's experience with an organization is only as good as an employee's experience. Business leaders should know that empathy is key to employee and customer success. Continue Reading
News 10 Jun 2022

Investment firm takes Salesforce to task for lack of racial diversity

Retail investment platform Tulipshare is campaigning to hold Salesforce to account for its lack of racial diversity Continue Reading
Answer 09 Jun 2022

What's the difference between SCM and CRM?

CRM platforms track customer interactions, whereas SCM platforms track materials and product shipments. Tech buyers should know how these platforms differ before making a purchase. Continue Reading
News 09 Jun 2022

CIO interview: Yiannis Levantis aims at total quality for Unipart IT

Unipart has a heritage in quality manufacturing and services that CIO Yiannis Levantis is building on, in part by harnessing SAP’s cloud-based business transformation service Rise Continue Reading
News 26 May 2022

Executive interview: Miles Hillier, NatWest

Retail bank’s digital channel development head talks about building a multi-channel customer experience Continue Reading
Tip 24 May 2022

What are the benefits and challenges of CRM?

CRM platforms can boost CX with business insights if sales agents use them properly. Sales leaders should know the benefits and challenges of these platforms before purchasing. Continue Reading
E-Zine 24 May 2022

Set innovation free and make great ideas a reality

In this week’s Computer Weekly, we look at Gartner’s call to innovate – and innovation across retail, the circular economy and the automotive sector. We talk to Verastar’s CTO about customer engagement in its small business services. And we examine how poor data quality is frustrating corporate desires to be data driven. Read the issue now. Continue Reading
23 May 2022

Digitising customer engagement

Verastar CTO Spencer Clarkson explains how digital transformation and unifying customer relationship management systems are driving the business services group forward. Continue Reading
Tip 13 May 2022

5 upcoming CCaaS trends to watch

As organizations plan to increase CX spending over the next few years, they should pay attention to CCaaS trends, like agents changing workspaces and integrations with UCaaS. Continue Reading
News 11 May 2022

SAP ‘optimistic’ about S/4 Hana in APAC

A top SAP executive is confident that more of its customers in Asia-Pacific will adopt S/4 Hana this year, as the company shores up integration of its ERP software with other business applications Continue Reading
News 10 May 2022

How one Australian firm is creating smarter menus

Me&u’s smart menus are intelligent enough to recommend food items based on customer preferences, and even help to reduce food waste and alleviate bartender workloads during peak periods Continue Reading
Tip 03 May 2022

Best practices for initiating chatbot-to-human handoff

Contact centers perform a balancing act between AI and human agents. Support teams must train bots on chatbot-to-human handoffs and design AI aware of customer frustration. Continue Reading
Podcast 28 Apr 2022

Metaverse, women in software – Computer Weekly Downtime Upload podcast

Cliff Saran joins Clare and Brian, in Caroline’s absence, to discuss the metaverse, Windows 11, the Makers Women in Software Power List, and how CIOs do technology in 2022 Continue Reading
News 27 Apr 2022

Microsoft shows inflation-busting growth, driven by cloud adoption

As prices rise, Microsoft is trying to position its cloud services as the public cloud that offers the best value for money Continue Reading
Feature 18 Apr 2022

What is Adobe Experience Cloud? CRM platform overview

Adobe Experience Cloud -- the vendor's CRM platform -- includes tools to help medium and large enterprises manage all facets of their customer engagement strategies. Continue Reading
News 30 Mar 2022

CIO interview: Spencer Clarkson, CTO, Verastar

Digital transformation and unifying customer relationship management systems are driving the business services group forward Continue Reading
News 30 Mar 2022

UKISUG: Big majority of SAP users beset by data problems in migrating to S/4 Hana

In a survey prior to its Analytics Symposium, the UK & Ireland SAP User Group finds 61% of SAP customers say data management issues are slowing down process automation and impeding moves to S/4 Hana Continue Reading
Tip 18 Mar 2022

How do experience maps vs. customer journey maps differ?

Customer experience maps and customer journey maps serve as the blueprints for buyer interactions. Despite these maps' similarities, they play different roles in organizations. Continue Reading
News 23 Feb 2022

Salesforce pays out over £2m in bug bounties

Salesforce says it received more than 4,000 vulnerability reports in 2021 alone as it delivers a rare public update on its bug bounty programme Continue Reading
News 17 Feb 2022

Nvidia founder and CEO portrays AI-centricity

Earnings call for Nvidia’s fourth-quarter results offers a leading indicator of where the application of artificial intelligence may be heading Continue Reading
Feature 02 Feb 2022

Finland brings cryostats and other cool things to quantum computing

Not only is Finland the clear leader in refrigeration technology for quantum computers, but it also leads in fundamental research into the underlying quantum information theory Continue Reading
News 01 Feb 2022

Dutch software engineers join campaign for research funding

Software researchers from all over Europe are sounding the alarm: to maintain a strong international competitive position, more financial resources must be committed to software research Continue Reading
News 27 Jan 2022

SAP full-year 2021: Revenue nudges up 1%, cloud growth up 17%

SAP has announced a 2% rise in full-year 2021 revenue, to just under €28bn, while S/4 Hana customer base increased by 18% to 18,800 Continue Reading
News 24 Jan 2022

Heathrow Airport takes to the cloud with Oracle Fusion Applications

Airport has implemented a full spread of Oracle Cloud Applications, including ERP and HCM, as it looks to recover from the pandemic Continue Reading
News 20 Jan 2022

UK SMEs to receive tech skills and software boost

A new government scheme aimed at helping businesses improve their productivity and sales online has opened for applications Continue Reading
E-Zine 11 Jan 2022

How Pepsi is taking digital to the max

In this week’s Computer Weekly, we talk to PepsiCo’s digital director about delivering innovation in customer experience. Our first buyer’s guide of 2022 examines hybrid cloud storage. And we find out how Arkwright and Granville from the BBC sitcom Open All Hours are inspiring retailers 40 years on. Read the issue now. Continue Reading
Feature 06 Jan 2022

SMEs step up e-commerce ventures under shadow of Covid

A raft of smaller retailers have stepped up their e-commerce businesses during the pandemic, ranging from books to candles, rugs to togs Continue Reading
News 29 Dec 2021

Top 10 business applications stories of 2021

2021 saw enterprise software suppliers and users envisaging a nimbler future, beyond the Covid pandemic, with more loosely coupled ERP systems, more flexible business processes, and a renewed digital-first focus on customers Continue Reading
Opinion 22 Dec 2021

A trial relying on computer evidence should start with a trial of the computer evidence

Learning from the Post Office Horizon scandal - the most widespread miscarriage of justice in recent British legal history Continue Reading
News 15 Dec 2021

Asda follows EG Group sibling in selection of Rise with SAP

Retailer is looking to improve the agility of its operations in the cloud with a move to Rise with SAP on Microsoft Azure, and to streamline its procurement with SAP Ariba Continue Reading
Feature 10 Dec 2021

Retailers as tech firms: Next, The Very Group and others see power in the platform

Gap and Reiss are set to utilise Next’s end-to-end e-commerce service, Total Platform, in 2022, as more retailers carve out a future as part tech company Continue Reading
Feature 08 Dec 2021

How to improve customer satisfaction during supply, labor crisis

Transparency, minimizing returns and collecting customer insights from call center reps are some ways businesses can improve customer satisfaction. Continue Reading
News 07 Dec 2021

IT Priorities 2022: ERP gets back on the horse

Automation and going cloud-first have gained significant interest for enterprise software and data management investment in the UK, according to the annual TechTarget/Computer Weekly IT Priorities 2022 survey Continue Reading
News 09 Nov 2021

Real Madrid teams up with Adobe to enhance global fan experience

Real Madrid is using Adobe’s Experience Cloud software to better connect with its fans in Spain and worldwide Continue Reading
Feature 08 Nov 2021

Mining for intelligence: Why business process intelligence makes for agility

Business process improvement is a never-ending quest for betterment that can be lit up by a new generation of process mining software. We take a deep dive Continue Reading
News 28 Oct 2021

Benioffs and Salesforce put $300m into combating climate change on eve of COP26

$200m committed to reforestation and restoration efforts, and $100m for non-profits over the next 10 years Continue Reading
Feature 18 Oct 2021

How companies are rethinking digital customer experience in wake of pandemic

The Covid-19 pandemic has exposed much digital rhetoric as hollow, as companies are now rethinking the digital customer experience, leveraging instant messaging and other tools Continue Reading
News 15 Oct 2021

Manchester City teams up with Qualtrics for fan experience management

Manchester City is teaming up with online survey software firm Qualtrics, part-owned by long-term City Football Group supplier SAP, to engage more intelligently with the football club’s fanbase Continue Reading
News 13 Oct 2021

Modern SaaS shifts core ERP architectures

There are numerous ways to achieve the same result. Salesforce, Microsoft and Microsoft offer a different way to consider enterprise systems Continue Reading
Feature 11 Oct 2021

Developing an integrated customer and employee experience strategy

We explore what customer experience and employee experience have in common – and the benefits of combining them Continue Reading
E-Zine 05 Oct 2021

The Most Influential Women in UK Technology 2021

In this week’s Computer Weekly, we reveal the 50 women chosen as the most influential in UK technology for 2021, and talk to the 10th winner of our annual list – Poppy Gustafsson, CEO of Darktrace. Also, our latest buyer’s guide looks at digital customer experience technologies. Read the issue now. Continue Reading
Feature 04 Oct 2021

A post-pandemic recipe for developing customer experience

Covid-19 has led to many people reassessing their priorities so customer experience needs to adapt to meet new expectations Continue Reading
News 22 Sep 2021

Salesforce to debut Hyperforce architecture in Singapore

Salesforce is rolling out its Hyperforce infrastructure architecture in Singapore by the year-end, enabling enterprises to run Salesforce applications on Amazon Web Services Continue Reading
News 22 Sep 2021

Dreamforce 2021: Benioff declares Salesforce as net zero and Slack ubiquitous across stack

Marc Benioff, CEO and chair of Salesforce, declares his company net zero in a keynote at Dreamforce 2021 in San Francisco, alongside update on Slack integrations Continue Reading
News 21 Sep 2021

IDC: Salesforce-related economic activity will create 271,000 UK jobs and £52bn in sales by 2026

IDC research published on the eve of Dreamforce 2021 claims Salesforce-related economic activity will create 271,000 British jobs by 2026 and stoke £52bn in revenue Continue Reading
Podcast 21 Sep 2021

Chancellor Rishi Sunak listens to UK tech – Computer Weekly Downtime Upload podcast

In this episode of the CW Downtime Upload, CW editor in chief Bryan Glick joins the podcast team to discuss his interview with Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak at a Treasury Connect conference Continue Reading
Tip 13 Sep 2021

How to choose the right CRM software for your organization

Choosing the right CRM software can be daunting for organizations. Follow these five steps and best practices to ensure the search, adoption and deployment processes go smoothly. Continue Reading
News 29 Aug 2021

Mainland Chinese businesses lead tech adoption in APAC

Chinese firms are more likely than others in Asia-Pacific to tap on artificial intelligence and business intelligence among other technologies to drive innovation Continue Reading
News 24 Aug 2021

How Zendesk is gearing up for growth in APAC

Zendesk has its eye on Japan and the enterprise segment while building up its partner ecosystem to grow its business in the Asia-Pacific region Continue Reading
Answer 13 Aug 2021

CRM vs. CDP vs. DMP: What's the difference?

Sales and marketing terms are like alphabet soup, and the different acronyms can get confusing. Find out the difference between three major platforms: CRM, CDP and DMP. Continue Reading
News 12 Aug 2021

Same-day delivery firm CitySprint fields Salesforce for customers

Same-day delivery specialist CitySprint uses Salesforce across its contact management, sales and marketing teams Continue Reading
News 05 Aug 2021

Vodafone Spain modernises customer relationship management platform with Amdocs

Modernisation programme aims to enable Vodafone Spain to reduce the total cost of ownership and improve operational efficiency, automation and performance of its CRM system Continue Reading
News 30 Jul 2021

Government opens up SME digital support programme for suppliers

Help to Grow: Digital scheme aims to help small businesses access productivity-enhancing software, and suppliers are now encouraged to register as approved suppliers Continue Reading
News 21 Jul 2021

SAP Q2 2021: revenue down 1%, 600 new S/4 Hana signups

SAP has reported second-quarter 2021 revenue of €6.669bn, down 1% on the same year-ago quarter. Cloud revenue has increased by 11% to €2.276bn, just over one-third of the total, and 250 customers claimed for new Rise with SAP package in the quarter Continue Reading
News 07 Jul 2021

Clara Shih, CEO, Salesforce Service Cloud on the shape of post-pandemic service work

Salesforce Service Cloud CEO Clara Shih has returned to the supplier after a period as a founder CEO and sees the future of contact centre and field service with relatively fresh eyes Continue Reading
Tip 25 Jun 2021

Getting started with a revenue operations strategy

A revenue operations strategy requires coordination and communication among sales, marketing and customer service teams to fuel RevOps. Continue Reading
News 24 Jun 2021

Salesforce declares AWS partnership to enable intelligent applications

Salesforce and Amazon Web Services have declared a ‘strategic partnership’ that is claimed to enable the easier creation of artificial intelligence-infused applications Continue Reading
News 03 Jun 2021

Sapphire 2021: Klein vaunts rebooted Ariba business network as sustainability driver

At the virtual Sapphire 2021 conference, SAP CEO Christian Klein trumpeted the supplier’s procurement network, Ariba, as the core of a revamped global engine for promoting sustainable economic growth Continue Reading
News 26 May 2021

Disabled travellers promised better train journeys by Passenger Assistance app

An app developed by UK startup Transreport for the Rail Delivery Group aims to improve train travel for disabled passengers Continue Reading
24 May 2021

Customer experience market made leap forward during pandemic

The discipline of customer experience management made significant advances during the Covid-19 crisis, according to practitioners and advocates Continue Reading
News 07 May 2021

Monmouthshire County Council digitises HR with Zellis cloud

Monmouthshire County Council is using a cloud HR system from Zellis as part of its digital transformation programme, aimed at being lean and agile Continue Reading
News 27 Apr 2021

Leaky Azure storage account puts software developer IP at risk

Source code for multiple products was left exposed in an unsecured Microsoft Azure cloud storage account, say researchers, but attributing responsibility for the error has proved difficult Continue Reading
Feature 26 Apr 2021

How AI and automation drive better customer service

Forrester analysts explore the benefits of combining artificial intelligence with automation Continue Reading
Feature 22 Apr 2021

Customer experience market made leap forward during pandemic

The discipline of customer experience management made significant advances during the Covid-19 crisis, according to practitioners and advocates Continue Reading
News 21 Apr 2021

EMEA business leaders out of touch with employees’ needs in new hybrid workplace

Research finds more alignment with staff is needed for firms to address the new hybrid world of work but nearly half of businesses plan tech investments to further improve the workplace experience Continue Reading
News 08 Apr 2021

Inside Microsoft’s industry cloud strategy

Microsoft dives deeper into its industry cloud strategy and what it means for enterprises in the Asia-Pacific region Continue Reading
News 07 Apr 2021

Unpatched SAP applications are target-rich ground for hackers

Report from SAP and cyber threat research company Onapsis warns that hackers are attacking mission-critical SAP business applications that contain unpatched vulnerabilities Continue Reading
News 06 Apr 2021

Bank BJB Syariah taps DevOps

Indonesia’s Bank Jabar Banten Syariah is adopting DevOps and microservices to speed up delivery of applications Continue Reading
News 23 Mar 2021

Why collaboration is the next driver in enterprise software

Use of enterprise collaboration tools has exploded during the pandemic. Now they are expanding their remit into the realm of enterprise systems Continue Reading
News 23 Mar 2021

Home Office completes transfer of all business apps to Oracle Cloud

Home Office has completed its deployment of Oracle’s Cloud Applications suite to all its functions across 35,000 staff, ahead of other government departments Continue Reading
Feature 12 Mar 2021

Interview: Uber driver Yaseen Aslam on his Supreme Court battle and what’s next for gig workers

Private hire driver and union organiser Yaseen Aslam speaks to Computer Weekly about his legal battle with Uber and what the UK Supreme Court ruling means to workers in the gig economy Continue Reading
News 11 Mar 2021

Oracle Q3, 2020-21: Revenue growth of 3% backdrop to Ellison attack on SAP

Chairman and CTO Larry Ellison launches competitive attack on SAP as Oracle’s third-quarter results show revenue growth of 3% Continue Reading
News 11 Mar 2021

IFS ramps up single-platform cloud delivery as it bids ERP adieu

Business applications supplier shifts fundamentally to cloud infrastructure while sloughing off enterprise resource planning as it rebrands Continue Reading
News 09 Mar 2021

How biotech firm Luminex manages field service

Technicians at Luminex work remotely, but their schedules, spare parts for repairs and customer site visits need to link to tech support and the CRM Continue Reading
News 11 Feb 2021

Benioff projects future of work onto Salesforce’s ‘Cloud 3.0’

Salesforce is unveiling a vision of the future of work based on what it calls ‘Cloud 3.0’, with ‘Hyperforce’ – a rearchitecting of the Salesforce CRM platform to run on public clouds Continue Reading
News 11 Feb 2021

Verizon Business, Deloitte gain retail edge with 5G

Operator’s 5G and mobile edge compute technology, coupled with IT consultancy’s retail industry and solution engineering experience, aims to improve store operating efficiency and enhance the customer experience Continue Reading
News 10 Feb 2021

Helpdesk meltdown due to absenteeism, low morale and increased workload

Remote working has put a strain on the helpdesk, and there is a backlog of unresolved tickets that is taking days to clear Continue Reading
News 02 Feb 2021

Liverpool City Council upgrades to cloud-based contact centre

An 8x8 integrated cloud PaaS contact centre with voice, team chat and meetings support is helping to drive the council’s digital agenda Continue Reading
News 20 Jan 2021

How Globe Telecom is doubling down on cloud

The largest mobile operator in the Philippines has moved its legacy systems to the cloud and there is more to come as it looks towards deploying cloud radio access networks and cloud-native applications Continue Reading
19 Jan 2021

Guide Dogs data strategy navigates path to organisational view

Guide Dogs CIO Gerard McGovern is mapping out a data strategy that is aimed at taking the charity from an individual to an organisational view of data. Continue Reading
News 18 Jan 2021

Nottinghamshire uses citizen engagement tools to inform residents

Nottinghamshire Council is seeking to expand Granicus integrations after success in using its communications services to keep citizens informed during pandemic Continue Reading
News 08 Jan 2021

British Gas tackles omnichannel customer correspondence

Utility firm hopes to map out customer communications to help deliver a better customer experience and improve the business Continue Reading