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 03 Jan 2021

Covid-19’s impact on the retail supply chain

The Covid-19 pandemic has exposed gaps in the ability of retailers to mitigate supply chain imbalances Continue Reading
Podcast 29 Dec 2020

Salesforce Slack buy biggest step yet outside the CRM realm

Salesforce has tried to buy its way into the rest of the enterprise before. Is Slack the golden ticket that will take it beyond CRM to directly compete with ERP vendors? Continue Reading
Blog Post 21 Dec 2020

How technology will shape the future of work

This is a guest post by Sujith Abraham, senior vice-president and general manager at Salesforce ASEAN No one could have predicted what 2020 would bring. Across every industry, we have learned the ... Continue Reading
News 17 Dec 2020

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
E-Zine 15 Dec 2020

How security will be different after Covid-19

In this week’s Computer Weekly, the world of cyber security will probably never return to its pre-pandemic state – we look ahead. The combination of remote working and streaming video is putting extra strain on networks. And we look at how digital transformation is changing the way contact centres are run. Read the issue now. Continue Reading
14 Dec 2020

Covid-19 crisis has speeded up contact centre digital transformation

Pandemic has accelerated digital transformation in many business sectors, including contact centres such as those of the University of Huddersfield and UK Power Networks Continue Reading
Blog Post 14 Dec 2020

Why I'm uneasy about the Salesforce Slack acquisition

When I first heard the news, my reaction wasn't as an industry analyst, but as a small business owner – and it wasn't positive. Continue Reading
News 03 Dec 2020

Dreamforce 2020: Hyperforce shifts Salesforce to public cloud

Salesforce COO Bret Taylor announced “Hyperforce” during Marc Benioff’s opening keynote at the virtual version of the supplier’s 2020 Dreamforce event in San Francisco Continue Reading
News 02 Dec 2020

Salesforce confirms rumoured Slack acquisition on eve of Dreamforce 2020

Salesforce has announced a $27.7bn stock and cash acquisition of Slack ahead of the virtual iteration of its Dreamforce 2020 event Continue Reading
News 02 Dec 2020

CIO interview: Danny Attias, chief digital and information officer, Anthony Nolan

Digital transformation takes on a whole new purpose when it's helping to save lives – but leading IT for a charity also has its satisfying technology challenges Continue Reading
Feature 01 Dec 2020

Covid-19 crisis has speeded up contact centre digital transformation

Pandemic has accelerated digital transformation in many business sectors, including contact centres such as those of the University of Huddersfield and UK Power Networks Continue Reading
News 26 Nov 2020

Robots taking jobs, but creating careers

Robotic process automation developers tell Computer Weekly about the job they never expected to be doing Continue Reading
Blog Post 26 Nov 2020

Initial thoughts on prospective Salesforce acquisition of Slack

The FT’s ever-excellent, San Francisco-based Richard Waters has reported on a prospective acquisition of Slack by Salesforce. Slack, notes Waters, has evolved from being a chat app to a broader ... Continue Reading
Tip 24 Nov 2020

Transactional vs. relationship marketing: Key differences

Some companies thrive on building strong relationships with customers, while others want to make a sale without long-term commitment. Either way, the business needs a strategy. Continue Reading
Feature 10 Nov 2020

How listening to the voice of the customer benefits businesses

Karen Mangia's book, 'Listen Up! How to Tune In to Customers and Turn Down the Noise' talks about the importance of listening to the voice of the customer in the business world. Continue Reading
News 27 Oct 2020

SAP Q3 2020 results: revenue down 4%, cloud silver lining hailed

SAP’s third quarter 2020 results stated a 4% year-on-year reduction in revenue, with an 11% increase in cloud revenue lightening the gloom Continue Reading
News 26 Oct 2020

BT brings out RCS business messaging to UK customers

Telco announces that platform based on next generation of rich mobile messaging is now through early-stage pilots and is available for businesses to enhance customer experience Continue Reading
Answer 19 Oct 2020

8 ways to improve call center agent performance

Side-by-side evaluations, reinforcement, training resources and coaching can help call center agents improve their performance and catch up to the pack. Continue Reading
News 12 Oct 2020

Software AG caught in double extortion ransomware hit

Data stolen from prominent German software company by Clop ransomware gang appears on the dark web Continue Reading
News 29 Sep 2020

Oracle OpenWorld 2020: Miranda – business model changes are driving turn to cloud

Steve Miranda, who leads Oracle applications development globally, spoke to Computer Weekly ahead of his keynote at the virtual version of OpenWorld. Supply chain management and customer experience are vectors where improvements are being made, he said Continue Reading
E-Zine 29 Sep 2020

How supply chain management is changing after Covid-19

In this week’s Computer Weekly, we examine the profound changes in supply chain management as a result of the global pandemic. We find out how digital experience platforms can help deliver an omni-channel web presence. And we look at the role of technology in cracking down on international money laundering. Read the issue now. Continue Reading
News 28 Sep 2020

Case Study: Douglas and Gordon uses video to make house searching safer

Estate agent Douglas and Gordon has made videos of prospective properties to make it safer and easier for house hunters to find their new home during the coronavirus pandemic Continue Reading
News 22 Sep 2020

The inside story of Taiwan’s AI whizz

Not content with his stellar achievements in artificial intelligence, Chih-Han Yu wanted to create an impact with his work and formed one of Taiwan’s most important unicorns Continue Reading
News 14 Sep 2020

Fintech Pledge launched to strengthen UK’s financial technology sector

The Fintech Pledge initiative is designed to foster closer collaboration between banks and fintechs so that the UK can continue building a globally competitive fintech ecosystem Continue Reading
News 11 Sep 2020

Small businesses projected to add £1.8tn to global GDP growth by 2024

Small Business Digital Maturity research finds nearly three-quarters of global small businesses surveyed are accelerating their digitisation rates to address Covid-19 challenges and respond faster to the new normal of remote working Continue Reading
News 03 Sep 2020

Insurers accept they were slow to adopt digital

Insurance companies know they must prioritise digital investment and are planning in-house development to help make up lost ground Continue Reading
News 27 Aug 2020

Asda trials platform for customer parcel updates

Retailers Asda is trialling delivery management from tech platform Sorted to provide customers who have ordered clothing online with a better customer experience Continue Reading
News 26 Aug 2020

Salesforce Q2 2020: Benioff says crisis will speed growth

Salesforce announces 29% year-on-year revenue growth for the second quarter, and grieves for Dreamforce 2020 Continue Reading
Feature 19 Aug 2020

Digital experience management – web content management for the omnichannel age?

Digital experience management represents an evolution of web content management for a more omnichannel commercial world. We explore its definition and applicability Continue Reading
News 19 Aug 2020

Vodafone builds smart enterprise on SAP S/4 Hana

Holger Grewe, group head of corporate transformation, and Ignacio Garcia, CIO corporate systems, at Vodafone, convey how SAP S/4 Hana has been purposely implemented as part of an ongoing smart enterprise transformation Continue Reading
E-Zine 18 Aug 2020

How Covid-19 elevated the datacentre

In this week’s Computer Weekly, we examine how datacentres and their workers became part of our critical national infrastructure due to the pandemic. Firms considering upgrading to SAP S/4 Hana face hefty bills – we look at how to keep costs down. And we analyse the increasing rate of applications being migrated to the cloud. Continue Reading
Tip 14 Aug 2020

How to collect customer data to improve overall retail CX

Businesses need data to predict and adjust to customer wants and needs, but first, they need to figure out how to collect it. One option is to use a digital CX software. Continue Reading
News 11 Aug 2020

Hospitality sector is failing on contact-tracing obligations

Cyber security experts urge the government to do more to help small hospitality businesses improve their contact-tracing data-handling practices Continue Reading
News 04 Aug 2020

Nordic enterprises look for SAP price reductions as they navigate Covid-19

Businesses in the Nordics are using SAP Cloud Platform to address Covid-19 challenges and are also seeking price reductions Continue Reading
News 31 Jul 2020

Labour Party is latest victim of Blackbaud ransomware attack

Widening Blackbaud data breach ensnares the Labour Party as the cloud software firm continues to duck questions about its behaviour Continue Reading
Podcast 28 Jul 2020

Digital addiction, digital skills – Computer Weekly Downtime Upload podcast

In this week’s episode of the Computer Weekly Downtime Upload podcast, Caroline Donnelly, Clare McDonald and Brian McKenna discuss digital addiction and business software, digital skills and how Barnardo’s benefited from digital transformation Continue Reading
News 27 Jul 2020

SAP Q2 2020 results: SAP partially divests Qualtrics as positive results posted against Covid crisis

SAP has announced a positive set of second-quarter 2020 results, hot on the heels of a declaration that it will spin out online survey business unit Qualtrics by way of an initial public offering in the US Continue Reading
E-Zine 21 Jul 2020

Avon calling: what happens when lockdown eliminates your business model?

In this week’s Computer Weekly, we talk to global beauty brand Avon, to find out how it coped with a huge lockdown dilemma – how to adapt its door-to-door sales model when its reps couldn’t leave home. Our latest buyer’s guide examines the use of artificial intelligence in IT security. And we analyse the government’s decision to strip Huawei from the UK’s 5G network. Read the issue now. Continue Reading
News 15 Jul 2020

HSBC chooses AWS for public cloud business operations

HSBC will use a cloud platform from Amazon Web Services across its business operations to accelerate its public cloud use Continue Reading
News 14 Jul 2020

Recon vulnerability puts thousands of SAP customers at risk

Users of multiple SAP products including S4/HANA should apply the security update as soon as possible to protect their systems Continue Reading
News 13 Jul 2020

How SingEx is bracing itself for disruption

Singapore’s SingEx started its digital transformation journey a few years ago and has already pivoted its approach to cope with new challenges brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic Continue Reading
Feature 09 Jul 2020

How business software can stay clear of digital addiction

Consumer software is notoriously and deliberately addictive. Should companies and B2B IT emulate that or take the high ground of avoiding the spread of user digital addiction? Continue Reading
News 08 Jul 2020

Interview: Mayank Prakash, global consumer CIO, and Daljit Rehal, CDO, Centrica

Two of energy giant Centrica’s tech bosses talk to Computer Weekly about the impact of the Covid-19 coronavirus lockdown and the importance of company culture, innovation and using technology to make life easier for customers Continue Reading
News 08 Jul 2020

Swisscom taps Hitachi to improve network-based customer service

Pentaho product helps business customer service reps of Switzerland’s largest telecommunications company and leading IT services provider provide better, faster service through centralised hub Continue Reading
Blog Post 08 Jun 2020

Tear up the rulebook to build a digital new norm

The coronavirus pandemic has become a catalyst, accelerating radical change to how organisations operate. The economic recovery from the lockdown is forcing some to push through changes that they ... Continue Reading
News 05 Jun 2020

Businesses develop apps quickly to manage disruption of Covid-19

Healthcare companies, insurers, government agencies and big tech companies have used technology from Pegasystems to develop apps to manage the disruption caused by coronavirus Continue Reading
News 29 May 2020

Salesforce Q1 2020: 30% growth, Benioff sees ‘new normal’ by 2021

Salesforce announces 30% year-on-year revenue growth for the first quarter, and displays Covid-19 crisis alleviation activities Continue Reading
News 29 May 2020

UK fintech investment reaches record high

Huge increases in UK fintech investment over the past three years has seen the sector explode, but most of the activity is still concentrated in London Continue Reading
News 27 May 2020

PropertyGuru touts 3D virtual viewings with StoryTeller

Southeast Asian property portal PropertyGuru rolls out new capability in its FastKey platform that lets developers showcase properties to prospective buyers through 3D visualisation Continue Reading
News 14 May 2020

CenturyLink digitally revamps sales framework

The difficulty of navigating information silos during the sales process and high customer churn prompted CenturyLink to adopt new digital tools that get the right information to the right sellers Continue Reading
12 May 2020

Customer experience software can help companies weather the Covid-19 storm

Advanced customer experience software can help companies weather the current Covid-19 storm, as well as build resilience. Marks & Spencer is one firm exploring the technology Continue Reading
Feature 22 Apr 2020

Customer experience software can help companies weather the Covid-19 storm

Advanced customer experience software can help companies weather the current Covid-19 storm, as well as build resilience. Marks & Spencer is one firm exploring the technology Continue Reading
News 21 Apr 2020

Klein takes sole command of SAP as Q1 results show Covid impact

As Christian Klein becomes sole chief executive officer, SAP announces total revenue of €6.521bn for the first quarter, up 7% on Q1 2019 Continue Reading
News 16 Apr 2020

St Albans council integrates systems in effort to streamline processes

The council of St Albans has implemented a unified digital platform to streamline how citizens interact with its services, as well as its own decision-making processes Continue Reading
Feature 31 Mar 2020

3 ways CRM improves customer experience

To be efficient, businesses need their information in one place. Using a CRM system, companies can improve CX by keeping track of their customers and automating business processes. Continue Reading
News 31 Mar 2020

Gartner: Top-performing companies understand CX

Those businesses that measure customer experience, either through surveys, real-time analytics or the use of artificial intelligence, are more profitable Continue Reading
News 19 Mar 2020

IT Priorities 2020: ANZ firms to spend more on cyber security

Over half of respondents in Australia and New Zealand plan to invest more in cyber security, especially in key areas such as data loss prevention Continue Reading
Podcast 18 Mar 2020

Podcast: The Computer Weekly Downtime Upload – Episode 51

In this week’s episode of the Computer Weekly Downtime Upload podcast, Clare McDonald, Caroline Donnelly and Brian McKenna discuss the Budget, the role of graph database technology in anti-money laundering compliance, and the Everywoman Tech Awards Continue Reading
News 04 Mar 2020

IT Priorities 2020: UK business applications investment in AI gathers steam

Artificial intelligence intensifies as an investment area for UK IT buyers, while cloud delivery is coming to ERP as well as other applications Continue Reading
News 28 Feb 2020

CIO interview: Ian Cohen, chief product and technology officer, Addison Lee

At taxi and transport company Addison Lee, technology is focused around customer experience before worrying about datacentres, servers and what elements make up the IT infrastructure Continue Reading
Podcast 18 Feb 2020

Podcast: The Computer Weekly Downtime Upload – Episode 47

In this week’s episode of the Computer Weekly Downtime Upload podcast, Caroline Donnelly, Clare McDonald and Brian McKenna discuss IR35 protests, the Oracle vs SAP cloud applications dog fight, and a Goldman Sachs cloud service for its banking sector Continue Reading
News 12 Feb 2020

Accenture’s tech vision draws inspiration from Black Mirror

Last year’s “Bandersnatch” Black Mirror episode on Netflix highlights a new opportunity for business, according to Accenture Continue Reading
News 04 Feb 2020

Australia’s NAB taps AI to create brand voice

Using Amazon’s artificial intelligence smarts, National Australia Bank has developed a unique brand voice that will greet customers who dial up its contact centre Continue Reading
News 31 Jan 2020

Australia’s Iconic Hotels taps cloud for speed and cost savings

The independent hotel operator in the Australian Capital Territory has saved IT manpower and costs by moving from an on-premise hospitality management system to a cloud-based application Continue Reading
News 27 Jan 2020

LV= rolls out smart speaker skill

General insurance firm says customers will receive answers to commonly asked questions by invoking the skill on Alexa or Google Home Assistant Continue Reading
News 15 Jan 2020

Case study: How Trainline keeps customers satisfied

The Trainline is encouraging customers to discover cheaper rail fares for the same journey with its AI-enabled SplitSave option Continue Reading
News 27 Dec 2019

Top 10 business applications stories of 2019

The steady incursion of artificial intelligence into enterprise software was a major theme behind Computer Weekly’s in-depth stories in this area in 2019 Continue Reading
News 10 Dec 2019

APAC IT leaders lay out priorities for 2020

Robotic process automation and data analytics are among the top priorities for IT leaders in the Asia-Pacific region in the new year Continue Reading
Feature 10 Dec 2019

Building enterprise-grade AI: Sberbank and AI Telekom

Machine learning and artificial intelligence are growing beyond adolescence to prove business value. Practical applications at Sberbank and AI Telekom suggest getting machine learning data in one place, where data scientists can experiment Continue Reading
News 05 Dec 2019

London mayor Sadiq Khan opens Salesforce’s Ohana floor

Opening coincides with Salesforce announcing $1.25m funding for education charity Ark and a Pathfinder training programme Continue Reading
News 02 Dec 2019

UKISUG 2019: Qualtrics unknown to 43% of SAP customers

On the opening day of its annual conference, the UK and Ireland SAP User Group unveils member research showing scant awareness of Qualtrics, and continuing slow adoption of S/4 Hana Continue Reading
Podcast 26 Nov 2019

Podcast: The Computer Weekly Downtime Upload – Episode 38

In this week’s episode of the Computer Weekly Downtime Upload podcast, the team discusses the Liberal Democrats’ manifesto and touches on those of the two main parties. Also under discussion are Dreamforce, Google Next and Monster Confidence for Stemettes Continue Reading
News 22 Nov 2019

Obama at Dreamforce 2019: Leaders orchestrate the conversation

Former US president Barack Obama spoke in a fireside chat with Salesforce co-founder Marc Benioff at Dreamforce 2019. He cautioned on the dangers of the information age and offered some advice for business leaders Continue Reading
News 21 Nov 2019

HSBC builds API digital platform with MuleSoft to forward open banking

At Dreamforce 2019, HSBC announced the building of a digital platform with Salesforce MuleSoft to forward open banking opportunities Continue Reading
E-Zine 21 Nov 2019

CW Nordics: Automation pays off for Sweden’s social workers

Software robots are freeing up time for social workers in Sweden to help benefits claimants find employment and to receive the money they are entitled to. Also in this issue, read how Sweden’s SEB bank is using a Google-inspired, cloud-native core banking platform, and why India is leading the pack when it comes to IT outsourcing from the Nordic countries. Continue Reading
News 20 Nov 2019

Dreamforce 2019: Benioff puts data centre stage as protestors disrupt speech

Salesforce founder and co-CEO outlines data integration and data visualisation product vision underpinned by MuleSoft and garnished with Tableau Continue Reading
News 15 Nov 2019

Businesses move key applications off public cloud to save costs

A new study has shown that while many enterprises are able to keep public cloud costs under control, spending can quickly escalate Continue Reading
News 15 Nov 2019

How Slack is going beyond messaging in enterprise play

Deeper integrations with business applications and data residency support are part of Slack’s broader strategy to penetrate deeper into the enterprise Continue Reading
News 29 Oct 2019

How Aussie Broadband is improving service levels with automation

Australian telco Aussie Broadband has improved customer service though automation, even with a lean team and a growing subscriber base Continue Reading
News 25 Sep 2019

Executive interview: Speed is cloud apps benefit, says Oracle’s Miranda

In a Q&A with Computer Weekly at Oracle Open World 2019, applications head Steve Miranda discussed the supplier’s approach to cloud applications, digital assistants and machine learning Continue Reading
News 12 Sep 2019

How Zendesk plans to crack the enterprise market

Zendesk has been courting enterprises by billing itself as a customer experience software company and is leaning on its design smarts to stand out among bigger rivals Continue Reading
News 12 Sep 2019

Oracle Q1, 2019-2020: revenue flat, cloud progress vaunted

Oracle’s first quarter 2019-2020 results show revenue growth to be flat, but executives claim cloud headway and vaunt progress on autonomous database uptake. Co-CEO Mark Hurd takes leave of absence on health grounds Continue Reading
News 28 Aug 2019

APAC is epicentre of the experience economy

The experience economy is emerging in the Asia-Pacific region, but to succeed, enterprises will need to understand both operational and experience data Continue Reading
Feature 19 Aug 2019

Experts debate whether SAP acquisition of Qualtrics can deliver CX

Ten months after SAP paid $8 billion for the SaaS experience management platform, experts still differ on what Qualtrics adds to SAP's portfolio, especially its C/4HANA CX suite. Continue Reading
Feature 25 Jul 2019

The next stage in football’s digital revolution is ready for the new season

Technology is playing an increasing role in football, as the Premier League adopts video assistant referees for the first time and clubs turn to data to capture more of their fans’ attention Continue Reading
News 24 Jul 2019

Salesforce teams up with Alibaba in foray into China

The cloud applications giant is tapping Alibaba’s footprint in e-commerce and cloud in an effort to expand its business in the Greater China region Continue Reading
News 18 Jul 2019

SAP Q2 2019: US-China trade war takes toll

SAP’s second-quarter 2019 financial results indicate cloud revenue at 26% of total, and 600 new customers for S/4 Hana. The US-China trade war has adversely affected results Continue Reading
E-Zine 11 Jul 2019

CW Middle East: SAP drives digital transformation for Saudi Arabian auto company

The automotive division of Saudi Arabia’s Abdul Latif Jameel Company (ALJC) has completed one of the biggest SAP projects ever undertaken in the automotive distribution sector. Also in this issue, read about Dubai-based delivery app Fetchr’s bid to become one of the largest tech companies in the Middle East, and how a UAE startup is using digital technology to simplify medical appointment bookings. Continue Reading
News 03 Jul 2019

One-third of people prefer instant reply from chatbot about finances to waiting for human reply

Consumers are warming to being supported by chatbots when it comes to financial services, but firms in the sector face hurdles to achieve true end-to-end automation Continue Reading
News 01 Jul 2019

The Great Eastern way to digital transformation

Regional insurance company Great Eastern has rolled out a new digital platform to better serve customers while morphing its DNA from the inside out Continue Reading
News 25 Jun 2019

Big companies face extinction unless they use IT better

Better use of IT could add £100bn to the British economy, says a CBI report into UK big business Continue Reading
News 19 Jun 2019

How AirAsia streamlined its customer service

Integrating multiple customer touch points with Salesforce has enabled Asia’s leading low-cost carrier to shorten waiting time and improve customer service Continue Reading
News 18 Jun 2019

Tableau sticking to data mission under Salesforce

Tableau President and CEO Adam Selipsky told the company’s European user conference in Berlin that Salesforce acquisition will not affect its mission of “seeing and understanding data” Continue Reading
News 10 Jun 2019

Salesforce buys Tableau to add self-service analytics to CRM

Salesforce is set to buy business intelligence data visualisation pioneer Tableau as it seeks to amplify its customer analytics capability Continue Reading
News 10 Jun 2019

Whittard spills the tea about its use of technology

CFO and IT manager of British hot beverages brand Whittard explains the firm’s recent investment in technology ahead of the business’s expansion into China Continue Reading
News 06 Jun 2019

Co-op pushes to make customer care teams more co-operative

The Co-op operates in market segments ranging from funeral care to food, and its customer service strategy was disparate until it adopted Salesforce Continue Reading
E-Zine 23 May 2019

CW Nordics: Nordea links up with IBM to meet fintech challenge

IBM’s €473m managed services contract with Nordea reflects an increasing trend among Nordic banks to outsource more of their IT to help meet the challenge of fintechs. Also read how a shortage of women in the boardroom is a problem in the Nordics but the tech sector points to a more promising future, and find out why the Norwegian government has launched a regulatory sandbox for the fintech sector. Continue Reading
News 16 May 2019

How Open University went from bespoke IT to vanilla SAP

It’s hard convincing users their business processes are a dud. But this is what Chris Youles, chief information officer of the Open University, needed to do to transform the organisation Continue Reading
News 08 May 2019

ASUG CEO says SAP's 2019 strategy faces IT-business divide

At the Sapphire conference, the head of the largest SAP user group talks about the challenges of convincing an IT audience about the benefits of experience management. Continue Reading
News 24 Apr 2019

SAP Q1 2019 results: 400 more S/4 Hana sign-ups, €1.5bn in cloud

SAP’s first-quarter 2019 financial results indicate cloud revenue at 26% of total, and 400 new customers for S/4 Hana. Senior executive losses, restructure and Qualtrix acquisition cost bite into profit Continue Reading