That's according to a recent Gartner survey of over 1,500 Chief Information Officers at the very end of 2008. The #1 priority on their collective list is Business Intelligence software. While some folks would argue that CRM software is a subset of BI, it sounds like the survey respondents make the distinction between the overall strategic components of BI tools and the specific sales and service elements inherent in CRM.
Servers, hardware, and infrastructure items all found homes farther down on the priority list, confirming a few of the running themes of our CRM software blog over the past few months:
- Faced with stagnating revenues, company leaders find it easier to invest in hosted CRM software than in fixed hardware.
- It's easy to trace the ROI on CRM software and BI projects, making them less risky for CIOs to approve.
- With the stalled-out launch of Windows Vista and the pending arrival of Windows 7, many CIOs are happy to sit out a year of hardware upgrades, especially with such a wide selection of platform-agnostic CRM applications.
Reviewing the list of the same CIOs' most pressing business priorities, it's easy to see why so many survey respondents are ready to write checks for stronger Business Intelligence and Customer Relationship Management tools. "Business process improvement" topped the priority list, along with "reducing enterprise costs." Shifts to seat-licensed software tools can certainly address both of those needs. Other top priorities include:
- Attracting and retaining new customers
- Targeting customers more effectively
- Expanding current customer relationships
- Expanding into new markets
Many CRM software implementation teams hope that such high priorities for their specialty will lead to renewed training and development for previously resistant sales and service professionals.
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