Section I

Conceptual Framework for CRM

What is Customer Relationship management?

Customer relationship management is creating a team relationship among sales,

marketing, and customer support activities within an organization.

Another narrow, yet relevant, viewpoint is to consider CRM only as customer retention in

which a variety of after marketing tactics is used for customer bonding or staying in touch

after the sale is made.

relationship marketing as “an integrated effort to identify, maintain, and build up a

network with individual consumers and to continuously strengthen the network for

mutual benefit of both sides, through interactive, individualized and value-added

contacts over a period of time”.

The core theme of all CRM and relationship marketing perspectives is its focus on co-

operative and collaborative relationships between the firm and its customers, and/or other

marketing actors.

CRM is based on the premise that, by having a better understanding of the customers’

needs and desires we can keep them longer and sell more to them.

An important facet of CRM is “customer selectivity”. As several research studies have

shown not all customers are equally profitable (Infact in some cases 80% of the sales

come through 20% of the customers). The company must therefore be selective and

tailor its program and marketing efforts by segmenting and selecting appropriate

customers for individual marketing programs. In some cases, it could even lead to “

outsourcing of some customers” so that a company better utilize its resources on those

customers it can serve better and create mutual value. However, the objective of a

company is not to really prune its customer base but to identify appropriate customer

programs and methods that would be profitable and create value for the firm and the

customer. Hence, CRM is defined as:

Customer Relationship management is a comprehensive strategy and process of

acquiring, retaining and partnering with selective customers to create superior value

for the company and the customer.

As is implicit in the above definition, the purpose of CRM is to improve marketing

productivity. Marketing productivity is achieved by increasing marketing efficiency and

by enhancing marketing effectiveness. In CRM, marketing efficiency is achieved

because cooperative and collaborative processes help in reducing transaction costs and

overall development costs for

the company. Two important processes for CRM include proactive customer business

development and building partnering relationship with most important customers.

These lead to superior value creation.

The basic concept is that the customer is not someone outside the organization, he is a

part of the organization.

Key CRM principles

Differentiate Customers: All customers are not equal; recognize and reward best

customers disproportionately. Understanding each customer becomes particularly

important. And the same customers’ reaction to a cellular company operator may be quite

different as compared to a car dealer. Besides for the same product or the service not all

customers can be treated alike and CRM needs to differentiate between a high value

customer and a low value customer.

What CRM needs to understand while differentiating customers is?

- Sensitivities, Tastes, Preferences and Personalities

- Lifestyle and age

- Culture Background and education

- Physical and psychological characteristics

Differentiating Offerings

Low value customer requiring high value customer offerings

High

Low

Low HighCustomer Value

Low value customer with potential to become high value in near future

High value customer requiring high value service

High value customer requiring low value service

Keeping Existing Customers

Grading customers from very satisfied to very disappoint should help the organization in

improving its customer satisfaction levels and scores. As the satisfaction level for each

customer improve so shall the customer retention with the organization.

Maximizing Life time value

Exploit up-selling and cross-selling potential. By identifying life stage and life event

trigger points by customer, marketers can maximize share of purchase potential. Thus the

single adults shall require a new car stereo and as he grows into a married couple his

needs grow into appliances.

Increase Loyalty

Loyal customers are more profitable. Any company will like its mind share status to

improve from being a suspect to being an advocate.

Company has to invest in terms of its product and service offerings to its customers. It

has to innovate and meet the very needs of its clients/ customers so that they remain as

advocates on the loyalty curve. Referral sales invariably are low cost high margin sales.

(Fig 2. Categorizing Customers)

Low value customers whoRequire high levels of serviceMust either purchase the higher level of service or become our competitors low value/high cost customers

Low value customers whoRequire high levels of serviceMust either purchase the higher level of service or become our competitors low value/high cost customers

Service R

equ

iremen

t

High value customers who require a high level of service are maintained without expanding the costly offering to the entire customer population

High value customers who require a high level of service are maintained without expanding the costly offering to the entire customer population

Fig. 1 Customer value – Service Matrix

High

Low

*Focus On Short Term Profitability.Spend Minimum Energy To Meet Your Objectives.

#Don’t Pursue.Use Opportunity As It Comes.Short Term Acquisition Shouldn’t AffectLong Term Image.

*Very cautious decision needed. Re-examine business Plan & Strategy. Evaluate That Your Loss (i.e. Your competitor’s gain) Doesn’t become nightmare for you.

#Needs In-depth strategic review as acquisition alone and dissatisfaction later could be more harmful

Low High

Summarizing CRM activities:

The CRM cycle can be briefly described as follows:

1. Learning from customers and prospects, (having in depth knowledge of customer)

2. Creating value for customers and prospects

3. Creating loyalty

4. Acquiring new customers

5. Creating profits

1

Creating value for customers & prospects

2Creating loyal customers

3

Acquiring new customers

4

5

Creating Profits

Learning from customers & prospects

Fig.3CRM Activities

*You have No Choice But To Handle Them Very Carefully.Will Consume Energy

# Think Of Innovative Ways of Getting them On Your Side, But The ‘Cost Of

Strategic Im

portan

ce To Y

our B

usin

ess Plan

Relationship & Profitability Potential

*Existing Customers

*Cultivate Relationship.Spend Energy.Go Out Of Your Way.

#Think Of Strategies TO Move Them Away From Competition.Will Consume #Potential

Customers

Customer Relationship Life Cycle

CRM facilitates closed- loop customer interactions through all phases of the customer

relation life cycle including:

1. Customer Engagement

Marketing Planning and

Campaign Management

Telemarketing and Lead

Generation

Opportunity Management

Sales Activity and Contact

Management

Customer Segmentation,

Product, and Service Profiling

2. Business Transaction

Order Acquisition

Internet Pricing and

Configuration

E-Selling

Telesales

Field Sales

Profitability Analysis

One Step Buying and Selling

Collaborative Content

Management

3. Order Fulfillment

Complete Order Life Cycle

Process

Real-Time Availability Checks

Contract, Billing, and Financials

Management

Fulfillment Visibility and Order

Tracking

4. Customer Service

Interaction Center

Internet Customer Self-Service

Service Management

Claims Management

Field Service -- Mobile Service

Field Service -- Dispatch

Integration of Marketplace

Services

Customer Engagement

Marketing Planning and Campaign Management -- Enables complete

marketing campaigns, including content development, audience definition, market

segmentation, and communications

Telemarketing and Lead Generation -- Facilitates customer segmentation, lead

qualification, call list management, and monitoring of campaign progress by using

integrated analytical CRM functionality

Opportunity Management -- Provides sales tracking and sales forecasting; helps

plan sales approaches, identify key decision makers, and estimate potential-to-buy

and potential closing dates

Sales Activity and Contact Management -- Organizes daily workloads and

customer contact information for display in calendar application; provides links to

Business Intelligence reporting capabilities

Business Transaction

In the business transaction phase of the relationship life cycle Customer Relationship

Management supports the following key functional areas:

Order Acquisition -- Enables planning, organizing, and implementation of sales

strategy; monitors sales pipeline, sales portfolio, and sales budget; facilitates

coordination of budgets, forecasts, and reports on product and pricing trends

Internet Pricing and Configuration -- Delivers online systems that allow users

to configure products online and compare prices across different catalogs and

marketplaces; includes shopping basket functions

E-Selling -- Provides solution for selling products and services via the Internet;

covers all phases of sales cycle, including one-to-one marketing, catalog

browsing, search, order placement, payment, contract completion, and customer

support

Telesales -- Manages inbound and outbound calls; handles high call volumes;

provides efficient user interface; integrates sales information from back-office

systems and product information from online catalogs

Field Sales -- Delivers key customer and prospect information to sales personnel

at any place, at any time; facilitates planning and maintenance of sales activities,

such as appointments, visits, and calls, and provides activity reports; creates

quotations and takes orders; includes support for mobile and wireless devices

Order Fulfillment

In the order fulfillment phase of the relationship life cycle Customer Relationship

Management supports the following key functional areas:

Complete Order Life Cycle Process -- Provides the ability to track and trace

orders at all points along order management, manufacturing, distribution, and

service processes; proactively notifies customers of changes that affect delivery

Real-time Availability Checks -- Enables allocation of resources in real-time at

the front-end; includes real-time access to inventory levels, production capacity,

and lead-time requirements across the entire supply chain; enables visibility into

product and service delivery dates

Contract, Billing, and Financials Management -- Provides information about

customer contracts, billing status, and accounts; integrates back-office functions

Fulfillment Visibility and Order Tracking -- Enables real-time tracking of

order fulfillment; provides unique, customized and "guided" content for

customers; allows sharing of information with customers via the Internet

Customer Service

In the customer service phase of the relationship life cycle Customer Relationship

Management supports the following key functional areas:

Interaction Center -- Provides inbound and outbound call processing, e-mail

management, and activity management to track, monitor, and enhance all

customer contact; supports multiple channels for customer communication,

including telephony and Web; integrates industry-leading eFrontOffice call center

applications from Nortel Networks Clarify; provides certified interfaces to leading

computer telephony integration (CTI) solutions

Internet Customer Self-Service -- Offers customers and prospects access to

information and customer service functions via Internet; supports effective

customer self service; includes case-logic system featuring advanced decision

support for problem determination and resolution

Service Management -- Meets varied demands of service management business;

handles customer installations; facilitates simple and complex services; supports

services carried out at customer site or in-house repair center (depot); supports

involvement of external service providers; integrates contract management;

checks customer warranties when services are performed; calculates services

charges; integrates information from materials management, cost accounting,

billing, and accounts receivable; monitors day-to-day operations; helps decision

makers with strategic management issues

Claims Management -- Facilitates handling of entire claims process

Field Service - (Mobile Service) -- Delivers and tracks customer and account

information for field service personnel; provides service planning and forecasting,

scheduling, and dispatching functionality through tight integration with

fulfillment systems; includes support for mobile and wireless devices

Field Service - (Dispatch) -- Enables rapid allocation of service engineers and

materials to meet incoming service requests

Integration of Marketplace Services -- Provides access to a broad range of

applications and services hosted on virtual marketplace

Figure 4 Customer Life Cycle Management

Customer Retentionand referrals for new

customers

The Emergence of CRM Practice

The Past:

Looking back at a snapshot history of marketing, we can see the following clear

developments and progression over the last four decades:

1960’s – the era of Mass Marketing, when Gibbs SR toothpaste began the first

marketing of this kind with its black and white campaign.

1970’s – saw the beginning of segmentation, direct mail campaigns and early

telemarketing (such as publishing)

1980’s – where Niche marketing made millionaires of those who were best at it.

1990’s – Relationship Marketing. The explosion of telemarketing and call centers, all

set up to develop relationships with customers. The recognition of the true value of

retention and the use of Lifetime Value as a business case.

In addition to this, a number of key marketing concepts can also be used to see where

CRM has developed:

Satisfying Needs, Customer Orientation

The organization needs to be arranged so that all functions contribute

Order Fulfillment

Customer Service

Business Transaction

Customer Engagement

Profit must be the consequence of delighting customers (Kotler)

Developing customer relationship has historical antecedents going back into the pre

industrial era. Similarly artisans often developed customized produce for each customer.

Such direct interaction led to relational bonding between the producer and the consumer.

It was only after industrial era’s mass production society and the advent of the

middlemen that there were less frequent interactions between producers and the

consumers leading to transactions oriented marketing. The production and consumption

factions got separated leading to marketing functions being performed by the middle men

and middlemen are in general oriented towards the economic aspects of buying since the

largest cost is often the cost of goods sold.

In recent years however, several factors have contributed to the rapid development and

evolution of CRM. These include: -

1. The growing de-intermediation process in many industries due to the advent of

sophisticated computer and telecommunication technologies that allow producers to

directly interact with end-customers. For example, in many industries such as

airlines, banks insurance, software or household appliances and even consumables,

the de-intermediation process is fast changing the nature of marketing and

consequently making relationship marketing more popular. Databases and direct

marketing tools give them the means to individualize their marketing efforts.

2. Advances in information technology, networking and manufacturing technology have

helped companies to quickly match competition. As a result product quality and cost

are no longer significant competitive advantages.

3. The growth in service economy. Since services are typically produced and delivered

at the same institution, it minimizes the role of the middlemen.

4. Another force driving the adoption of CRM has been the total quality movement.

When companies embraced TQM it became necessary to involve customers and

suppliers in implementing the program at all levels of the value chain. This needed

close working relationships with the customers. Thus several companies such as

Motorola, IBM, and General Motors, Xerox, Ford, Toyota, etc formed partnering

relations with suppliers and customers to practice TQM. Other programs such as JIT

and MRP also made use of interdependent relationships between suppliers and

customers.

5. Customer expectations are changing almost on a daily basis. Newly Empowered

customers who choose how to communicate with the companies across various

available channels. Also nowadays consumers expect a high degree of

personalization.

6. Emerging real time, interactive channels including e-mail, ATMs and call centre that

must be synchronized with customer’s non-electronic activities. The speed of

business change, requiring flexibility and rapid adoption to technologies.

7. In the current era of hyper competition, marketers are forced to be more concerned with customer

retention and customer loyalty.

CRM Formation Process

In the formation process, three important decision areas relate to defining the purpose (or

objectives) of engaging in CRM, selecting parties (or customer partners) for appropriate

CRM programs and developing programs (or relational activity schemes) for relationship

engagement with the customer.

Planning Process

Planning Process

Purpose Increase

Effectiveness Improve Efficiency

Programs Account Management Retention Marketing Co-op Agreements

Role Specification

Team Structure

Process Alignment

Monitoring Process

Communication

Relationship Performance Strategic Financial Marketing

Retention Satisfaction Loyalty

Fig 5. CRM Process Framework

Partners Criteria Process

Employee Motivation

Employee Training

Evolution Enhancement Improvement

Business Objectives from CRM

The following are some of the strategic objectives offered by the Sales Applications in

the CRM suite:

Increased Revenue

Focus your sales force on increasing your company’s revenues through better Information

and better incentives to drive top line growth.

Through a CRM integrated solution, sales reps can access and share account and contact

management information throughout the enterprise, facilitating team selling that will lead

to closing more deals, faster. It also allows sales reps to effectively target their selling

efforts to focus on high-value deals and meet revenue targets.

Improve Global Forecast and Pipeline Management

Improve information access, forecasting and pipeline management to improve your

organization's ability to close deals.

Field Sales Online provides up-to-the minute pipeline and forecasting information to an

account manager, sales manager, or territory manager. For an account, sales rep, or sales

group, a pipeline analysis is available real time by sales channel, sales status, and sales

stage. Field Sales Online's multi-currency consolidation of divisional forecasts provides

sales executives with a higher, global visibility of their company revenue forecast.

Sales reps can review and monitor the health of their sales pipeline through graphical

views. Sales reps can easily manage and view any combination of won, forecasted,

upside or lost pipeline opportunities by depicting their sales information through this

fully interactive interface. Sales reps can also define a forecasting window on a "rolling"

schedule for any number of pre-defined periods. This gives your sales organization the

flexibility to project forecasts for multiple periods, freeze forecasting periods, and retain

historical information for trend and win/loss analysis. Sales reps can also generate sales

forecasts in units as well as currency.

Improve Win Probability

Improve the focus of your sales efforts with better information to close deals.

Global -line view of their entire sales pipeline-across business units and products. With

this view, sales organizations can better qualify leads and assign organizations have a top

their top sales reps to the top accounts that have the highest win probability. Sales reps

also have access to competitive information collected from deals lost through pipeline

management features, thus increasing the chances for a successful sale. Through mobile

functionality, sales reps have the ability to download complete territory information to

their laptops for better account management while on the road. Account, contact, activity,

and opportunity information can be accessed and updated throughout the sales cycle,

completely disconnected from the corporate network. Next time the sales rep connects to

the network, the information is uploaded and is available throughout the organization.

Reduce Cost of Sales

New technologies can lower the cost of deploying sales automation solutions and at the

same time improve the effectiveness of your sales efforts.

Field Sales Online reduces implementation time as well as promotes sustained use of the

application by the sales force, reducing the cost of deploying sales automation solutions

within your organization. Field Sales Online's Web architecture enables global

deployment and upgrade to remote users as well as easy customization. Dynamic menus

and tabs facilitate navigation and eliminate the need for user training. Users can access

summary information for their customers, opportunities, and compensation by a single

click of the mouse, export the information to their preferred spreadsheet or drill-down to

the lowest level of detail. This reduces costs and extends the mobility of sales one step

further with the introduction of application support for mobile hand-held devices.

Increase Sales Rep Productivity.

Reduce the steps involved in tracking and quoting customer data with integration of sales

capabilities across your enterprise.

Field Sales Online provides sales managers with an efficient tool to monitor sales force

performance. Opportunities and pipeline are tracked at each stage of the sales funnel by

channel, sales group, sales rep, or partner sales rep. In addition, sales managers and

executives can identify their top and bottom performers. Managers can then analyze

background, training, and tools used by their top performers to replicate successful

profiles within the sales organization to maximize its efficiency and performance.

Promote Sales Representation Retention

Empower your sales force to proactively track and monitor their performance and

compensation levels to better incentive them to achieve goals and be successful within

their positions and for your company.

Sales applications enable sales reps to view their compensation summary, the breakdown

of their commission by deal, product line, and period, adjustments and transactions. In

addition, sales reps can "blind-rank" themselves at anytime to measure their performance

against a group of peers. Sales reps can forecast their future compensation and

commissions based on their current pipeline and focus their selling time on the most

valuable opportunities.

Effective tracking and reporting options provide verification to the sales force that they

are receiving appropriate compensation, so they can track their own performance.

Sales Compensation offers flexible reporting access, letting you define the information

users can access. For example, you can allow users to create reports for only their

commission and performance data, or sales managers to create reports related to the sales

people who are assigned to them within the salesperson hierarchy.

The objectives for Marketing Applications offered by a CRM suite are as follows

Closed- loop Marketing

Improve marketing management and programs with a comprehensive marketing system

that supports planning, campaign management, execution, Internet support and analysis.

Marketing Applications automates the entire marketing process from demand creation to

revenue recognition. Designed specifically for marketing professionals, the application

automatically collects campaign results and tracks campaign effectiveness across

different sales channels, by market segments, and even individual customer results. This

level of detail enables marketers to reduce costs while increasing the effectiveness of

their marketing efforts.

Better Information for Better Management

Implement highly focused, targeted campaigns with better returns on your marketing

investments.

Marketing applications are tightly integrated with the other applications of the CRM suite

as well as the ERP applications. This integration enables marketers to tap into the wealth

of data collected through every customer "touch" with their company whether through

field sales, a call center, or the Web. Without a dependence on simple demographics,

marketers will be able to profile customers based on any number of criteria including

sales cycle, payment preference, and purchase frequency, to tailor messages and

campaigns with better accuracy for highly focused, individualized marketing campaigns.

Expand Marketing Channels Through

Utilize the power of the Internet to increase your marketing reach and effectiveness. In

addition to supporting traditional marketing and demand creation channels such as direct

mail and tele-business, many vendors are enhancing the integrated closed-loop marketing

application through relationships with several strategic third-party vendors.

The combination of these applications will expand the automation of the marketing

planning and execution process over multiple deployment channels and sales models,

specifically through the Web. By leveraging the Web as a channel, Marketing

applications will help companies capitalize on this rapidly expanding opportunity to reach

a larger audience with their marketing campaigns.

The objectives for Service Applications offered by a CRM suite are as follows

Service Increases Profitability

Create a profit center out of your service organization using operational and customer

information to reduce costs and generate more revenues.

Service application enables organizations to reduce costs by providing a comprehensive

closed loop support and service information management system. Its comprehensive

resource management capabilities enable organizations route the calls to the right agent to

reduce call resolution time. Its enterprise wide customer management ability enables you

to reduce billing time with built-in integration between contracts, warranties, resource

usage and the billing system. Further, with interfaces to customer care, organizations can

track total customer contact history to increase customer knowledge and reduce

redundancies and resolution time. Fast parts rotation enables reduced inventory levels and

therefore, reduced costs.

Service Improves Service Delivery

Create an efficient and effective service business using integrated enterprise-wide

information available in other Front Office and ERP applications.

Many of the features that increase profitability also streamline and improve

organization’s service delivery. Service Applications provides complete support for the

aftermarket service cycle enabling companies to improve response times by sending the

right engineer to a field service call, or improve customer service by routing a support

call to the agent trained in supporting a particular product. The Customer Care features of

Service Applications also provide the customer management information to allow agents

to respond to a variety of customer inquiries during one call without transferring the

customer from person to person.

Service Helps organizations to Delight Customers

Provide enhanced customer care, service and customer information management across

your organization to improve customer satisfaction and loyalty.

With an end-to-end Customer Care and Service Solution, Organizations can achieve a full

360-degree view of their customer. This translates into better response to customer's

needs; an ability to extend proactive customer management programs as well as have the

information at your disposal to better understand the customer. Service applications also

track all product defect information, which enables organizations to proactively manage

customer issues, so that they are well informed and can also accurately inform customers

of service issues. The built-in self-learning knowledge base enables companies to

leverage employee knowledge and achieve skills transfer, increasing employee retention

and reducing customer churn. Additionally, Service Applications enables organization’s

customers to communicate with the company though many different venues, web, call

centers, and directly with Field Representatives, offering customers flexibility in

interacting with the company. This integrated customer contact capability ensures that the

organization’s customers receive consistent service and information, thus reduce his need

to turn to one of the competitors for new products or services.

Service Helps organizations Differentiate their Product

Distinguish business by offering service as a differentiator using multiple channel

communications with customers, full enterprise wide view of customer information.

As products become commoditized, the next purchase decision customers make is

increasingly based on either the quality of service or the perceived care they receive from

the company. Service Applications by enabling both improved product service, and

customer care, help organization’s provide their customers with a positive experience in

dealing with the company, maximizing the likelihood of additional product purchases.

Service Applications Grows Company’s "Share of Customer Wallet"

Service Applications help to leverage expanded business opportunities extending beyond

company’s service needs, as well as tailoring the service offering to specifically address

any customer’s needs.

Service Applications provides companies to turn support service into a high return profit

center. Service enables the company to attract new service market opportunities by

servicing third party products with its ability to track competitive products and service

repair information. The Companies can also anticipate their customer needs and

proactively build and sell new support and service offerings. Further, they can tailor

Service Contracts individually, by customer, by product or by business, enabling new

revenue streams with customized service. Additionally, they can also maximize the

logistics and costs within their expanding service business with integrated sales and spare

parts forecasting.

CRM Programs

A careful review of literature and observation of corporate practices suggest that there are

three types of CRM programs: continuity marketing; one-to-one marketing; and,

partnering programs.

These take different forms depending on whether they are meant for end-consumers,

distributor consumers, or business-to-business customers.

Table 1 presents various types of CRM programs developed for different types of customers.

Customer TypesProgram Types

Mass Markets Distri-butors

Business to BusinessMarkets

Continuity Marketing

After-

Marketing

Loyalty

Programs

Cross-Selling

Continuous

Replenishment

ECR Programs

Special

Sourcing

Arrangements

One-to-One

Marketing

Permission

Marketing

Personalization

Customer Business

Development

Key Account

Global

Account

Partnering/

Company-

Marketing

Affinity

Partnering

Co-Branding

Logistics

Partnering

Joint Marketing

Strategic

Partnership

Co-Design

Co-

Development

Table 1 CRM Programs

Continuity Marketing Programs

Take the shape of membership and loyalty card programs where customers are often

rewarded for their member and loyalty relationships with the marketers. The basic

premise of continuity marketing programs is to retain customers and increase loyalty

through long-term special services that has a potential to increase mutual value through

learning about each other.

One-to-one Marketing

Meeting and satisfying each customer’s need uniquely and individually. In the mass

markets individualized information on customers is now possible at low costs due to the

rapid development in the information technology and due to availability of scalable data

warehouses and data mining products. By using online information and databases on

individual customer interactions, marketers aim to fulfill the unique needs of each mass-

market customer. Information on individual customers is utilized to develop frequency

marketing, interactive marketing, and after marketing programs in order to develop

relationship with high-yielding customers. In the context of business-to-business markets,

individual marketing has been in place of quite sometime. Known as Key Account

Management Program, here marketers appoint customer teams to husband the company

resources according to individual customer needs.

Partnering Programs

The third type of CRM programs is partnering relationships between customer and

marketers to serve end user needs. In the mass markets, two types of partnering programs

are most common: co-branding and affinity partnering.

CRM and Related Concepts

Knowledge Management (KM) with focus on CRM

As Peter Drucker defined “Information is data endowed with relevance and

purpose”.

To effectively implement a CRM solution it is very important to identify real knowledge

about different types of customers (Viz. Most valued customers, Most grow able

customers, below zero customers) from plethora of internal and external data, figures,

surveys, etc. A straightway technique is to create a data warehouse, thereafter information

which is required to effectively implement principles of CRM, could be mined out of this

data warehouse.

Marketing, sales after-sales people would be knowledge workers. Front office could be

more productive if they could utilize customer knowledge. Knowledge Management

(KM) is about embracing a diversity of knowledge resources, like legacy systems,

existing data warehouses, portals, websites, customers, suppliers, partners, external

marketing research agencies and cultivating the knowledge where it resides.

Metrics, ROI, Balance Scorecard method, benchmarking are some of the common

technique of KM system evaluation. KM implementation is the key to CRM.

It’s a proven fact that 80% of organization revenues come form 20% of its customers, it

becomes imperative to design CRM solutions keeping in mind these most valuable

customers and to leverage 80% non structured data of about 20% of these most valuable

customers.

Just as more tangible corporate assets like computer systems have a finite shell life, so

too does knowledge, it must be available at the right time to be able to act upon it.

Retaining tacit knowledge (derived from experiences, data and documents) means

retaining the individual, which is invariably not possible. It is possible to generate explicit

knowledge from tacit knowledge, but it’s a complex exercise.

The key ingredient of this exchange is face-to-face sharing of knowledge or virtual

environmental tools like Lotus Notes, which can facilitate tacit knowledge exchange.

Hence for tacit knowledge exchange text mining is very useful and important. There are

ways to do text mining, like search engines, web solutions, text analysis tools, etc. The

key to successful customer KM is personalization, i.e. how to extract the knowledge that

is pertinent to the user and translate it into a format that is easily understood. The choice

of Customer Knowledge Management (CKM) architecture should have a layered

approach. Existing systems should be seamlessly linked with the proposed layer. The

choice for CKM system could be Web (Enterprise information portal) or a packaged

solution such as Lotus Notes, Microsoft solution.

ERP and CRM

Like ERP, CRM solutions focus on automating and improving business processes, albeit

in front-office areas such as marketing, sales, customer service, and customer support.

Whereas ERP implementation can result in improved organizational efficiency, CRM

aims to provide organizational effectiveness by reducing sales cycle and selling cost,

identifying markets and channels for expansion, and improving customer value,

satisfaction, profitability, and retention. While CRM applications provide the framework

for embodying, promoting and executing best practices in customer facing activities, ERP

provides the backbone, resources and operational applications to make organizations

more efficient in achieving these goals.

Technological Tools for CRM

Tools

Customer database

A good customer information system should consist of a regular flow of information,

systematic collection of information that is properly evaluated and compared against

different points in time, and it has sufficient depth to understand the customer and

accurately anticipate their behavioral patterns in future. The customer database helps the

company to plan, implement, and monitor customer contact. Customer relationships are

increasingly sustained by information systems. Companies are increasingly adding data

from a variety of sources to their databases. Customer data strategy should focus on

processes to manage customer acquisition, retention, and development.

Call Center helps in automating the operations of inbound and outbound calls generated

between company and its customer. These solutions integrate the voice switch of

automated telephone systems (e.g. EPABX) with an agent host software allowing for

automating call routing to agents, auto display of relevant customer data, predictive

dialing, self service Interactive Voice Response systems, etc. These systems are useful in

high volume segments like banking, telecom and hospitality. Today, more innovative

channels of interacting with customers are emerging as a result of new technology, such as

global telephone based calls centers and the Internet. Companies are now focusing to offer

solutions that leverage the Internet in building comprehensive CRM systems allowing

them to handle customer interactions in all forms.

Systems Integration

While CRM solutions are front office automation solutions, ERP is back office automation

solution. An ERP helps in automating business functions of production, finance, inventory,

order fulfillment and human resource giving an integrated view of business, where as CRM

automates the relationship with customer covering contact and opportunity management,

marketing and product knowledge, sales force management, sales forecasting, customer

order processing and fulfillment, delivery, installation, pre-sale and post-sale services and

complaint handling by providing an integrated view of the customer.

It is necessary that the two systems integrate with each other and complement information

as well as business workflow. Therefore, CRM and ERP are complementary. This

integration of CRM with ERP helps companies to provide faster customer service through

an enabled network, which can direct all customer queries and issues through appropriate

channels to the right place for speedy resolution. This will help the company in tracking

and correcting the product problems reported by customers by feeding this information into

the R&D operations via ERP.

Fig 7: CRM – A FRAMEWORK

Data Mining for CRM: Some Relevant issues

Data mining is an important enabler for CRM. Advances in data storage and processing

technologies have made it possible today to store very large amounts of data in what are

called data warehouses and then use data mining tools to extract relevant information.

Data mining helps in the process of understanding a customer by providing the necessary

information and facilitates informed decision-making.

Operational CRM solutions involve integration of business processes involving customer

touch points. Collaborative CRM involves the facilitation of collaborative services (such

as e-mail) to facilitate interactions between customer and employees. All this effort

produces rich data that feeds the Analytical CRM technologies.

Traditional Approach to CRM

Customer Contact by Telephone Mail In Person

Personal Selling After Sales Service Complaint Handling Account Management Customer care Customer Satisfaction

Web-Enabled & Integration Approach

Customer InformationSystem

Customer Database Electronic Point of Sale Sales Force Automation Automation of Customer

Support Call Centers Systems Integration Lifetime value of a Customer

Integration with

technology

(Web & Internet)

Information Requirements Of An Effective CRM Solution

The employees of a firm employing CRM would require rich information about their firm

and customer base including:

Information about the market

Information about the firm

The current segment

Demographic Distribution (by age, sex, education, income, marital status, etc)

The firm’s best customers and the segment they belong to, products they buy,

preferences, habits and tastes of each segment.

Individual level information consisting of:

Customer personal details such as name, address, family details, education, etc

The customer group /segment to which the individual belongs

History of present and past behavior

Likes, dislikes, habits and preferences

Events coming up in their personal life etc.

The existing CRM Solutions

Operational CRM Collaborative CRMAnalytical CRM

Customer

Fig.8 Interactions between CRM Technologies

Delivering the ‘360 view’ requires automation to bring together all the data concerning a

customer. This implies the organisation has to change from:

Mass Marketing Product Focus

Product Focus Customer Focus

Economies of Scale Economies of time

One way communication Interactive

Response Time Real Time

Present CRM Alternatives

Present CRM solutions are offered by host of vendors that are to a great extent not

industry specific. While there are some vendors, who have come up with industry specific

solutions, the broad model around which the CRM solutions are built remain the same.

Adopting a similar or a look a like solution across industries is what causes major strain

in servicing a customer.

Typical offerings of the current CRM solutions (such as Siebel, Oracle Apps or

MySap.com, etc) vary from solution to solution. However typical CRM offerings consist

of:

Customer Development Field sales, Tele sales, Internet Sales

Service Centre Call Centres, Field Service

Sale management and support Internet Customer Service

Market Analysis Service Interaction Centre

Internet, Tele marketing Business Partner Collaboration

Product and brand management

eCRM

What is eCRM?

In simplest terms eCRM provides companies with means to conduct interactive,

personalized and relevant communications with customer across both electronic and

traditional channels. It utilizes a complete view of the customer to make decisions about

messaging, offers and channel delivery. It synchronises communication across otherwise

disjoint-customer facing systems. It adheres to permission-based practices, respecting

individual’s preferences regarding how and whether they wish to communicate with you

and it focuses on understanding how the economics of customer relationship affect the

business.

eCRM Vs CRM

CRM is essentially a business strategy for acquiring and maintaining the “right”

customers over the long term. Within this framework, a number of channels exist for

interacting with customers. One of these channels is “electronic” – and has been labeled

“e-commerce” or “e-business”. This electronic channel does not replace the sales force,

the call Centre, or even the fax. It is simply another extension, albeit a powerful new one,

to the customer. The thrust of eCRM is not what the organisation is “doing on the web”

but how fully the organisation ties its on-line channel back to its traditional channels, or

customer touch points.

Why employ eCRM?

Companies need to take firm initiatives on the eCRM frontier to

Optimize the value of interactive relationship

Enable the business to extend its personalized reach

Company-ordinate marketing activities across all customer channels.

Leverage customer information for more effective emarketing and ebusiness

Focus the business on improving customer relationship and earning a greater share

of each customer’s business through consistent measurement, assessment and

“actionable” customer strategies.

The six “E’s” of eCRM

1. Electronic channels

2. Enterprise

3. Empowerment

4. Economics

5. Evaluation

6. External Information

eCRM Architecture

The primary inputs to this module are mainly from the eCRM Assessment and strategy

alignment modules. During this stage the company will try and develop a Connected

Enterprise Architecture (CEA) within the context of the company’s own CRM strategy.

The following is a set of technical eCRM capabilities and applications that collectively

and ideally comprise a full eCRM solution:

Customer Analytical Software

Data mining software

Campaign Management software

Business Simulation

A real time decision engine

Categories of CRM solutions

Any enterprise, which wants to implement CRM solutions can choose from four

categories of solutions

Integrated applications suite

Interfaced applications bundle

Interfaced best of breed solutions

Best of cluster

Selecting an interfaced best of breed approach for pure functionality or a front office

application suite solely for integration limits enterprise choices. Enterprises need to start

with a clear picture of the basic truths of integration, interfacing and functionality. An

integrated application suite is a set of application that employs a common architecture,

referencing a common logical database with a single schema. Some suites are more often

interfaced application bundle i.e. a set of interfaced application from a single vendor

containing more than one technical architecture or more than one logical database-

frequently assembled by the vendor through the process of acquisition or partnership

An alternative approach to suites is an interfaced best of breed solution – an approach

whereby an enterprise selects from multiple vendors a set of applications that must be

interfaced to work together, either by the enterprise, one of the selected vendors or a third

party integrator. The individual applications are not the best in any objective sense.

Rather, some enterprises select the applications because they best meet the particular

needs. The challenge of this approach is that, in some cases, the enterprise fails to

complete the necessary interfaces to get the individual applications working together;

consequently, the applications remain stovepipes. Best of cluster is similar to best of

breed except that here best is chosen from the cluster and they are interfaced.

Key requirements for CRM solutions

Some of the functional and technical requirements for CRM solutions are as listed below:

Business intelligence and analytical capabilities

Unified channels of customer interactions

Support for web based functionality

Centralized repository for customer information

Integrated work flow

Integration with ERP applications

Functional Components of CRM solution

CRM applications are a convergence of functional components, advanced technologies

and channels. Functional components and channels are described below:

Sales applications

Common applications include calendar and scheduling, contact and account management;

compensation; opportunity and pipeline management; sales forecasting; proposal

generation and management; pricing; territory assignment and management; and expense

reporting.

Marketing applications

These include web based and traditional marketing campaign planning, execution, and

analysis; list generation and management; budgeting and forecasting; collateral

generation and marketing materials management.

Customer service and support applications.

These include customer care; incident, defect and order tracking; field service; problem

and solution database; repair scheduling and dispatching; service agreements and

contracts; and service request management.

Organising for CRM

Assessing Need

How do you know your business requires CRM?

It is very easy for a business to get caught in the latest ‘customer trap’ when it is being

driven by the information technology (IT) market. Every business does require CRM; the

question is to what level?

Trends

Many businesses are pushed by the current trend to change their business strategy,

especially around CRM. There are basically three trends that effect a business:

Consumer

The customer is an ever-changing image, to be really successful with CRM you must

recognize the customer trends that are effecting the business.

If a business does not understand a customer profile and the changes that have occurred

then it is not possible to provide true customer relationship management.

Products

It is the business providing the products that meet the changing customer trends. Products

need to be reviewed constantly perhaps enhanced or even removed. Supermarkets are a

perfect profile to look at for viewing ‘product trends’, they constantly add and remove

products and they constantly view customer buying profiles and set out the pattern of the

store to meet the strongest buying trend. This may not always be by using the latest

‘technology’, it could be by just reviewing shells at the end of the day, but the super

market is at the minimum watching for the two basic trends in CRM.

Technology

Ensure that the business is ready to install the new technologies, is the customer data upto

it, or is it time to start again? Do you need to review every technology being used or just

one area. Will it assist the business, is it going to grow with the business requirements or

is the technology just another ‘trend’? Relationship management should not be an

alternative to existing functions/technology; it could be a logical extension to enhance

those in existence, though it could radically change some of the operational processes.

Does CRM really matter?

Whatever the business activity is all companies have to ask themselves is CRM the real

factor for their company to succeed. Some customers do not need long-term relationship

with their suppliers; therefore only minimal information is required from that customer.

That however is still a form of CRM. Other companies have high quality and high value

customers that they need to know information about, they need to provide exceptional

service, the ‘pedigree’ of CRM.

Whatever the business is, if it has customer it has to ask, does customer relationship

management matter? What does it man to them in business terms? At what cost? What is

the overall loss if not adhered to?

CRM: Yes it does really matter – the strategy needs to last, be constantly reviewed

and can evolve over time.

Financial Framework for CRM

There are organisational constraints encountered in execution of CRM programs. Mainly

they are as follows:

A mismatch between resource allocated and service levels desired for building

customer relationship

Absence of financial business case and ROI for investments in Customer Relationship

Horizontal non alignment of organisations to customers line of sight

Balance to be achieved between maximisation of revenue and customer satisfaction.

Direct selling machinery would have costs that are significantly higher than referral sale –

hence the need to invest in customer relationship with an eye on acceleration of referrals

so as to bring down costs or increase productivity of sales. (higher cold call to order ratio)

Figure 1 illustrates the phenomenon that organisations can drive referral sale line in a

manner that can reduce time T1 and with that in figure 1(a) the overall unit selling cost

(average of direct sales cost + referral sale cost) can be reduced with higher sales

productivity.

%of overallsale

100%

50%

Referral Sale

Direct Sale

TimeT1

UnitSelling cost

100%

TimeT1

Composite Costs

Fig. 1. ‘Torpedo Graph’ Fig. 1. (a) Sale Cost Line

Figure 2 illustrates that with a given investment in direct sale channel the productivity

can at best be only slightly increasing line, while a referral line will be an exponentially

increasing trend line with growing subscriber numbers. This creates a multiplier effect

that quickly overtakes the direct sale numbers. Organisation dependency on direct sale

can gradually be reduced since they stand to account for reduced numbers in the overall

sums.

Organisational measure of referral propensity can be taken through customer feedback on

their willingness to recommend the product to their friend and acquitances.

referrals.

SaleUnitNo.

Direct sale

Referral Sale

TimeT1

Figure 2

CRM in select Services

1) Taj Air Caterers & Singapore Airlines

Taj actively participates in product designs and influences service design, wherever

necessary. This has evolved after getting an insight into Singapore Airlines’ customer

profile and their needs. The product is designed to reflect their passengers’ preferences,

which are quite different in Delhi and Mumbai, and on different sectors ex-Mumbai. TAJ

Chefs conduct an annual workshop on Indian Cuisine for Singapore Airlines’ caterers

worldwide. Taj staff gets trained at Singapore Airlines’ catering subsidiary, SATS. Taj

Ctareres share a lot of information and can access technology issues with Singapore

Airlines.

2) Taj Air Caterers & GE Capital Services

There is e-mail connectivity between the service provider i.e. Taj and GE (for

canteen and food supply). Taj customer relations responds within a stipulated time frame

directly to GE employees and analyses their satisfaction. Also on cards is a ‘fitness

program’ where taj’s experts will share information of food nutrition, exercise, etc with GE

staff. Similarly, a loyalty program is being designed where in for purchases snacks and

confectionery, GE employees can obtain attractive discounts at Taj outlets/hotels. With

another company Taj is involved in cafeteria design and selection of equipment.

3) Titan Watch Repair Services

What did Titan Do?

The Titan Signet CRM initiative was undertaken in May 1995 to provide that “extra” touch

to its special customers at the exclusive World of Titan stores.

Its mission was to create a sense of belonging of the customer to the store and vice versa

by: Building a special relationship with high life time value Titan customers

Recognizing and rewarding his/her loyalty to Titan

Providing a platform for direct feedback from these valued customers to the

company

Where?

It initially started in 6 showrooms in Bangalore. Today the titan Signet has been extended

to 102 World of Titan showrooms across 59 cities all over India

Behind The Scenes

While the program has taken customer bonding one step further in Titan, there are many

behind-the-scene activities that ensure that the program is run efficiently, effectively and

with the level of enthusiastic participation. These are :

Showroom Personnel are trained not only in the preparation of the program at the

showroom but also in the finer details of CRM.

Enrolments in the program are tracked on a monthly basis for each showroom,

along with data on purchases made by Signet members who have returned to the

showroom to buy again.

Signet operations form a part of the quarterly appraisal for their showrooms, there

by ensuring that they earn more marks on their efficient and effective performance.

A grievance redressal system is in place to ensure that out valued customers are

responded to within stipulated time frame.

Case Example: Air India

World’s largest DIRECT MARKETING ASSOCIATION recognizes AIR INDIA as first

airline to use a unique database-driven CRM approach that set new sales and profit

records in the air travel market.

 

On June 5, 2002; at world headquarters in New York, Charles A. Prescott, Vice President

of International Development for the United States-based Direct Marketing Association,

approved the addition of Air India’s database-driven Direct Marketing program to

DMA’s Web site. Entitled  “Test of Advanced CRM Approach in India sets new sales

records for an Airline” it instantly became one of the most visited parts of the DMA Web

site.

Why?  Because Air India created an intensely personal dialogue with each individual

customer in a way no airline ever had in the past. Personal dialogues which created

relationships, which produced record gains in Share of Customer, and overall Share of

Market as well as revenue and profits. When Abeer Chakravarty and his DM agency

colleagues tested Dick Shaver’s unique Database-Loading Research Process (developed

in the early 1990’s in the USA) for Indian Airlines in 1998, 58,000 customers answered

extremely detailed questions about themselves. Everything from their specific air travel

habits, business and personal travel wants and needs, services they expected to get from

an airline and services they “would like to receive” from an airline in addition to crucial

information about their air travel destinations, frequency and airlines flown as well as all

their personal demographics and psychographics. In short, everything airline marketers

worldwide had always wanted to know about their customers, but really never thought

possible to get.

Indian Airlines immediately computerized each customer’s detailed answers in order to

begin the Consumer Guided dialogues they had told customers about. Within days, every

responder received a personal letter based on what each different customer had told IA.

This new ability to write always-relevant, customer-specific letters rapidly expanded, in a

few months, to 22 different individualized letter versions.

Airline customers in India loved being treated as individuals in the late 1990’s and early

2,000’a just as much as pharmaceutical and telephone customers in the United States had

loved being treated that way in the early and mid-1990’s. Not only did Database-Loading

Research put them in total control of their personal information and hence their privacy…

it also insured they would never again be bothered by irrelevant contacts while, at the

same time, they would never miss out on any offers that fit their specific interests which

they really did want to know about.

 

 In each country and each different market… health care and long distance

communication in the States, air travel in India …  after their initial surprise at being

listened to and then responded to based on what each one of them had said, customer

satisfaction soared to historic highs. New highs in satisfaction that produced multi-year,

multi-billion dollar industry records in customer retention and acquisition for Marion

Merrell Dow and MCI in the USA and multi-year, multi-billion rupee gains for Indian

Airlines across it’s proportionately smaller market in India.

 

All of which reflects the simple fact that this new CRM approach, called Consumer

Guided Marketing, can produce unprecedented gains in any market and any country in

the world, because the gains it generates are rooted in human nature: due to Quantum

Leaps in customer trust and satisfaction. A new level of trust and satisfaction evidenced

in the tens of thousands of unsolicited letters from customers that essentially said, “I’ve

been filling out questionnaires for years, but nothing ever happened! But you actually

read what I said and then wrote me back based on what I told you. I love it!”

Case Study: Hospitality industry

The hotel industry is fast adopting the latest technologies in a big way, thanks to

increasing competition. Chitra Padmanabhan observes that technology acts as a key

differentiator to retain international clientele0

Badly bruised by the September 11 attacks and the ongoing slowdown, the hospitality

industry in India is increasingly taking the help of technology to not only cut costs but

also lure customers. Today, guests in most five star hotels can access the Internet through

their laptops at the poolside or in conference rooms, with equal ease, thanks to wireless

LAN (WLAN). Innovations like these that seem like technological marvels today will be

commonplace tomorrow, as almost all leading hospitality chains will provide wireless

connectivity.

Goingback

In days gone by it was said that in order to succeed, all a hotel needed was a scenic

location and good cuisine. But in today’s competitive environment, a mistake as trivial as

not taking down a customer’s order can prove disastrous. As the hospitality industry

started looking for ways to improve efficiencies, efforts and investments in the field of

information technology intensified. One of the first deployments of IT began at the front

desk when receptionists began checking the name of the customer and then allotted a

room to him. Big hotels also started putting in place accounting systems and back office

software to improve processes. As hotel chains started expanding their operations across

the country, it was necessary to monitor their assets. This gave rise to the need for a

Property Management System which enabled hospitality groups to track their assets

across different regions.

During the same period, hospitality chains also saw the need for a centralised system.

This phase saw different hotels of a chain being networked and connected to a central

server. The Taj Group of Hotels, for instance, has implemented a WAN called TajNet,

connecting the group’s 55 properties in India, Nepal and Sri Lanka. A centralised system

has tremendous benefits. One, there are greater economies of scale, especially when the

group wants to announce a special scheme for all its member hotels. Two, the group can

monitor the performance of each member hotel and summarise the sales performance of

the whole group.

Today, the IT initiatives of hotel chains in India have matured, and are being increasingly

fine-tuned to serve the needs of the customer. Says Pradeep Khetwal, systems manager,

Le Royal Meridien (Mumbai), “Most hospitality chains now realise that technology in the

hospitality industry is critical to improve the operational efficiency of a hotel. The

industry has moved from the traditional transaction-based processes such as check-in and

reservations to features that are built and designed specifically for the customer. Services

like providing wireless Internet access to guests will only increase in the future.”

CRM

While IT initiatives like centralised management and automating daily operations are

important, the key part of retaining a customer is critical to the hospitality industry, which

explains why every chain is taking the help of technology to improve efficiency. Take a

look at Le Royal Meridien. The hotel has deployed a check-in system on each floor

depending on the guest’s profile. This has solved the problem of long queues of

customers at the counter, waiting to fill in details of their preferences.

CRM is also being adopted in a big way by almost all the big hotel chains in India. At

present, every major hotel chain in India is investing in comprehensive systems that store

complete profiles of their customers. The moment a guest checks in, he fills a form

indicating his various preferences. If he is a regular client, the hotel immediately knows

of his preferences and serves him accordingly.

Says Prakash Shukla, senior vice president, technology, and CIO, Taj Group of Hotels,

“Every hotel has a major chunk of its revenue coming from its regular clientele. We too

recognise this and have deployed customer information systems (CIS) to service the

customer in a better way.” The same CIS can be accessed through any of the group’s

properties. A CIS enables the hotel to keep a record of the exact profile of the customer

and keep a tab on his preferences during his subsequent visits. CIS creates guest-centric

processes that are essential for CRM. And since it focuses on preferences, requests and

problems of different customers, it is a boon to the hotel management.

The same database is used to offer loyalty programmes to the customer. Most hotels

today offer a customer different schemes based on his profile. In the traditional method,

this was done manually with no clear understanding of a customer’s preferences. But

now, with knowledge of the customer’s history, a hotel can service a customer more

efficiently. Some hotels have even given their regular customers unique IDs to enable

them to check their loyalty points on the Web itself.

Says Zahid Memon, systems manager, J W Marriott Hotel (Mumbai), “Most hotels know

their customer preferences because relevant data can now be procured from the systems

as and when needed. Earlier, data management systems contained only static information,

which was used only to enhance efficiency of the hotel staff. But today, with the help of

analytical tools, we can provide consistent service quality. CRM and software tools for

front line staff have enhanced successful one-to-one relationships.”

In addition, most hotels have also embraced newer technologies with gusto. The Taj

group, for instance, extensively uses VoIP and video conferencing tools on its internal

network to cut communication costs.

Wireless-technologies

One of the best examples of the use of wireless technologies is the hotel industry. Major

hotels are betting on wireless services as a new lure for business travellers who rely on

high-speed Internet connectivity and wireless services to conduct day-to-day business.

“Initially, wireless technology in big hotels was traditionally confined to the guest room,

the business centre or conference rooms,” says Ashish Kale, systems manager,

Renaissance Mumbai Hotel and Convention Centre. But as this hampered mobility of a

business executive, hotels started looking at using wireless Internet services throughout

the hotel.

Adds Khetwal of Le Royal Meridien, “Wireless technologies deployed in selected areas

of the restaurant hampered mobility, and it was impossible to access the Net in any of the

restaurants and near the poolside.”

The Taj Group has already introduced wireless Internet access for its customers at Taj

Coromandel in Chennai, and is all set to launch this in Mumbai. Shukla puts forward a

very valid point: “As in any industry, one has to realise that though different technologies

are available, all of them are not beneficial to the end-customer. One has to realise that as

customers change their preferences and the way they want to interact, we too have to

change with them. Going forward, a hotel which understands a customer’s needs and

fulfils it satisfactorily with the help of technology would obviously be a preferred one.”

Another significant use of this technology is seen in wireless-equipped handheld phones

called digitally enhanced cordless phones, which serve the purpose of tracking a person

anywhere in the hotel premises. This phone is especially useful for mobile staff who can

attend to a complaint immediately.

Online-reservation-system

In the dot-com phase, hotels were attracted to the Web and were expecting major

revenues to come from online reservations. But just like other industries, hotels too have

been disappointed. Today, websites of most hotels serve only as information outlets, and

almost no bookings take place through the Web.

One obvious reason is security, which makes customers reluctant to reveal their credit

card details on the Web. Says Shailesh Bhagwat, EDP executive of Orchid, “Proper

security systems are a must to avoid fraud in non face-to-face transactions. Though most

hotel chains offer customers a secure way of transmitting data, it will be a long time

before customers accept this.”

The-way-forward

Wireless communications and mobile computing technologies are changing the way

hotels manage information. In addition to this, strategic decision making coupled with an

ability to access information, analysing it and distributing it would be the key to

increasing productivity and reducing costs. Going forward, hotel chains could increase

the number of value added services without major investments in IT budgets.

Conclusion

Software is to India what oil was to Gulf. It is therefore no surprise that the Indian

companies are jumping into the CRM bandwagon to seize a chunk of the global market,

both products as well as services.

With is vast talent pool; India is fast becoming an important development base of major

CRM companies. This trend is likely to increase in the future. Call centres, catering

primarily to the American and European markets are coming up in and around the metros.

With the easing of infrastructure constraints, India is likely to emerge as a significant

player in this segment.

Adoption of CRM by Indian companies is at an infancy stage. The CRM enabled

companies include Modi Xerox, Tata Telecom, TVS Electronics, HP India, Tata Infotech,

Carrier Refrigeration, Tata Teleservices, Satyam Infoway,Planet M, and

EpicenterTechnologies among many others.

India even has a CRM Foundation in New Delhi, founded with the purpose of assessing

and improving CRM practices. Founding members include Tata Telecom, Escotel, Modi

Xerox, Global Groupware, AC Nielsen, Carrierr Airrcon, and Motorola India, among

others.

.

RecommendationsCRM driven by the employees is most likely to succeed and hence CRM initiates should

ideally come from front line employees who are indirectly related to the customers. A

Customer-Centric Quality Circle could be formed in organizations to facilitate this.

Companies implementing CRM should keep in mind that CRM is not Database

Management but a whole new way of looking at the business.

CRM concept could be extended with the help of Bluetooth and JINI with CRM enabled

devices who recommend self repairs and undertake self maintenance with the help of

online technicians.

The advent of 3G mobiles and WLL could help the companies keep a track of their

customers and offer them not only customized products and solutions but also customized

information and customized advertising.

Finally instead of just launching products companies could well form customer groups who

will wok with the company to develop a new product and will be rewarded for the same.

Section II

The Hotel Industry :-

Hotels are amongst the most visible and important aspects of a country's infrastructure. Hotel industry is a closely linked one to the tourism industry. A number of factors like promotion of tourism and rapid industrial progress have given a boost to hoteliering. The recent liberalization of trade and opening up of economy will further lead to revolutionary growth in this sector. 

With increasing globalization, career opportunities in this field are not only limited within the country but there are chains of hotels which operate internationally providing scope of a career abroad. It is a glamorous profession which has a bright future. With the growth of hotel industry propelled by foreign and domestic tourism and business travel, the demand for well trained quality personnel too has grown impressively. 

The diversity of experience in hotel management is greater than in any other profession. Hotel industry involves combination of various skills like management, food and beverage service, housekeeping, front office operation, sales and marketing, accounting. Today, the rise in corporate activity (leading to greater number of business trips) as well as the wish to travel on holiday has made the hotel industry a very competitive one. 

Industry characteristics

SeasonalityThe premium segment of the hotel industry is largely dependent on foreign tourist

inflows. Tourist inflows, especially international leisure tourist inflows, are seasonal in

nature. Owing to the summer and monsoon seasons, tourist arrivals from April-

September are lower than from October-March (60 per cent of the annual arrivals).

However, business travel tends to be less seasonal. 

Business traveller: The business offered by this segment is less seasonal and travellers usually stay in premium segment hotels. This segment is highly dependent on the economic scenario of the country. 

Leisure traveller: The business offered by this segment is highly seasonal and tends to increase during the October-March period.

Airline crew: This segment provides an assured occupancy for hotels that have contracts

with airlines. Hotels offer this segment a discount of nearly 40-50 per cent. Hence, in

cities where the demand for rooms is increasing (resulting in ARRs moving up), one will

find a reduction in the airline crew.

A survey conducted by the Federation of Hotel and Restaurant Association of India

(FHRAI), in the 5-D and 5-star segments states that of the total reservation in 2003-04,

the maximum reservations came from business travellers while the least came from

airline crews.

 

Hotel concepts

1) EcotelAn ecotel is an exclusive group of inns, hotels, or resorts that define the concept of

environmental responsibility within the hospitality industry. All certified hotels have to

pass a multi-level inspection by Hospitality Valuation Services (HVS) International, the

international ecotel-accreditation agency. A hotel receives a five-globe certification only

after it meets the 5 criteria and fulfils the norms specified by the agency. The five criteria

are environmental commitment, solid waste management, energy efficiency, water

conservation, and employee environmental education and community involvement. Since

its establishment in 1994, over 1,100 hotels from over 30 countries have applied for the

ecotel certification. However, to date, less than 5 per cent have been certified. 

In Asia, The Orchid Hotel, Mumbai was the first to receive the ecotel award. The hotel

has been able to cut down operating expenses as a result of its eco-friendly practices.

Other ecotels in India include Hotel Rodas in Mumbai and The Uppal's Orchid in Delhi. 

2) Resorts

Resorts cater to the leisure needs of a tourist. Usually located at hill stations or seashores,

resorts can be further classified into hill resorts, health resorts, beach resorts, summer

resorts and winter resorts.  

Most resorts located at hill stations, have well defined off and peak season periods.

Hence, their revenue inflows keep fluctuating. 

Among business destinations, resorts are usually characterized by higher occupancy rates

during weekends, as compared with weekdays. (However, The Resort, Mumbai targets

companies hosting conferences, seminars and meetings. Hence, its occupancy levels are

generally higher during weekdays than on weekends.) 

3) Motels

In general, motels are located along highways connecting important cities. The significant

features distinguishing a motel from a hotel are

adequate parking facilities cottage style accommodation (provided by most motels) short duration of stay.

KTDC's Motel Aaram Kuttippuram, Motel Aaram Kayamkulam, Motel Aaram Kannur,

Motel Aaram Athirappally, Motel Aaram Erimayur Palakkad and Motel Aaram Palaruvi

are some of the motels in India.

4) Floatels

A floatel is a floating hotel or a boat operating as a hotel. Floatels are being planned in

Goa and West Bengal.

5) Boutique hotels

The typical boutique hotel has less than 100 guest rooms, limited service, one or no

boardroom, and food and beverage is generally outsourced. The emphasis in boutique

hotels is on selling guest rooms (where the profit margins are significantly higher than in

banquets and meetings) by enticing a guest with its high design and lower rates. In

general, boutique hotels are characterised by a high percentage of repeat clientele.

Reportedly, there are around 500 boutique hotels worldwide. Some of the international

boutique hotels include Melia-Comfort Boutique Hotels, Hotel Punta Islita, W hotels,

Zoo Hotels, Ian Schrager Hotels, Scotsman Hotels, Bvlgari Hotels, Myhotel, The

Kimpton Group, Joie de Vivre Hospitality, Orient-Express, Park Hyatt, Sofitel Demeure

Hotels and Amanresorts. In India, all the properties of The Park Hotel (Delhi, Kolkata,

Visakhapatnam and Bangalore) are boutique hotels. Some heritage hotels, like the palace

hotels in Rajasthan, are also boutique hotels.

6) Timesharing industry

The timeshare concept as an innovative way for increasing holiday choice took root in

Europe in the 1970s. Instead of booking a week or two at a resort every year, or

purchasing a holiday property outright, timeshare offers buyers the ability to buy rights of

occupancy in a property, typically in multiples of one week, for a set period. Once

consumers have purchased their holiday time, they can use it, pass it to friends or

relatives, or rent it out.   

The timeshare industry offers various purchase options, to meet consumers' demand for

vacation variety and flexibility.

The availability of these purchase options varies by resorts. Some of the purchase options

include

Fixed week: Timeshare units sold for use during a specific week of the year.

Floating week: This could be any week reserved for the timeshare owner during a certain

season of the year.

Vacation clubs: Instead of purchasing a timeshare in a certain size of unit at a particular

resort, vacation club members purchase the opportunity to use a variety of timeshare

accommodations at various resort locations, usually within one developer's chain of

resorts. Some of the clubs operate on a points system.

Indian Hotels Company Limited

Indian Hotels Company Ltd (IHCL) was incorporated in 1902 by Jamshedji Tata. It

became a public limited company in 1958. The Taj Group consists of 54 companies,

including hotel-operating companies, hotel licensing companies, associate companies and

investment companies. At present, IHCL is the largest hotel company in India, in terms of

both revenues and number of rooms. Through its subsidiaries, associates and

management contracts, the company operates 63 properties with 8,017 rooms in India and

abroad. Of these, IHCL owns 19 properties with 2,865 rooms.

IHCL has been structured into four strategic business units — Taj luxury hotels, Taj

business hotels (with Taj Residency brands), Taj leisure hotels (with Taj palace hotels,

Taj resort hotels, Taj garden retreats, Taj cultural centre hotels), and Taj corporate. The

company aims at expanding both in the domestic as well as international market through

an ‘asset light strategy'. This means that the company will extend coverage; however, the

investment in assets will be limited and in proportion to their strategic importance and

financial return.

 Number of hotels owned and managed 

Table 1  

  No of hotels No of roomsIHCL    Luxury hotels 7 2000Business hotels 4 298Leisure hotels 8 567Subsidiaries 4 652Associate/Joint venture 28 3207Management contracts 12 1293Total number 63 8017

Source: CRIS INFAC    

Operating performance     

Occupancy rate (per cent)Average room rate (Rs)

RevPARs (Rs)

2003-04 2004-05 2003-04 2004-05 2003-04 2004-05

71 76 4785 5946 3381 4494

Indian Hotels Corporation Ltd (IHCL) is the biggest player with a market share of over 17 per cent.

Industry characteristics

The premium segment of the hotel industry is largely dependent on foreign tourist

inflows. Tourist inflows, especially international leisure tourist inflows, are seasonal in

nature. Owing to the summer and monsoon seasons, tourist arrivals from April-

September are lower than from October-March (60 per cent of the annual arrivals).

However, business travel tends to be less seasonal. 

Business traveller: The business offered by this segment is less seasonal and travellers usually stay in premium segment hotels. This segment is highly dependent on the economic scenario of the country. 

Leisure traveller: The business offered by this segment is highly seasonal and tends to increase during the October-March period.

Airline crew: This segment provides an assured occupancy for hotels that have contracts

with airlines. Hotels offer this segment a discount of nearly 40-50 per cent. Hence, in

cities where the demand for rooms is increasing (resulting in ARRs moving up), one will

find a reduction in the airline crew.

A survey conducted by the Federation of Hotel and Restaurant Association of India

(FHRAI), in the 5-D and 5-star segments states that of the total reservation in 2003-04,

the maximum reservations came from business travellers while the least came from

airline crews.

 

Tourist arrivals

In August 2005, the average revPAR (premium segment) in the 10 cities rose by 18 per

cent, primarily driven by ARR.  

ARRs in the 10 cities increased by 18 per cent in August.

Segmentation of hotels

Various modes of classifying hotelsHotels can be classified on the basis of the size of the rooms and the types of amenities

offered. The Department of Tourism has classified hotels into 7 categories: heritage

hotels, 5-star deluxe (5-D), 5-star, 4-star, 3-star, 2-star, and 1-star. Heritage hotels include

old palaces and havelis, which have been converted into hotels. The Department of

Tourism also reclassifies hotels every 3 years and is responsible for the classification of

5-D, 5-star and 4-star hotels while the state governments are responsible for the

classification of 1-star, 2-star and 3-star hotels. Classified hotels are also entitled to

benefits such as interest subsidies, income tax benefits, imports, and easy availability of

telephone and LPG connections.

Classification by segment

Segment Location Category Target RatesPremium Around 50 per cent of

these hotels are concentrated in the four metros.

5-D, 5-star Foreign business and leisure travellers, senior business executives and top government officials. 

Highest ARRs due to highest levels of service quality.

Budget Located in major cities as well as small cities and tourist destinations

3-star, 4-star

Middle level business executives and leisure travelers

Offer few facilities and charge lower than the premium segment. 

Economy Located in major cities as well as small cities and tourist destinations

1-star, 2-star

Largely targeted at domestic tourists

Minimum facilities. Charges are lower than that of the budget segment. 

Heritage Heritage hotels comprise old palaces, havelis, castles, forts and residences, constructed prior to 1950, converted into hotels largely located in leisure tourist destinations

Heritage Grand, Heritage Classic

Foregin leisure travelersARRs are lower than that of hotels in the premium segment

India and the world market

The Indian hotel industry is relatively smaller when compared internationally. There are over 1,400 hotels comprising 77,000 rooms spread across the country. 3-5 star and 5 star deluxe hotels account for 65% of rooms. Out of this, 32% of rooms comprise of 5 star and 5 star deluxe hotels. 4 & 3 star hotels constitute the remaining. 60% of the 5 star hotels are situated in 2 major metros i.e. Mumbai and New Delhi.

Room supply in the 5 star segment has grown at a compounded annual growth of 5% over the past decade. While the 3 and 4 star categories have grown at 6% and 8% CAGR respectively during the same period.

The industry occupancies have hovered around the 55-60% mark for the last few years, with the exception of FY01 when average occupancies reached around 70%. During FY03, occupancies slumped to the lowest in the last five years at around 45-50%.

India's minuscule market share in total world travel and tourism demand — what's lacking

High taxes render the Indian market uncompetitive for overseas travellers: In India, the cost of travel and hotel facilities is high due to the high taxes levied on ATF (aviation turbine fuel), rooms, and F&B. These taxes account for a significant portion of the total travel cost and compare unfavourably with the lower taxes levied in competing destinations, discouraging tourists, especially leisure travellers.

Poor infrastructure: Accommodation infrastructure has witnessed the slowest growth. The availability of hotel rooms is still only a half of the number required to host even a modest target of 5 million visitors.

Non-affordable hotel rooms: Currently a 6-nights, 7-days package to India costs around 30 per cent more as compared to other countries in South and South-east Asia, while a premium segment hotel room is 25-30 per cent dearer.

Air connectivity, though better than in the past, not comparable to other countries: International airfare to India is higher than to Malaysia or Thailand since there are more scheduled carriers to these two countries and they also have a large movement of charter operations, which keeps competition levels high and air fares low. In addition, high landing charges, fuel taxes and high operational costs have resulted in high airfares in India.

Improper maintenance of monuments and other places of tourist interest: Increasing evidence shows that an integrated approach to tourism planning and management is now required to achieve the type of responsible tourism, which sustains the well being of the land, culture, environment and biodiversity of the place being visited.

Lack of awareness and information on India's tourism potential: Although the government is laying emphasis on promoting India as a tourist destination, it still needs to go a long way to compete with other countries.

Besides, high price of land, complex building by-laws and absence of single window clearance have been the major disincentives in this sector.

Career options

A hotel consists of main departments such as Operations, Front office, House keeping, Food and Beverages, Accounting, Engineering/ Maintenance, Sales and Security. Each department has a number of positions that one can opt for. 

General Operations

General manager who is the main in charge, is the coordinator and administrator, responsible for staff management, financial control, provision of services, quality control and customer care. Depending on the size of the hotel, general managers could have assistant managers to supplement their work.

Front Office

It is the centre of all activities. Important functions of receiving the guests, making room reservations, handling correspondence and preparing bills and keeping accounts of the guest services are handled at the front office. The department is headed by Front office manager or Executive House-keeper who supervises and co-ordinates the work. Then there are Assistant Manager, Lobby executive, front office supervisor, information assistant, receptionist, bell captain, bell boy, doorman etc. to perform their assigned roles.

House Keeping

The work of keeping the hotel, the rooms, the bars, the restaurants etc. clean and making it presentable to the guests and ensuring facilities and comfort to them is handled by this department. Those handling this department are Chief executive house keeper, floor supervisor, room attendants, linen supervisors, Maids etc.

Food and Beverages Department

This department is the hub of the hotel industry and is responsible for all the food that is prepared and served in the hotel. The main functions performed by the department are- presentation, preparation and service of food and beverages involving kitchen, bar and baker. Overall in charge of kitchen is known as Chef de Cuisine,the in charge of section is called Chef de Partis and the one who supervises and coordinates the work of Chef de partis is known as Sous-Chef. One who cooks food is known as Cook, the person in overall charge of dining hall is called Maitre de hotel, Captain in charge of part of dining hall is known as Chef de Range, one who serves food is Demi Chef de Range or Steward. Then there is the restaurant hostess who makes the guests comfortable and deal with any complaints by the guests. Those serving drinks are bartenders. 

Accounting Department

This department deals with both cash and credit transactions, i.e all the financial transactions like purchase of materials, offering of services to the guests etc. This department also compiles information required for budgeting, pricing of food and services and so on. Professionals like cash, cost and works accountants are given higher

positions in the department. Chief cashier, cash clerk/bill clerk are the positions handled in this department.

Sales & Marketing

This department keeps in touch with travel agents and tour operators as well as other potential corporate clients in order to sell hotel facilities. Advertising and Public Relations is also normally handled by this department.

Engineering / Maintenance Department

Qualified engineers are appointed for the maintenance of the building and various machines involved in the premises. They are  assisted by necessary staff in the electrical and mechanical departments. Mechanical Engineers, Electrical Engineer, Plumbers, carpenters etc are employed by this department.

Then there is the Security department which provides security to the guest and their belongings and employs security Officers/ guards for this purpose. Retires Army personnel are preferred by this department.

Taj Lands End, Mumbai

Nestling in Bandra, an elite suburb of Mumbai, in the heart of the emerging business district of Mumbai, Taj Lands End boasts the city’s finest restaurants, conferencing, banqueting, and business centre facilities. It’s unique location makes the Taj Lands End

an ideal choice for the traveler offering the best of both the worlds – business as well as pleasure.

Strategically located close to the Bandra-Kurla, Andheri and Worli business districts, this hotel provides the ultimate in modern facilities and convenience. The hotel is situated 12 kms from the international and 8 kms from the domestic airport.

Facilities & Services

Guests can look forward to distinctive service and quality amenities.

Hotel Business Services include:

BindingBroadband Wireless (Wi-

Fi)Internet accessMobile phones on hireMultimedia computers

Secretarial servicesTranslation /

interpretation servicesVideo-conferencing

facilitiesWebcast facilityWorkstations

Hotel Leisure and Other Services include:

Baby sitting

Meeting Rooms & Banquet Facilities include:

Extensive banqueting space spread over 55,000sq. Ft., including three private

rooms and an opulent, pillarless Ballroom. Meeting halls are connected by

spacious pre-function area perfect for exhibition booths, and more.

All rooms have inbuilt speakers, screens and broadband wireless (Wi-Fi) Internet access. Video conferencing and Webcast arrangements can be made on request.

Rooms are available for formal gatherings, international exhibitions and conventions, as well as cocktail parties and other celebrations. Poolside and

emerald lawns exude a refreshing informality with capacities for between 35-600 persons theatre style and up to 1200 persons for receptions. Covered

parking space for 550 cars.

Rooms and Suites

Spacious and sophisticated, all guestrooms at Taj Lands End offer luxurious style and comfort.

Also available is a special non-smoking floor and a Ladies floor, designed to meet the needs of the single lady traveler.

Taj Lands End's butler service is available to all guests staying in Luxury Rooms,

The Taj Club and Suites. The butlers offer each guest a highly personalised service. Solo lady travellers will be served by Lady butlers only.

Superior Sea-view RoomsAll rooms are elegantly appointed and offer a minibar, wireless internet connectivity, two-line speaker phone with international direct dial facility and voicemail, complimentary incoming fax, ironing board on request, hair dryer, mini-bar, large laptop size inroom-safe, daily newspaper, tea-coffee maker, 24-hour in-room dining and 24-hour laundry service.

The Taj ClubLocated on higher floors, and designed for today's business traveler. Guest amenities and services include complimentary airport transfers, private check-in and check-out at the Club desk, laptop size in-room personal safe, a complimentary bottle of wine, and round-the-clock, highly personalised Butler service. Taj Club guests can also enjoy complimentary deluxe continental breakfast, complimentary tea/coffee throughout the day, and evening cocktails at The Club Lounge. Taj Club also offers guests an exclusive Meeting Room on the Club Floor.

Deluxe RoomsWith a luxurious five-fixture bathroom with separate shower cubicle, a bathtub and all the above guest amenities. Non-smoking rooms available on request.

Luxury RoomsLuxuriously appointed, spacious rooms offering upgraded bath amenities, complimentary one-way airport transfer, highly personalised 24-hour butler service and all above guest amenities. Guests have a choice of rooms that overlook the Arabian Sea, pool or the City.

Executive SuitesSea-facing suites with panoramic views of the Arabian Sea. Each of these suites has a living room, and bedroom with attached dressing area. Suites overlook the pool, and offer panoramic views of the Arabian Sea. Guests in Executive Suites receive

round-the-clock, highly personalized butler services and all the guest amenities of a Luxury room.

Grand Luxury SuiteSea-facing suites with panoramic views of the Arabian Sea. Each of these suites has a separate living room, dining room, kitchenette and a master bedroom. Guests in Grand Luxury Suites receive round-the-clock, highly personalized butler service and all the guest amenities of the Taj Club.

The Presidential SuitesLocated on the 21st floor comprises of a stylish living room, dining room, a master bedroom, an office room, a kitchenette and a bathroom with a Jacuzzi. Aesthetic artifacts, an array of lighting effects and the sleek furniture gives a sense of space and luxury. The plush furnishings and furniture accentuate the contemporary ambience of the master bedroom. The Study room of the Presidential Suite functions as an ideal office space.

Recreation

Guest can take advantage of our recreation activities for irresistible fun and relaxation.

Fitness and Fun

24-hour Fitness Centre (separate sections for ladies and gentlemen)

Bookshop Jogging Track Swimming pool

Recreation outside the Hotel

Bowling Alley Chembur Golf Club

Golf – Royal Palm Golf Club Tennis – Bandra Gym khana

Theatre – Rang Sharda

Dining

From casual, all-day eateries to formal, fine dining, guests can look forward to a wide selection of delectable dishes and refreshing drinks.

At Taj Lands End, we offer a distinctive dining experience, one that explores the nuances of the finest Indian and international cuisines, serving traditional and contemporary favourites.

Atrium Lounge:This inviting lounge, the perfect venue for informal meetings, offers a variety of delicious cocktails, mocktails, and snacks.

Masala Bay:This contemporary Indian restaurant offers a selection of traditional Indian favourites in a modern and interactive environment.

Ming Yang:Guests can tantalize their taste buds with authentic Sichuan cuisine at this Chinese restaurant, offering panoramic views of the Arabian Sea.

Pure:India’s first international restaurant with a focus on organic ingredients, offers food that bursting with flavour, yet naturally balanced.

Vista:Scenic views of the sea perfectly complement the refreshing flavours of this trendy, all-day dining restaurant.

The Orchid - An Ecotel Hotel is Asia's first certified eco-friendly five-star hotel and world's only Ecotel to be certified as ISO 14001. This 245-room hotel is strategically located adjacent to the domestic airport making it a convenient place for the business traveler to stay.

Everything is designed so as to be unobtrusive. Like The Club Privé, an exclusive club floor with a private lounge and butler service. Or the well-appointed business and conference center to take care of your business needs.

Dining

The exclusivity of The Orchid is experienced as soon as one enters the atrium that is serenaded by a 70-foot indoor waterfall. Around the waterfall, on the first level is the Boulevard, the 24-hour coffee shop. Besides, The Boulevard provides a unique guaranteed time-bound service aptly called the "Lightening Menu" or the "10 Minute Menu". If the service is even a minute late, the meal is on the house!

Mostly Grills the lovely roof top barbecue restaurant serves modern fusion cuisine. The setting is a very surrealistic Mexican village with a pool by the side and the breathtaking view of the airport runway on the other.

Vindhyas, which many Mumbai gourmets consider the best Indian restaurant in town, is a unique concept showcasing the cuisine and culture of peninsular India. Here in a very ethnic temple setting you can experience the intriguing flavors of nine Indian peninsular states, the folk dance performances only go to serve as the perfect accompaniments. Abutting Vindhyas is Merlin's Bar. The name itself conjures images of magical concoctions that will help lift your spirits and unwind, and what's more Merlins is open till 3.00 am, giving you ample time to enjoy the magic. At the lobby is The Gourmet Shop, a deli and cake shop.

Facilities

'Rooms'The Orchid accommodations offer the finest in luxury and state-of-the-art technology, to make

your online reservation in an instant. Choose from 5 different types of rooms to suit your convenience and budget.

Deluxe Rooms/Suites Executive Rooms/Suites

Club Private Rooms/Suites Orchid Suites

Presidential Suites

'Additional Facilities'

Rooftop Swimming PoolA top-of-the-world feeling,overlooking the busy airport and the Mumbai skyline.

Fitness CentreEnjoy a brisk work-out at our state-of-the-art fitness centre.

Complimentary Airport transfers. A Travel desk for onward arrangements .

Same day laundry/dry cleaning service.

Rooms

Well appointed environment friendly Standard Room with a choice of twin or double beds. This 225 sq.ft room has the following highlights:  Wall to wall lint free carpeting  Writing desk with internet connection  Refrigerated minibar  Wardrobe  Direct dialing local/Intl with voice mail  Interactive TV

A spacious split level room with a cabinet partition differentiating the living area and the bedroom . This 250 sq.ft. room has got the following highlights :  Wall to wall lint free carpeting  Writing desk with internet connection  Refrigerated minibar  Wardrobe  Direct dialing local/Intl with voice mail  Interactive TV

A spacious 2 room suite with a Living Room & a master bedroom separated by a door

The most exotic suite at The Orchid, The Presidential Suite has a spacious Living Room with a dining area & a cozy bedroom. Stay in Style and enjoy a private Jacuzzi, a stress relieving massage chair and a walk-in wardrobe.

Section III

Comparative Analysis of The Taj Vs The Orchid

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

No. Of People

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public Opinion

The Hotel Has Visually Attractive Building Exteriors & Parking Area

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: Both the hotels have an attractive building and are able to draw customer attention.

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101214

No. of people

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public Opinion

The hotel has visually attractive accomodation that is comfortable and easy to move around

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: The Taj does provide more comfortable accommodation and access to space than the Orchid.

Recommendation: The Orchid can rearrange their interior décor to make accommodation more appealing to the customers

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

No. of people

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public Opinion

The hotel has appropriate music and illumination in keeping with the atmosphere

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: Both the hotels are well lit and have proper music facilty that are enjoyed by their respective customers.

0

2

4

68

10

1214

No. of people

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public Opinion

The hotel has clean and elegant dining equipment

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: Both hotels provide clean and elegant dining equipment that have impressed their customers.

0

2

4

6

8

10

No. of people

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public Opinion

The hotel has excellent taste of food

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: The Orchid seems to have a better variety of food that is enjoyed by its customers as compared to the Taj.

Recommendation: The Taj can take part in various food festivals to enhance its customers preference regarding choice of food.

0

2

4

6

8

10

No. of people

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public opinion

The hotel offers excellent appearance of food

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: Both hotels present their customers with food that is well served and pleasing to the customers eye.

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No. of people

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public Opinion

The dining staff is friendly

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: The dining staff of both hotels seem to be efficient in their job.

0

2

4

6

8

10

No. of people

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public opinion

The dining staff is always willing to help you

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: Both hotels are able to put their customers at ease and serve them effectively.

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No. of people

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public opinion

The dining staff is knowledgeable and confident

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: The staff of both the hotels are well aware of their job and its specific function and are confident in providing their service.

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No. of people

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public opinion

The dining staff understands your specific needs

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: The staff of both the hotels are well groomed and trained to relate to every customers needs.

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No. of people

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public opinion

The hotel offers consistent communication through restaurant newsletters or direct mail

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: Both Hotels seem to lack in communication between customers.

Recommendation: The hotels must pay close attention on maximizing their recent functions and events and making them known to their customers

0

1

2

3

4

5

No. of People

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public opinion

The staff provides information about new events or special promotion programs

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: The hotels do have staff members that are able to enlighten the customer about the new events and programs taking place

Recommendation: However it would be advisable to conduct employee training programs to keep the staff more up to date on the recent happenings and events.

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

No. of people

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public opinion

The hotel is active in providing mass media advertising and telemarketing service

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: It seems that customers are not aware of the advertising campaigns and other telemarketing services initiated by the hotels.

Recommendation: The hotel must make sure that it leaves no stone unturned in generating more customer interest through the means of advertisement and print media etc.

0

24

68

1012

No. of people

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public opinion

I recieve regularly scheduled personal letters (e.g., birthday and anniversary cards) from the hotel

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: The hotels are unaware of their customers personal details

Recommendation: The hotels must keep track of their customer details through the installation of effective information systems. This helps in bridging the gap between the hotel and its customers and helps garner customer loyalty

0

1

23

4

56

7

No. of people

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public opinion

I get discounts or special deals that most customers don't get

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: The hotels do not carry out enough offers to help proceed customer benefits.

Recommendation: The hotels can issue complementary vouchers to certain customers. Also customers should be allowed to avail of special deals and discounts on a timely basis.

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No. of people

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public opinion

I was treated as a special and valued customer

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: Both Hotels have great regard for their customers and treat them with care. However The Orchid could pay a little more attention to customer treatment.

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1012

No. of people

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public opinion

I regularly receive new information about a new product, special occasions and promotions

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: The customers are not informed about new promotions and special events.

Recommendations: The hotel can issue periodic news letters and pamphlets to their customers so that they are made aware of the latest happenings.

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No. of people

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public opinion

I am recognised by certain dining staff

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: The Staff are not able to recognize the customers on certain visits.

Recommendations: Staff rotation must be minimized to an extent such that they are aware of who are the regular customers and clients.

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

No. of people

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public opinion

I value the close, personal relationship I have with the staff

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: The Orchid seems to have been successful in establishing a good relationship with its customers as compared to the Taj.

Recommendations: The Taj can pay more attention to their customers demand and needs and provide them with efficient service that will help create a close bond with their customers.

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No. of people

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public Opinion

The food prices at this hotel are fair

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: The Hotels are relatively at par when it comes to their pricing strategy, with The Orchid having a slight edge over the Taj.

0

1

23

45

6

7

No. of people

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public opinion

The price charged by this hotel is appropriate

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: The customers feel that The Orchid is more affordable as their prices are appropriate for the service provided.

Recommendations: The Taj could run specials like ‘Happy Hours’ where in the food prices are reduced only for a specific period of time.

0

1

23

4

56

7

No. of people

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public opinion

The price charged by this hotel is rational

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: The Orchid has a more rational pricing strategy than The Taj.

0

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12

No. of people

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public opinion

The quality of service at this hotel is consistently high

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: Both hotels provide good service quality

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No. of people

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public opinion

The service performances at this hotel always meet my expectations

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: Both hotels are able to meet customer expectations effectively

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No. of people

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public opinion

I am concerned that the service performance will not be worth the money

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: Customers of both the hotels are confident about the service performance of the hotels

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10

No. of people

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public opinion

The ingredients and quality of food at this hotel are reliable

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: Both hotels are able to gain the customers trust and ensure them that the quality of food served is of the finest standards.

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No. of people

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public opinion

Your level of satisfaction with the quality of service is very high

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: Though both hotels are able to satisfy their customers, The Taj is able to endure better customer satisfaction

0

1

2

34

5

67

No. of people

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public opinion

Your overall rate of satisfaction with this hotel is very high

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: Both Hotels are able to satisfy their customers from an overall perception of service provision.

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No. of people

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public opinion

On the basis of overall satisfaction you would rate this hotel compared with other hotels as very high

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: The Taj has a higher rating over The Orchid in this aspect.

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

No. of people

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public opinion

My level of emotional attachment to this hotel is high

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: The Orchid is not able to connect emotionally with its customers as the Taj.

Recommendations: The Orchid can maintain customer relations by keeping track of their customers personal details like birthdays etc . This will help the customer to know how much value they are to the Hotel

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

No. of people

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public opinion

My relationship with this hotel has a great deal of personal meaning to me

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: Once again the Orchid is unable to connect personally with their customers.

0

2

4

6

8

10

No. of people

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public opinion

When another hotel runs specials, I am very likely to switch to another one rather than patronize this hotel

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: The hotels are likely to loose their customers to other competitors.

Recommendations: The hotels must provide their regular customers with special deals and discounts such that the customer will not think of patronizing another hotel.

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No. of people

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public Opinion

I have a strong intention to visit this hotel again

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: The Taj is able to attract their customers to visit again more often as compared to the Orchid.

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No. of people

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public opinion

I consider this hotel as my first choice compared to other hotels

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: The Orchid is able to make a lasting impression on their customers such that they are drawn to the same hotel for any of their needs. This may hold true on the fact that the Orchid is more reasonable than the the Taj.

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No. of people

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public opinion

I want to tell other people positive things about this hotel

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: Customers of both the hotels are interested in spreading positive feedback on the hotel to their friends.

0

1

23

45

67

No. of people

StronglyDisagree

SomewhatDisagree

Agree SomewhatAgree

StronglyAgree

Public opinion

I want to recommend this hotel to my friends and family

The Taj

The Orchid

Findings: While most customers want to spread positive feedback on the hotel they are a bit reluctant to recommend the same to their family and friends.This could be to the fact that the hotel may be a bit too expensive for their budget, inadequate service quality or for personal reasons known to them.