CRM at the Speed of Light, 3e [Hardcover]

Paul Greenberg (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 3, 2004

Updated to reflect the major changes in Customer Relationship Management (CRM) in the last few years, this third edition of CRM at the Speed of Light: Capturing and Keeping Customers in Real Time is a must-read for executives looking to leverage the latest technologies on the market to reach and retain customers. Learn CRM concepts, discover what tools are available and which ones are suitable for your business, and get practical, expert advice on avoiding common pitfalls.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

“Customer Relationship Management (CRM) is a term that often gets associated with ‘complexity’ and ‘failure.’ Yet, taking care of customers is too critical to be complicated, and too important to fail. Paul Greenberg’s CRM at the Speed of Light not only cuts through industry techno-jargon, but provides the proper perspective on CRM. It’s not about software--it’s about bigger issues surrounding your customers and your business.” --Chris Selland, Vice President, Sell-Side Practice, Aberdeen Group; President, CRM Association

“The days of tactical CRM are over. Companies are realizing that their Customer Relationship Management solutions need to be strategic. CRM at the Speed of Light shows how executives are realizing value from increasingly sophisticated CRM solutions that are part of an integrated suite of applications, embedded best practices, and enhanced usability. Anyone who is considering a CRM purchase needs to read this book.” --George Ahn, Group Vice President and General Manager, CRM, PeopleSoft

“Paul Greenberg’s latest book features clear thinking about what CRM is--and isn't --and how to make it work as a business strategy to create a profitable exchange of customer value. Most important, he brings a ‘right brained’ approach to CRM which put people front and center, where they should be. Highly recommended.” --Bob Thompson, CEO, CustomerThink Corporation, and Founder, CRMGuru.com

“CRM is essential to businesses today. As big as front offices are and as international as baseball is, if you don’t have a customer strategy, you’re on the losing end. CRM at the Speed of Light, Third Edition is batting 1,000--3 for 3. I’m not surprised. Paul is part of a winning tradition--he’s a Yankees fan!” --Mike Pagliarulo, President, iScout; Former 3rd Baseman, New York Yankees (1984-89)

The economy is recovering and the business map is changing dramatically. No longer are your customers so willing to remain your customers unless you provide them with actual value and get to know them personally, or at least know what they want. There are competitive businesses out there that can reach your customers via the Internet, e-mail, phone, fax, or letter. And you can reach your customers in the same ways.

But that costs a lot of money to do and, even if you are beginning to see a little light in the tunnel with your revenue stream, you are probably still cautious about spending. How can you utilize those precious dollars or yuan or euros to improve the singular relationship you have with a customer you might not know personally? Which of those communications media are more effective for which customers? What should you be saying to them, finding out from them, and doing for them to provide them with the value that keeps them coming back--or intrigues them so that they join you for the first time?

International thought leader and CRM guru Paul Greenberg explains how every business--no matter what the industry--can create a true customer-focused environment. He describes how CRM strategy has evolved in recent years--from being data-driven to being process-driven. Instead of just creating a 360-degree view of customer data, businesses should strive to answer questions like: What kind of business workflow do we need to make sure that customer problems are resolved? With what regulations do we have to comply? What do we do to sell a new product to a customer and how do we handle the order? It is a complex interlinked supply, support, and demand chain that involves not just the products and services offered by the company, but also the suppliers, vendors, partners, and employees. CRM has grown up and customer strategies are no longer just a matter of a business edge, but of both success and survival.

The most important question that Greenberg answers is: How do you get the insights into your customers that provide you with the value to delight them and make them want to remain committed to you?

Greenberg emphasizes that transforming business culture is perhaps the most vital step in ensuring that a CRM initiative succeeds, and he outlines the necessary steps in the change management process. He describes the major players in each sector of the CRM world along with their current technology offerings. You’ll also discover tips for evaluating Web architecture and enterprise applications as well as get valuable advice on setting up a detailed cost-effective service level agreement.

While filled with revealing case studies, technology recommendations, and insights into growing trends, this new edition is marked by Greenberg’s well-known bluntness and humor, making what can be a really dry subject actually quite interesting. This updated edition of the thought-provoking best-seller will help make your vision of CRM work for you.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Paul Greenberg is the President of the 56 Group, LLC, and the author of the previous two best-selling editions of CRM at the Speed of Light, which have been translated into eight languages. The book has been named the number one CRM book by SearchCRM and has been called one of “The 12 Most Important Books an Asian CEO Will Ever Read” by the Asian-Pacific edition of CIO Magazine. Paul has extensive experience in the creation of ERP and CRM business units/practices. He writes a number of national columns including his “Straight Talk on Siebel ”column for Search CRM. Paul speaks and writes on CRM around the world and has made multiple appearances on television and radio. Paul was recently named co-chairman of the Rutgers University CRM Research Center and is a member of the Board of Advisors for Baylor University’s MBA CRM specialty program. He lives in Manassas, Virginia with his wife and two cats.

About the Author

Paul Greenberg (Manassas, VA) has many years of experience in ERP and CRM. He has built several SAP and PeopleSoft practices, and is on the boards of experts and advisors at DestinationCRM, SearchCRM, and CRMGuru.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 384 pages
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill Osborne Media; 3 edition (May 3, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0072231734
• ISBN-13: 978-0072231731
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.1 x 1.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #769,948 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

In addition to being the author of the best-selling CRM at the Speed of Light: Essential Customer Strategies for the 21st Century Paul Greenberg is President of The 56 Group, LLC, a customer strategy consulting firm, focused on cutting edge CRM strategic services and a founding partner of the CRM training company, BPT Partners, LLC, a training and consulting venture composed of a number of CRM luminaries that has quickly become the certification authority for the CRM industry.

His book, CRM at the Speed of Light: Essential Customer Strategies for the 21st Century, now in its third edition, is in 8 languages and been called "the bible of the CRM industry". It is used by more than 70 universities as a primary text. It was named "the number 1 CRM book" by SearchCRM.com in 2002 and is one of two books recommended by CustomerThink. The Asian edition of CIO Magazine named it one of the 12 most important books an Asian CEO will ever read. Paul has also authored two other books including "E-Government for Public Officials" (Thompson Publishing, 2003).

Currently, he is working on the 4th Edition of CRM at the Speed of Light which is due for publication by McGraw-Hill in November 2009

Paul is also the co-chairman of Rutgers University's CRM Research Center and the Executive Vice President of the CRM Association. He is a Board of Advisors member of the Baylor University MBA Program for CRM majors, a unique national program.

Paul is considered a thought leader in CRM, having been published in numerous industry and business publications over the years and having traveled the world speaking on cutting edge CRM and topics geared to the contemporary social customer. He has been called "the dean of CRM" and "the godfather of CRM" and even the "Walt Whitman of CRM" by analysts and organizations throughout the industry. In fact, at the end of 2007, he was the #1 non-vendor influencer, by InsideCRM in their annual "25 Most Influential CRM People" announcement. He was also named one of the most influential CRM leaders in 2008 by CRM Magazine. He is known particularly for his work on the use of social media, such as blogs, podcasts and wikis and social networks in CRM as tools for customer collaboration with a company. He is seen often as the "voice of the customer" and is well known within the CRM industry for this work. His blog, PGreenblog was named the winner of the first annual CRM "Blog of the Year" in 2005 by SearchCRM and the 2007 "Whatis" Award for CRM Blogs, by their parent company, TechTarget. He also received the #1 CRM Blog Award from InsideCRM at the end of 2007 and in 2008. The blog is also the central focus of KnowledgeStorm's CRM Blog community. He now also writes the CRM blog for high profile technology media property, ZDNET.

He partners with another CRM industry influencer Brent Leary to do the popular industry based irreverent show, The CRM Playaz.

He is a member of the Destination CRM Board of Experts and the SearchCRM Expert Advisory Panel as well as a member of the Board of Advisors for GreaterChinaCRM for many years among many others.

Currently, Paul lives in Manassas, Virginia with his wife and five (yes five!) cats. You can follow him at Twitter or join up with him on LinkedIn or Facebook.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Extensive review of current CRM and eCRM software, February 14, 2001

By 

"apsrose" - See all my reviews

This review is from: CRM at the Speed of Light: Capturing and Keeping Customers in Internet Real Time (Hardcover)

This book covers in depth the current CRM and eCRM software on the market. The author covers the theory behind CRM at the start then moves through the precurors of CRM such as Sales Force Automation software. Other topics covered are: sales management, marketing automation, personalization, partner relationship , call centers and integration with ERP applications. The focus of the book are current CRM packages which are Internet(e-business) enabled. The best part of the book are the detailed reviews of current CRM packages based on the authors experience. The author also reviews the company behind each CRM package and exposes its strategy for the future. This is a cutting-edge book detailing all the current CRM packages and anybody interested in CRM, e-CRM or e-business will benefit from reading this book. Relative to other books in the area this is first-class because of the reviews of all the software. Also, the appendix comes with list of current CRM web-sites and web- virtual communities.

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars When was the last time...you?, April 26, 2001

By 

Joe Donna (Chicago, IL USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: CRM at the Speed of Light: Capturing and Keeping Customers in Internet Real Time (Hardcover)

When was the last time you read a business book written by an industry insider, and was so captivated by the book's content that you couldn't put the book down?? Well, author Paul Greenberg treats the reader to such a rare experience.

Whether you're the CEO of a company concerned about customer loyalty/profitability, a project leader charged with selecting and imlementing a CRM initiative, or a consultant within the CRM industry, this book is for you.

The biggest challenge the Business/CRM world faces today is understanding the delineation between CRM as a business strategy, and CRM as an enabling technology. No easy task! But Paul Greenberg clarifies this with incredible ease.

The author also, with zero techno-geek language, provides significant insights into areas of CRM such as: What IS CRM/What is it NOT?,Why your company needs CRM!!, ECRM versus CRM(a topic in the business world that seems to be strewn with much confusion), Who the real CRM players are....and why they are REAL, and What roles the internet and wireless applications are playing today, and in the future, and much, much more.

So if you're looking to become "CRM literate", or want to add to your CRM knowledge base, and want to actually have fun doing it-Paul's book is interspersed with humorous tidbits- GO BUY THIS BOOK!!

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great tehnology review, June 13, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: CRM at the Speed of Light: Capturing and Keeping Customers in Internet Real Time (Hardcover)

This is the bible for defining what CRM is, and is not, as well as categorizing all the technology offerings and giving good advice as to how to choose the right technology. I also read "CRM For The Common Man" by Russ Lombardo and thought it was a great precursor to CRM at the Speed of Light. CRM For The Common Man describes how to plan your CRM strategy up front, while Greenberg's book takes you to the next steps involving the technology. A great pair.