Customer Relationship Management Systems and Customer Satisfaction in Saudi Arabias Public Sector - Research Proposal Example

Student Name Instructor’s Name: Course Code and Name: Date Assignment is due: ICT-Based Administrative Innovation: The role of Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Systems in enhancing Customer Satisfaction in Saudi Arabia’s Public Sector Proposal 1. Aims and context The relevance of customer satisfaction, both in the public and private sector, is inevitable; hence the need to come up with innovative strategies to ensure that customers are satisfied. In this reference, organizations must strive to enhance administrative innovation to ensure that the operations of the organization are efficient and that customers are satisfied. In the Saudi Arabian public sector, customers are increasingly becoming aware of their rights and thus demand higher quality of service from government corporations. Furthermore, increasing competition from the private sector calls for improved service delivery in public organizations as this will ensure that they continue to gain through provision of services. This calls for administrative innovation to ensure that the public sector can effectively cater for the needs of its customers, enhance service delivery and also promote economic gains in the public sector. It is highly necessary that the public sector comes up with strategies that will ensure increased efficiency in its administrative operations and Customer Relationship Management is considered significantly useful in providing the solution to this urgent need. Customer Relationship Management has been singled out as a highly effective approach to enhance administrative innovation as it not only speeds up the administrative and customer care services but also promises to enhance returns for organizations that utilize it. The benefits of Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Systems in the private sector have been exemplified through increased efficiency, profitability and customer satisfaction. Similarly, these results are fundamentally achievable in the public sector, thus making public corporations more effective in delivering effective customer service. The use of CRM is highly efficient in promoting the relationship between the organization and its customers through providing a convenient avenue through which the organization can enhance its relationship with customers. CRM systems strategy works by enhancing communication through the application of technology to organize; synchronize; and automate business processes. These processes not only involve customer service but also marketing and technical support. This research aims at exploring the possibility of Saudi Arabia’s public sector benefiting from Customer Relationship Management; as a strategy for administrative innovation. This research will determine whether indeed the public service can benefit from improved customer service as a result of using CRM systems, which have been successfully used in the private sector. It is important to note that the public sector requires a significant amount of reform to ensure that it can compete with the private sector and hence the need to develop innovative strategies such as CRM to promote this objective. The main questions and sub-questions to be answered in the research are as follows: 1. Is CRM an effective solution in enhancing customer service in Saudi Arabia’s public sector? i) What is CRM and how does it work? ii) What are the benefits of CRM? 2. Which are the best CRM solutions for use in promoting administrative innovation in Saudi Arabia’s public sector? 3. What obstacles could hinder the application of CRM in Saudi Arabia? i) Which policy related issues may hamper the adoption of CRM? ii) Which technology-related factors may hinder CRM adoption? This is a research that has barely been researched in Saudi Arabia; with the closest study being “Electronic Government Services and Benefits in the private and public context: Saudi Arabia Case Study” by Dr. Alaa Al-Sarabi and Dr. Salim Khanfar. Studies on CRM have however been conducted in other countries and in the private sector. A number of researches on which this study is based have established that CRM greatly improves customer service efficiency and that customer service is arguably one of the best business systems innovations that organizations can acquire. Customer relationship Management is often considered an effective way of enhancing customer service in organizations; due to the immense possibilities brought about by good customer relationships (Silva and Batista 588-89; Shan-Ling, Chee-Wee & Eric 237; Pollard, Young and Gregg 25). These studies indicate that the same is possible for the public sector. Furthermore, the possibility of CRM promoting customer relationships is high because it ensures that there is continuous interaction between the organization and the customers. It is such relations that enhance customer loyalty and thus promote profitability in an organization. The research is expected to be significantly important to the Saudi Arabian public sector, which for a long time has not achieved the desired level of efficiency and customer satisfaction due to inefficiencies in service. CRM will help the public sector to organize their customers’ information in such a way that it can be easily retrieved to make important decisions in the organization and thus ensure that customer satisfaction is achieved. The use of CRM would transform the public sector in Saudi Arabia immensely and this study would therefore act as a good basis for reference. 2. Contribution to Knowledge and Statement of Significance 2.1. Contribution to Knowledge This research is expected to play a great academic role as it seeks to explore a field of study that is yet to be significantly explored in Saudi Arabia. It is notable that while most businesses have sought CRM as an administrative innovation solution, this is yet t be replicated in the public sector. It therefore opens room for more research regarding the possibilities that CRM systems would bring to the Saudi Arabia public sector. This will not only occur through increased knowledge about CRM and its role in the public sector, but also, through the development of new research areas by addressing research gaps that may emanate from this research. It would be interesting, for example, for students to study the most effective CRM systems for the public sector to use in enhancing efficiency; having read this research which seeks to identify the benefits of CRM to the public sector. In essence, the paper will open up avenues for new research by disseminating important knowledge in the academic circles regarding Customer Relationship Management Systems. 2.2. Statement of Significance The use of CRM systems is bound to enhance efficiency in the public sector through the automation of the customer service function. CRM innovation will ensure that employees in the public sector have more time to cater for other functions in the organizations because the automated systems are able to solve most of the customer queries; thus, reducing the need for employees to take up the role of addressing customers’ concerns. It means that the public sector can save more and channel the unutilized resources to other functions in the organization, thus increasing productivity. 3. Literature Review and Conceptual Framework The concept of consumer behavior and the need to satisfy customer needs has received a significant level of attention in contemporary studies. This is because the customer is now placed at the centre of business success and therefore, customer satisfaction is of great importance in enhancing the sustainability of the firm. Customer satisfaction is the key to organizational growth because, it not only promotes customer loyalty, but it is also a major influence on the possibility of acquiring new customers (Zeithaml, Bitner and Gremler 28). It is notable however, that customer satisfaction requires effort and it is for this reason that the quality of customer service, must be sustained (Keaveney 71). The public sector must strive to ensure that besides providing quality products and services, the quality of service should be exceptional in order to promote customer satisfaction (Tan & Pan 270-271). In order to promote customer loyalty and have productive organizations, it is imperative that clients are offered effective services. Effectiveness of customer service offered is imperative in the fact that it makes the customer to identify with the business and encourage others to come along (Anderson, Fornel and Lehmann 61-62). CRM Customer relationship management has recently been considered an effective strategy in the contemporary business world due to its ability to automate the customer service function and thus promote efficiency and customer satisfaction. CRM systems work through technology innovations that automate, organize and synchronize the business functions to enhance customer service. Through the use of CRM systems, a company maintains a record of customers’ communications, service history, preferences, past history and any other information that is relevant in the provision of customer service. This information is useful in serving customers as it helps customer care representatives to refer to previous customer data from the system in order to effectively provide solutions for the customers’ queries. Such information makes work easier for customer representatives because, it helps them to instantly obtain the customer’s background information, by entering their name; which is then used in providing solutions for customers. Customer relationship management (CRM) is a strategy that has gained immense popularity among businesses in the contemporary world due to its capability of enhancing effective customer service (Goldenberg 100). CRM’s goals are to find, attract and win new customers through efficient service that plays the role of boosting the image of the organization. CRM works by nurturing customers and thus helps retain the already existing customers, bringing back former customers and attracting new ones. The CRM strategy is greatly enhanced by the improvement in technology that has led to increased interaction of people through the internet, thus enabling easy communication between the organization and its customers Goldenberg (102). CRM systems are thus connected to the internet, such that communication is made easier through the use of emails, text messages and interactive forums that help the customers in obtaining responses to their queries. The websites designed by organizations also reduce the need for customers to visit the organization to obtain information regarding various products on offer, thus saving on time and energy. Most CRM systems provide a well organized system in which automatic replies to customer queries are made possible by the existence of a question and answer data base. The provision of real-time responses by customer care representatives on matters that the system cannot handle on its own is also enhanced through the email system, thus enhancing customer satisfaction greatly. Accordingly, CRM ensures that continual customer loyalty is maintained. In this respect, CRM has helped organizations to tone down their expenses in customer service through reducing the time spent addressing customer queries and the number of staff required for this function. This in essence means that the resources saved through reducing customer service demands can be channeled into other areas of operations to further improve the performance of the organization. CRM is now deviating from the traditional set of mind; that it is meant for customer management and monitoring of their behaviors. In essence, however, it is more focused on changing the company’s relationship with customer so as to make them remain loyal and thus gain from the resulting relationship through enhanced revenues. CRM is considered one of the strongest tool in organizations and as it assures constant economic gains for the organization by preserving the most important asset in the organization; its consumers. CRM in the business world has become almost nonnegotiable for companies that desire to achieve success and to satisfy their objectives. Furthermore, organizations should always strive to ensure that nothing destroys the relationship that it has with its customers; hence the importance of CRM. CRM has the power to create and expand customer relationships, and this should therefore be the main concern of the organizations. Internet emergence has brought forward new opportunities for customer relationship management in that the search engines have eased the possibility of finding merchants online and interacting with them (Bothma and Geldenhuys 372). Most organizations today have customers, vendors and employees located anywhere in the world. The use of emails and social networking sites on the internet therefore, not only play the role of linking these stakeholders with the business, but it also allows them to interrelate and work together. Organizations are continually using social networking in creating brand recognition, followership, enhancing customer feedback and identifying market trends and tactics being used by competitors. Social networks have however, been considered to increase inefficiency in organizations and some companies have even banned the use of such networks at their workplaces or shown reluctance in accepting them. The impact of social networking in business however, is amazing and is expected to impact on the success of businesses through creation of effective customer relationships to a great extent. Besides the use of emails and social networks to enhance communication, the web has also offered consumers content that makes them have a sense of belonging to the companies such as those described below: Information on prices, stock levels, and product features 24-hours access to information Ability to conduct product research Online customer support service Online self-service Personalized content Previous studies illustrated in this paper suggest that businesses that utilise CRM, have proved that the se of these systems is indeed effective in improving customer service and thus, promoting customer satisfaction. It is however, notable that the benefits of CRM systems in the public sector have not received adequate attention; yet the public sector is in dire need of reform so as to enhance service delivery and promote economic gains. It is this research gap that this thesis seeks to fill through conducting a research on the role of CRM systems as an administrative innovation strategy for Saudi Arabia’s public sector. The literature review opens up possibilities and gains that the country is expected to garner through implementing CRM systems in the public offices. By examining the gains that the private sector has achieved since the introduction of CRM systems, the question on whether the public sector can also gain from such outcomes is inescapable; hence the decision to conduct this research. 4. Approach and methodology Data collection The right choice of method to carry out a research process is the most important thing in that it provides the surest means to achieve correct and workable data to make conclusions for the study. This section discusses the materials used in conducting the research, methods of collecting data from respondents and data analyses techniques for use in the study. The materials and methods go along with the correct choice of research design, data analysis and sampling methods used in determining the possibility of determining the gains presented to the public sector by the use of CRM systems. The research on CRM systems as a tool to enhance customer service in the public sector will take on a qualitative approach. Further, the information to be used in this research will be obtained from both primary and secondary sources to maintain accuracy and enhance effective conclusion of the research. The use of qualitative approach for this study can be justified by the fact that this research is mostly explorative and thus seeks to get explanation for the possibility of using CRM in enhancing service delivery in the public sector. This research will seek to determine the importance of CRM systems in enhancing customer service and thus offer the findings of the research as a solution for the adopting CRM as an administrative innovation strategy in the Saudi Arabia public sector. As noted by Bryman and Bell (274), the qualitative mostly seeks to explain the occurrence of phenomena through asking questions such as what, why where and who among others. This research will utilize the questionnaire method to obtain information that will be relevant in answering the research questions. Questionnaires are highly effective in obtaining information from a large sample as they promise the capability of collecting a huge amount of data over a short period. Self-administered questionnaires will be given out to the respondents in order to obtain answers for the research study. These questions will seek to determine the views of the respondents on the possible improvement of efficiency in the public sector once the CRM systems are introduced in government offices. Questionnaires prove to be an effective method for collection of data because it is possible to use it as a means to generalize the characteristics of the entire population; and that it provides the flexibility of choosing the means to administer the questions (Clarke and Dawson 193). It is for this reason that it was chosen for the research. Compared to the use of interviews, questionnaires give autonomy to the respondents, such that they can freely write their genuine views without any influence from a third party (Bryman and Bell 273). Interviews could also take a significantly long time and they may be expensive to fund. Using the questionnaire method will ensure that uniform questions are asked to all the respondents and therefore the analysis of data will be made easier. The se of questionnaire however has its own disadvantages and this could threaten the accuracy of data. To begin with, the questionnaire method relies highly on standardization; and the researcher thereby has to come up with questions that are minimally appropriate to the research participants and this may lead to the elimination of questions that may be relevant to many respondents (Holliday 181). Secondly, the researcher must strive to ensure that a large number of the sample population returns the finished questionnaire so as t ensure that there is enough data for use in analysis. Otherwise, the researcher may have a very small sample to work on and it could limit the possibility of obtaining diverse responses to effectively conclude the research (Clarke and Creswell 192). Further, the use of questionnaire method exposes the researcher to the risk of obtaining false information because the respondents may give the wrong information out of sheer malice or the unwillingness to participate in the research. This will however be countered by seeking consent from the respondent before giving out the questionnaire in order to avoid disappointments. Research community and Sample The research community to be utilized in this research will comprise of information technology experts from different companies in the country and the customers of the Saudi Arabia public service. The customers will play the role of identifying inefficiencies in the Saudi Arabian public sector, which will then be reviewed to determine whether there is need for change in the form of administrative innovation to promote customer service. The IT experts are considered an important population because they possess knowledge that is highly relevant to CRM adoption and they are therefore best placed in giving information on whether the public sector should adopt CRM to enhance customer service, the best CRM solutions to adopt and challenges that are likely to be witnessed in the process. The samples of both populations will be selected using random sampling to obtain 50 IT experts and 50 public service customers; making a total of 100 respondents. The use of random sampling is preferred because it assures that each member of the population has an opportunity of being selected in the research sample and this reduces the possibility of bias in the research (Holliday 191). The questionnaires will be issued to the respondents after obtaining their consent to participate in the research. Data analysis Analysis of the data will take on a combination of quantitative and qualitative statistical approach, and involves both descriptive and inferential analysis. Data will be summarized according to the variables and the views presented by the respondents and later analyzed using SPSS. The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) is statistical software that is highly effective in data mining and data analysis in research and will thus prove effective in providing accurate results for the study. Works Cited Al-Sarabi, A., & Khanfar, S.. (2010). Electronic Government Services and Benefits in the private and public context: Saudi Arabia Case Study. Interdisciplinary Journal of Contemporary Research In Business, 2(7), 155-172. Anderson, Eugene,W, Fornell, Claes and Lehmann, Donald R. Customer satisfaction, market share and profitability. Journal of Marketing, 58.3 (1994): 53-66. Bothma, Bothma, J. and geldenhys, Pieter. Managing E-commerce in Business. South Africa. Juta and Company Ltd. 2008. Print. Bryman, Alan and Bell Emma. Business research methods. London: Oxford University Press. 2007. Print. Clark, Vicki, P. L. and Creswell, John W. Designing and Conducting Mixed Methods Research. London: SAGE, 2010. Print. Holliday, Adrian. Doing and Writing Qualitative Research. 2nd Edn. London: Sage Publications, 2007. Print. Keaveney, Susan M. ‘Customer switching behaviour in service industries: an exploratory Study’, Journal of Marketing. 59.2 (1995):71-82 Pollard, C., Young, J. & Gregg, P. (2006). Towards a Simplified Framework of CRM for Use in Public and Private Sectors. Journal of Information Technology Case and Application Research, 8(2), 24-38. Shan-Ling P., Chee-Wee T. & Eric T. K. L. (2006). Customer relationship management (CRM) in e-government: a relational perspective. Decision Support Systems, 42(1), 237.   Silva, R. & Batista, L. (2007). Boosting government reputation through CRM. The International Journal of Public Sector Management, 20(7), 588-60. Tan, C. W. & Pan, S. L.  (2003). Managing e-transformation in the public sector: an e- government study of the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS). European Journal of Information Systems, 12(4), 269-281. Zeithaml, Valarie, A., Bitner, Mary, J., and Gremler, Dwayne D. Services marketing: integrating customer focus across the firm, 4th Edition. McGraw-Hill, NY, 2006. Print. Read More