Track: Business Management

Abstract

Increasing levels of competition for customers have challenged organisations to adopt strategies to acquire new customers and to retain existing customers. The strategies to acquire new customers, regain lost customers and retain existing customers form part of customer relationship management. In the past years, the company in this study has lost customers and sales opportunities that also translate into a loss of profit. The current study was undertaken within the context of a company that is part of a global organisation providing engineering products and services and operating as a sales unit in South Africa. The main objectives of the study were to assess the current application of customer relationship management in the case study company; and to identify the challenges thereof with the purpose of developing strategies to close the gap. The study employed survey research and questionnaires as the research strategy and a data collection method. The results of the study indicate that the case study company paid more attention to customer focus, organisational culture and organisational compatibility. Information technology and department collaboration were identified as the areas which require improvement for the company to realize the benefit of effective customer relationship management and implementation.