1. Why FAC's CRM Is Different From Other Companies' CRMS?
AT FAC, the data warehouse (VISION), was created first and then this warehouse was used to populate its data mart. This is different from other companies where data marts for various departments are used to populate an enterprise-wide data warehouse.
2. What Is 'VISION'? In Your Own Words, Summarize the VISION Characteristics
Vision is a data warehouse that offers information on client buying preferences (such as attitudes), customer value positions while maintaining the general trends in customer behavior. VISION is a database structure that is extremely crucial and plays a central role in access of the multiple source files in a firm. Therefore, it is a time saving, economical, and convenient element that is central to FAC database management.
3. Access to 'VISION' Provides FAC With What Type of Information?
FAC obtains crucial information from VISION. This includes information on house holding, retention tracking, transaction details, product profitability, credit reports client profitability, and even credit reports.
4. What Do You Know About FAC History? (Summary)
The First American Corporation (FAC) was founded by in 1883. It is a company offering financial services with holding several subsidiaries: First American Enterprises, Inc., First American National Bank, among others. The company has its headquarters in Nashville, Tennessee. The company experienced hard economic times in 1991 and almost closed down.
However, under the leadership of Dennis Bottorff an overhaul of the company’s operation was done. The company then decided to focus on consumers and small to midsize businesses. There was also a major shift from focus on the traditional banking products to a more consumer-centered approach of banking. A shift to the banking by information and analysis approach led to a move from major losses in the early 1990’s to huge profits of over 211 million dollars from 1998.
5. What Does FAC Mean by 'Tailored Client Solutions’?
This is a strategic approach used by FAC involving centering all area of the company’s operations in the development of customer relationship. This entails a great effort in entrenching the needs of the customer in all of the organization’s operations. However, a balance has to be kept so that the company still makes it targeted profits. Success in using this methodology may require adept knowledge on product design, distribution channels, and insight on the particular customers.
Market strategy has four main components: excellent customer information, a flexible product line centered on mass customization, a distribution management approach, and consistent sales coupled with a service centered approach of meeting client needs. FAC researches every aspect of its customers and uses such information to provide better services. Product lines that are selected ought to be flexible to satisfy customer needs while bringing profits to the company. Consistent sales plus a service-centered approach involves the determination of the current financial situation and future goals of a customer. Distribution management involves a closer look at how the banking services can reach the customer in a more convenient manner.
6. Explain the 'VISION' Data Warehouse Project
The Tailored Clients Solution strategy involved more access information and hence the need of incorporating information technology. The specific IT piece that was utilized was to integrate information on product profitability, revenues, and costs with customer information. The set up of the whole project was outsourced from professional consultants. They then impart the necessary knowledge to the personnel of the company.
The implementation of this project was in multiple phases with specific and tangible benefits expected as an outcome of each phase. The initial phase aimed at equipping managers with a comprehension of the general revenue picture. Software, hardware, and methodological approaches were provided by external vendors.
7. What Are The Components Of The 'VISION' Data Warehouse Architecture?
The actual architecture consisted of an NCR platform with a configuration of five SMP nodes running the Teradata Relational Database System.
Data sources
Data is extracted from 26 legacy applications containing over 100 source files. Data from legacy systems is transformed into elements that are consistent with the relational database structure of the data warehouse. These files are then loaded into a warehouse staging area where the data is validated.
Customer centric data
Data is organized such that it is centered on providing information relating to banking products and transaction activities relating to customers. This data is analyzed in several ways to determine ways of retaining present customers while acquiring new ones. This model focuses the firm’s transactions, products, demographics, measures and any client interactions, such as market campaigns, on the customers.
Data Access
Users can access marketing or financial data through data cubes on the server or by downloading the required information on their desktops. Manipulation and analysis of the data may be through Cognos tool suite.
Data Warehouse Team
The data warehouse architecture is managed by eighteen fulltime IT employees. They are the persons responsible for managing the extracting, transformation and loading processes of the data for the Teradata Warehouse.
8. Write About Technical Architecture of FAC Production Data Warehouse.
The warehouse has several source systems from the 26 applications (over 100files). These sources vary from teller information, commercial loans, investments, trusts, mortgage loans, annuities among other sources that may relate to the firm’s clients. The VISION data warehouse strategy then maintains information on client behavior, preferences and any profitability that result to the firm. VISION usually provides information such as credit reports, details of transactions, client profitability among other very relevant information.
VISION does not necessarily have to source this information from the 26 applications. External sourcing other firms is very common, for example, on information relating to student loans. Information maintained by VISION may be accessed by the marketing and financial personnel and reports generated through the profitability and analysis reporting (PAR). These reports may be utilized for various performance measurements and implementation of management strategies.
9. Summarize the data sources such as, Data Access, Customer-centric Data, and Data Warehouse team
Customer-centric data involves organization of data closely to the client for purposes of enhancing understanding of the client’s transaction activities, banking products utilized, client preferences, and the client’s demographic characteristics. Direct access to data is available to 50 marketing and finance analysts. Marketing analysts utilize Cognos Corporation tools to create multidimensional cubes of data. These data cubes will be accessible on the server and can be downloaded on a desktop computer. Finance analysts use data mart, which uses an oracle relational database management system. The data mart is used in conjunction with custom developed profitability analysis reporting (PAR).
The data warehouse team comprises of 18 fulltime IT employees. The warehouse managers are responsible for the extraction, transformation, and load processes for the Teradata warehouse. The warehouse development team is responsible for developing new and improved applications for data feeds. Business access support tool group is in charge of the implementation and support for the data access tools.
10. Write a summary on VISION users and application.
Users in the VISION data warehouse consist of 20 direct marketing analysts and 30 direct finance analysts. Indirect users maybe more than 100 and utilize reports that are generated from the Vision warehouse data. Indirect users consist of senior management, product managers, corporate banking managers, small business banking managers, retail sales managers and sales force, distribution managers, marketing managers, asset and liability managers, and credit managers. Software application used in the enhancement and retention of customers depend on the VISION data warehouse.
11. Write about client information, flexible product line, next most likely purchase, consistent distribution, TCS, and data warehousing impacts
Flexible product line involves product profitability application, which assists the analysts to assess the product in a variety of ways. Information from the product profitability is used to open senior account for profitable customers. The next most likely purchase is to be sued in predicting customer behavior in relation to the various products. Consistent service includes contact management system and redesigning of bank operations. TCS and data warehousing impacts include benefits such as a change in the mindset of staff resulting to an increase in business. There is improved sales effectiveness and an increase in revenue generation.
12. The overall impact of the implementation of this project on FAC and its standing in the financial market
The implementation of the project improved the financial performance of the bank. Customer base for the bank increased substantially. Changing of the management approach of the bank resulted to increased financial returns. Assets of the banks had increased over the three years CRM had been implemented.
Important points of the Case
- Implementation of CRM in large organizations can have significant financial benefits.
- It is vital for any CRM technology to have a trained and support team each with assigned roles that relate to operation of the CRM
- Vendors provide valuable consultancy, hardware and software solutions that can assist in ensuring the CRM operates smoothly.
- The CRM should have different software applications that address the different needs of the organization.
Summary
CRM technologies concept is based on synchronizing various customer resources with the target of integrating all customers into the management systems of an organization. Many organizations are making a switch towards the implementation of CRM technologies. Such a move requires the organization to have an established clientele base. Incorporation of every section of an organization is critical for purposes of having an efficient of way of analyzing and evaluating the system. Performance indicators can easily be set up once the customer relational management system is up and functioning. The CRM technology will entail management of the sales workforce, client management and support, quality management and monitoring of any contracts that may arise between the organizations and their customers. The organizations should ensure that applications involved in the CRM system of an organization are cost effective and address the needs of the organization.
In the implementation of CRM, certain factors need to be taken into account. Issues such as project management, software licensing, data handling and migration, support are important. It is vital to ensure there are trained support that will be responsible for handling any complications that may arise from the implementation and use of CRM technology in an organization. It is also essential to know what the software requirements will be used for the implementation of the CRM technology. This will be influenced by the number of applications and processes the CRM technology is required to address. The vendor supplying the CRM technology are important since they offer consultancy and provide hardware and software solutions that the organization may during the implementation of CRM. It will also be vital to implement CRM in phases to ensure that any problems that arise may be addresses early.
