Co-Creation Design Thinking Workshop: Customising CRM Change for Bluei

In today's ever-evolving business landscape, companies must adapt swiftly to changing customer needs and technological advancements. One of the key tools aiding this adaptation is Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software. However, the implementation of a CRM system often poses challenges, requiring companies to engage in innovative approaches such as co-creation design thinking workshops. In this article, we will explore the concept of co-creation in the context of CRM customisation, using Bluei as an example. Additionally, we will reference insights from a noteworthy article on co-creation in design thinking.

Understanding Co-Creation and Design Thinking

Co-creation is a collaborative approach that involves multiple stakeholders, including employees, customers, and partners, in the design and customisation of a product or service. It leverages diverse perspectives and fosters creativity, resulting in solutions that are more customer-centric and effective.

Design thinking, on the other hand, is a human-centred approach to problem-solving that emphasises empathy, ideation, and experimentation. By combining co-creation and design thinking, companies can achieve breakthroughs in innovation and design, which is particularly valuable when implementing or customising a CRM system.

The Co-Creation Design Thinking Workshop

Step 1: Define the Problem

Begin the workshop by clearly defining the problem you intend to solve. For Bluei, the problem is improving customer engagement through CRM customisation. It's essential to frame the issue in a way that encourages creativity and innovation.

Step 2: Assemble a Diverse Team

Gather a cross-functional team representing different departments within the company. Include employees from sales, marketing, customer support, and IT, as well as customers if possible. Diverse perspectives are key to the success of the workshop.

Step 3: Empathise with Customers

Empathy is a cornerstone of design thinking. Conduct interviews, surveys, and observations to understand the needs and pain points of Bluei's customers. This data will inform CRM customisation decisions.

Step 4: Ideate

Encourage participants to brainstorm ideas without judgment. Use techniques like mind mapping and brainstorming sessions to generate a wide range of CRM customisation possibilities. Remember, no idea is too outlandish at this stage.

Step 5: Prototype

Select a few promising ideas from the ideation phase and create prototypes or mock-ups of the customised CRM features. This allows participants to visualise potential solutions.

Step 6: Test and Iterate

Gather feedback on the prototypes from both employees and customers. Make iterative improvements based on this feedback until a viable CRM customisation solution emerges.

Step 7: Implement

Once a consensus is reached on the customised CRM features, it's time to implement the changes. Ensure that the necessary resources, such as IT support and training, are in place to support the transition.

Bluei's CRM Customisation Journey

Bluei, a tech company, facing declining customer satisfaction due to an outdated CRM system. They conducted a co-creation design thinking workshop as outlined above. Here's what they achieved:

1. Problem Definition: Bluei identified that their CRM system lacked user-friendliness and integration with other systems, hindering efficient customer service.
2. Diverse Team: Bluei assembled a team consisting of sales representatives, IT professionals, and customers who frequently interacted with their CRM system.
3. Empathy with Customers: Through surveys and interviews, they discovered that customers found the CRM interface confusing and desired better integration with the company's website.
4. Ideation: The team brainstormed ideas to improve the CRM, including a simplified user interface, real-time chat integration, and automated follow-up reminders.
5. Prototyping: They created mock-ups of the proposed CRM changes, allowing team members and customers to visualise the improvements.
6. Testing and Iteration: Feedback from customers and employees led to several iterations of the CRM customisations, refining the features based on real-world insights.
7. Implementation: Bluei successfully implemented the customised CRM changes, resulting in improved customer engagement, faster response times, and higher overall satisfaction.

In conclusion, co-creation design thinking workshops offer a powerful framework for companies like Bluei to tackle complex challenges such as CRM customisation. By involving a diverse group of stakeholders and following the iterative design thinking process, Bluei was able to transform its CRM system into a more customer-centric and efficient tool, ultimately enhancing its competitive advantage.

References

Co-Creation How-To’s. Design, Plan, and Execute Your Next… | by Anika Sanin | Design Globant | Medium

Design thinking courses and certifications - Enterprise Design Thinking (ibm.com)