Anyone who has followed developments in the Information Technology field will be aware of the meteoric rise of "Customer Relationship Management" or "CRM", which is promoted as a technology designed to ensure customer satisfaction and loyalty, while increasing profits for organizations. CRM entails compiling information, such as customers' profiles, their previous purchases and buying habits, their preferences, etc. This information can serve to:
1) make transactions customer-centred, 2) make companies' marketing efforts customer-specific and 3) provide an opportunity for so-called "up-selling" and "cross-selling."

In addition, CRM applications are useful in aggregating information from various business departments and merging them into one file, so that a company representative can answer most questions that customers may have. This avoids the problem of having to transfer customers to several other departments. Furthermore, CRM applications may enable customers to access information electronically, and to complete applications forms on line, thereby reducing a company's workload.

While acknowledging the benefits of CRM, which seems to be particularly useful for call centres and e-commerce transactions, it must be recognized that this technology covers only a small percentage of what we refer to as "Customer Relations." Customer Relations is a multifaceted domain which ranges from business policies, practices and strategy at the management level, to the behaviour of employees and company representatives who are in direct contact with customers or clients. For an organization to be successful, it is important that its representatives be competent, knowledgeable and enthusiastic, as well as resourceful, flexible, and eager to achieve customer satisfaction.

Both management decisions and employee behaviours/interactions are influenced by what is referred to as "company culture," an environment or atmosphere which has a major influence on how a company operates, what values it espouses, and how it treats its employees. In a company culture that stresses customer satisfaction, strives for excellence, values its employees, and is able to instill in them a sense of mission, or of common purpose, all members of the organization will recognize that their contributions play an important role in the overall success and profitability of the organization of which they are a part. Unfortunately, in many organizations, ambitious and well-meant plans are made at the management level, while the behaviour of employees who are in actual contact with customers may be negatively influenced by a number of factors, such as feelings of not being appreciated by management, unwillingness to go beyond the basic requirements of their jobs and to tap into their own resourcefulness/ entrepreneurship, and a seeming lack of interest in advancing the company's business through their interactions with customers.

What seems to be misunderstood by people working for companies is that everyone, from the business owner or manager to the telephone operator, the receptionist or the sales associate, plays an important part in how customers view a company. Rude, unfriendly, uncooperative, or inappropriate behaviour on the part of company representatives who are in direct contact with customers may translate into loss of business, regardless of the quality of the goods or services the company has to offer. Furthermore, customers who encounter this type of treatment are likely to tell others about their experience, who, in turn, will not be very interested in dealing with that particular company, thereby magnifying the extent of customer loss (actual and potential).

In this era of fierce competition, both on a local and a global level, it becomes more and more important to ensure that a business is "customer-centred." There is an abundance of merchandise available, and there is no shortage of businesses that offer the same type of goods. It is therefore necessary for companies to try to set themselves apart from their competitors by offering superb customer service. This can be achieved by listening to customers' comments and suggestions; by upper management spending time at the reception desk, at the service counter, or in the store, observing customers' comments and reactions. Anyone associated with a company needs to see himself/herself as a company representative who contributes to the company's image, whether in a positive or a negative way. Of course, everyone working for a company needs to receive recognition for special efforts, ingenuity, and problem-solving, geared towards achieving customer satisfaction.

No doubt, excellent plans are made at the management level of many companies, but inadvertently, the message communicated to customers or potential customers often is more akin to saying, "We do not really care whether you become or remain our customer or not!" How else could one interpret the message that "Our computer department is too busy to take your order," or "We will let you know when the item you wish to purchase is in stock," and never getting back to the customer, or turning away a group of patrons in a restaurant, just because the kitchen will close in ten minutes?

Similarly, customer complaints or suggestions do not seem to receive the attention they deserve. It has been pointed out that customer complaints should be treated as gifts because they enable a company to take corrective action and to make improvements. Apparently, customer complaints are relatively rare - customers are inclined to tell their friends and relations about negative experiences, rather than informing the companies in question. For that reason, it seems incomprehensible that some large companies tend to dismiss customer complaints and consider them immaterial (if one goes by the reactions of company representatives receiving the complaints).

In order to ensure excellence in customer relations and customer service, organizations need to assess all aspects of their operations, in order to determine whether any of their business practices and interactions with customers need to be improved. Corrective actions could take the form of training or retraining staff, establishing a code of conduct, empowering staff to apply company guidelines less rigidly, where warranted, and keeping focused on the customer at all times.

HUMAN RESOURCES PROJECTS' publication, "Some Good Ways to Lose Customers/Clients" took almost a year to prepare, and provides a framework for analyzing and improving Customer Relations. In addition to presenting and discussing twenty-five real-life examples of mismanaged customer relations, the Casebook includes twelve behaviour-based diagnostic scales which provide examples of both exemplary service and business practices or behaviours/interactions which are likely to cause customer loss.

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