CRM App Upgrades In A Down Economy

When 2007 turned to 2008, many enterprise-class firms had definite plans to upgrade their packaged customer relationship management (CRM) applications. Drivers behind the decision to upgrade included demand for new functionality to bolster customer-centric strategies, escalating customization costs, and vendor maintenance support pressures. But, as the thunder clouds of economic uncertainty quickly roll in, many are reassessing their upgrade plans. To determine if now is the right time for your organization to make an upgrade, Forrester suggests that you use a high-level, three-step framework to simplify and sort out the problem. Start with identifying business goals and objectives, then employ a high-level decision framework, and lastly outline and score the advantages and disadvantages of upgrades using Forrester's CRM Application Upgrade Scorecard.