9 signs your Recruitment CRM system needs a review
The presence of suboptimal data, the lack of integration between your applications, and poor user adoption are to name a few of the signs you may need to review and evaluate your current Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system. Although some professionals would have experienced this process multiple times, most recruitment businesses implement a CRM system very infrequently. But, considering the rapid pace of technology, it is possible that your CRM system is holding your business's potential for growth and efficiency back. Recognising the reality of limited resources and balancing competing projects, does it ever seem to make sense to prioritise upgrading your CRM solution? Here are 9 indicators that you need to refresh your recruitment CRM to achieve better results.
- Your legacy in-house built CRM system is absorbing resources without delivering desired results
Some companies who have opted to create bespoke CRM systems, believed at the time of creation that tailored solutions would best meet their unique needs. But more often now there is a shift away from choosing a custom-built CRM platform, typically influenced by two factors. First, the ongoing expenses associated with updating and adding features to these systems are proving to be expensive, causing leadership to re-evaluate their cost-effectiveness. Second, these custom-built solutions are often not seamlessly integrated with other tech used by the company, leading to questioning of the productivity and efficiency.
- New leadership has new CRM priorities
Internal team changes, especially when seen at the leadership level, can lead to a CRM overhaul. This can often be seen influenced by previous usage of CRM software by the team. In many cases, new leadership will compare their goals and strategy with the CRM offering they have in place. For instance, if the goal is to improve the quality of data inputted by the front-line recruiters, they will look for changes to be made in improving forecasts. Inevitably, new leadership will have new insights and priorities which the CRM system and its processes, including reporting and performance metrics will need to align to drive success.
- That one CRM expert leaves
Although a well understood risk, single points of knowledge continue to be a common challenge within IT teams. Businesses who continue to rely on a single person to create their reports, administer the CRM changes and provide most of the team's technical support will see problems if that person leaves. If the company is using a widely used commercial CRM, hiring a replacement can be an option, when your provider offers admin-based training and/ or full training. But when a CRM has been developed in-house, a similar replacement poses more challenges.
- Integrations are more manual than effective
In larger agencies, CRM systems become valuable only when fully integrated with the other applications in use. This is due to the data within each system fully connecting to the next, without silos or missed information. If your CRM does not have good integrations with all applications used by recruiters or back-office teams, it will result in more admin, and more frustration. Look for how many complicated, manual processes needing the work of “human integrators” between systems that currently occur and consider its probably time for a change.
- Standard reports take several days to create
Creating a report can be time consuming during its initial stages as it is refined to meet the team or individual's specific needs. However, once the report becomes a monthly necessity, indicating the businesses position, its generation should be streamlined and efficient. If your team are often spending significant time aggregating data from various sources and piecing it together in Excel to create these reports, it's a strong signal that your CRM system may require an update. Addressing this inefficiency begins with an understanding of the current reporting process. Creating a list of the reports used by sales, marketing, and other departments, you can begin to question each of those reports to find which truly add value. Similarly, evaluate the integrity of the data and the processes that feed these reports. In some businesses, maintaining data quality is the responsibility of the IT team. Should this be the case in your organisation, IT will play a key role in ensuring that it not only supports but also enhances decision-making and operational efficiency.
- CRM governance is missing or ineffective
For a larger agencies, CRM governance quickly becomes complex with many layers. At the lowest level, governance defines the CRM’s fields and who enters specific data. At a higher level, there will be a process to govern data and process driven changes. Without ongoing governance, with an understanding of desk level impact, CRM problems such as data quality will continue to show problems. Should the existing CRM be compounding the problem due its own rigid nature, then implementing a new CRM is a better option.
- Customisations stop working after an update or even the update in itself
Whether your agency uses cloud or on-premises CRM, upgrades are inevitable. These updates can begin a chain of events that can restrict your CRM’s capabilities, especially seen when it comes to the customised elements. This creates additional costs to fix, update or completely redo work, which many businesses choose to delay or defer an upgrade. Frequently, the need for a CRM change becomes obvious when vendors push for an upgrade or dictate a shift to a ‘new’ system available. These pressures can be higher if contract renewal deadlines are near. To navigate these transitions smoothly, it's essential to address potential changes well in advance.
- Adoption, usage and sentiment is low
A CRM works best when everyone uses it daily. Keeping an eye on who logs in and how often can show you who's really using the CRM and who isn't. But numbers don't tell you everything. It's also good to talk to the people using the CRM. Their feedback can show you problems you didn't know about and how people feel about the system. Sometimes, getting a new CRM can really help a business. It can fix old problems, get people excited about using it, and be a catalyst to help the business grow.
- Data quality issues lead to challenges obtaining value from other investments.
As businesses look to better leverage Automation and AI, the key ingredient of data quality comes under great scrutiny. If your recruitment CRM is failing to act as a single source of truth, the effect for achieving desired returns begins to lack. Upgrading your CRM provides a renewed opportunity to cleanse and reset data quality and set new expectations from the beginning. Concluding For IT and Operational leaders its key to remember that a CRM program is always a work in progress. If you're facing issues like poor data quality, lack of integration, or low user engagement with your recruitment CRM, it might be time to reevaluate your system. With rapid technological advancements, an outdated CRM can affect your business's growth and efficiency, and upgrading can offer a chance to improve data management and change your team's use of the tool.