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March-April 2008 Issue
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March-April. 2008 e-newsletter Database Screams!
“Who are you going to believe: me – or your own eyes” is one of my favorite Marxist maxims (Groucho). It also introduces our piece this month on Seamless Integration – seeing is believing. Additionally, we are happy to announce a new Executive Discussion Forum for users of Mail Order Manager. Finally this month, we hear from one of our regular contributors – Olivia Parr-Rud, with an excerpt from her forthcoming book on Business Intelligence Success Factors. As always, please let us know how DMSI can fit into your database marketing plans!
Adjunct Professor, Marketing Information Systems
A popular approach for database marketing architects is to integrate “best of breed” software applications together – with the assumption that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. As an example, a current challenge for many organizations is integrating the sales and marketing customer databases. Technology folks often promise that this can be done “seamlessly” (in fact, “seamless” has got to be the most favorite word among software vendors). It may sound too good to be true, and in some cases it indeed is just that. If you are not careful, however, your best intentions may turn out to look better on paper than in practice. Here is why: Precision: Seamless integration assumes precise data definitions, used interchangeably between applications. Does each customer category in your marketing system (“big spender”) translate exactly to the customer categories in your accounting system (e.g. “good credit”). As an example of our skepticism, our firm supports users of Mail Order Manager (MOM). MOM provides automated exports of sales transactions to Quickbooks - a key functionality. But we recommend avoiding the automated export to Quickbooks – until 6 months after posting (and reviewing) results manually. Timing: Seamless integration approaches attempt to display “real time” views of customer transactions. Often, however, they may be no better than “near real time”, or in many cases, completely out of synch. For instance, your payment processing function may lag behind the phone or mail order system that generated the order. For most direct marketing purposes, we have found that “near real time” is sufficient. One exception would be when marketing and order processing need to be tightly linked, as in the display of cross-sell items for web shoppers.
By Olivia Parr-Rud, OLIVIAGroup © 2008 Olivia Parr-Rud One of the few constants in our industry is change. Intense competition in the global economy coupled with the constant pressure of evolving technologies creates a dynamic environment in which companies must continually adapt to survive. The alignment of people, process and culture is a continuous challenge. If you think about it, it’s like we’re trying to grow our businesses in an environment of chaos.What does this mean to marketers? First of all, the skills and tasks required for today’s business environment are dramatically different from those of 15, 10, or even 5 years ago. For example, it is no longer viable to rely solely on a top-down leadership model. The Newtonian model that sees the world as stable, predictable, and unaffected by observation, is outdated for most industries. Yet this mechanistic model of management is still the bedrock of many organizations, characterized by a focus on structure, linear thinking, direct cause and effect, and micro-management of employees. It is often driven by a negative, authoritative leadership style with the aim of increasing efficiency by controlling unpredictability. In our industry, the workforce is becoming more technical and specialized. Their work becomes difficult to micro-manage because in many cases, the manager cannot perform the tasks of their subordinates. Therefore, it requires managers to act as visionaries and coaches where their main function is setting goals and providing resources. More and more of today’s successful companies are embracing non-hierarchical models of power and authority. Why? Because this allows companies to continually adapt to new challenges. By tapping into and encouraging ideas from the employees and other stakeholders about how to adapt to market changes, companies are better aligned to leverage and reward those who are touching the customer and experiencing the dynamics of the market on a day-to-day basis. This is especially insightful as companies shift from product-centric marketing to customer-centric marketing. Success is also linked to constant innovation. Most linear processes are easily automated or out-sourced. This leaves the real competitive advantage with those companies that can master non-linear skills such as the unique design of goods and services as well as the creative blending of linear processes. This combination allows companies to automate their campaign management and focus on new product and/or service ideas to improve the customer experience. When considered in its entirety, the challenge may seem daunting. However, there are some new models emerging that leverage what some fear most: chaos! Several recent discoveries in the physical sciences provide innovative models for thriving in organizations. The “new sciences” of chaos, complex adaptive systems, nonlinear dynamics, and quantum physics all provide revolutionary ways of thinking about organizational behavior and management approaches. Our challenge as an industry is to master the skills that enable us continually adapt and thrive in chaos. Clarity – A consistent understanding of your company’s vision and mission, goals and expectations, values, roles and structure, rules and consequences is essential for your company to adapt to changes in today’s marketplace. Connection – Employees who are connected to others as well as their own innate wisdom have the ability to identify and leverage opportunities quickly, which is especially critical in highly dynamic markets. Communication – Today’s businesses require a highly specialized workforce. These are often comprised of people from all over the globe as well as broad ranges of talents and skill sets. Therefore the need for strong communication skills is vital to all parts of the organization. Conclusion: For marketers and business intelligence pros, the mastery of these skills will facilitate the emergence of true alignment which allows you to adapt to changes in markets, technology and competitive forces yet to be determined. Adaptability through alignment is essential to sustainable growth and profitability. Learn More: Excerpted from the forthcoming book “Business Intelligence Success Factors: Aligning for Success in a Global Economy.” (Wiley 2009)
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