Ideas in Motion: David Rubin: CRM Specialist
By Scott H. Cytron, ABC
CRM. Three initials that have driven immensely sane people to the brink of insanity because they either don’t understand what CRM is, or they are clueless on how to effectively implement it in their businesses.
Meet David Rubin, a partner with Cohn Consulting Group in Roseland, N.J. David not only knows what CRM is; he knows how to maximize its potential.
“CRM is all about accelerating revenue performance,” says Rubin. “We design, customize, integrate and deploy CRM solutions for our clients so they can derive more value from their customers and improve the sales/performance cycle.”
Value is the key. If you haven’t yet figured it out, “CRM” stands for Customer Relationship Management. CRM is traditionally thought of as a component to the sales and marketing process for a company or organization. According to Beacon Telebusiness Limited, if it costs $300 to win a customer, a company with 1 million customers pays $90 million+ each year just to replace the customers it is losing.
Conversely, Aeon reports that increasing customer retention rates by 5 percent increases the value of an average customer by 25 to 100 percent. With retention as the goal to keep in mind, David reports that his group has successfully managed many CRM projects for his clients.
“We implemented a CRM solution at SirsiDynix,” says David. SirsiDynix provides strategic technology solutions for libraries. “The system included a sophisticated, yet easy-to-use business intelligence solution that allows salespeople and management to continually monitor critical sales performance metrics.”
David is responsible for the firm's CRM process, including CRM strategy, design and implementation, but CRM is only one service offered by Cohn. Others include delivering solutions in accounting systems with selection and implementation of various systems, as well as offering traditional services in networking and security where the Group designs, installs and manages network infrastructures.
“Our consulting roots are grounded in more than 40 years in business strategy and process,” he says. “Our approach to the implementation of systems is centered around the achievement of strategic business objectives and the improvement of processes.”
The Cohn Consulting Group is part of the larger J.H. Cohn, LLP, and one of the firm’s eight business groups. Other groups include sections focused on Capital, Executive Search, Finance and Wealth Management. Within the CRM arena, David also offers what is referred to as CRM Channel/Call Center Integration, as well as Customer Care Strategy Definition, Disaster Recovery/Business Continuity, Document Management, Financial Management Systems, Information Technology Security, Networking Solutions and Technology Architecture Definition.
Other major service offerings include Financial Management and Operations, Enterprise Resource Planning, Business Performance and Measurement, Corporate Governance, and Systems Integration.
David says Cohn Consulting is constantly re-evaluating what it offers in an attempt to stay current – not so much with trends and fads – but to try to be an effective partner with its varied client base.
“We try to differentiate ourselves from other accounting and consulting entities that offer similar services through what we call ‘roles’: project manager, expert resource, facilitator, pair of hands and quality control,” he says. Based on the firm’s collateral materials, these five roles are defined as:
- Project Manager – As project managers, we assume a leadership role. Projects are often staffed through a combination of our personnel and client resources. Our responsibilities include the development of a detailed work plan establishing milestones for performance measurement. Our responsibilities include keeping a project on schedule and on budget.
- Expert Resource – We frequently provide an external perspective based on an industry or technology expertise that is not available in our client’s organization.
- Facilitator – Here we act as an objective third-party advisor, bringing together different groups within the client’s organization, establishing project and strategic momentum.
- Pair of Hands – We understand the difficulty often encountered when organizations are challenged to execute a major consulting project, while at the same time, remaining focused on maintaining normal business activity without additional personnel. Under these circumstances, we provide the experienced manpower necessary, thereby extending our client’s resources for the project’s duration.
- Quality Control – Clients prefer to execute certain projects internally. However, under these circumstances, management usually wants qualified, objective assurance that they are properly adhering to the work plan. In this role we review the project status report at appropriate intervals, introducing corrective action when necessary.
“Our success is ultimately measured in the tangible improvements a client experiences – not simply in the successful deployment of something like software,” says David. “As a result, our goals for 2006 include growth, learning and improvement. We want to grow because the larger we get, the more experience and resources we have to assist our clients. We want to learn, because when you stop, you die. Third, we want to improve. The more we improve our own processes and methods, the better we are suited to deliver cost effective solutions to our clients.”
Cohn Consulting Group is continually recognized in the industry as a market leader, and in 2005, it ranked19th in Crain's New York Business listing of New York Area's Largest Management Consultants. In an effort to focus on the future, David says the firm hopes to expand in several areas.
“We would like to see a significant increase in the use of mobile computing tools for CRM and other specific applications. It is our feeling that these tools will greatly enhance the availability of real-time management information and improve overall field productivity.”
About Author:
Scott H. Cytron, ABC, is an accredited communications and public relations consultant working in the accounting, health care, high-tech and finance industries. He also teaches efficient and effective writing to professional services’ groups and can be reached at scott@cytronandcompany.com or through his Web site, http://www.cytronandcompany.com.
About Column:
Ideas in Motion is a monthly column designed to focus on best practices within CPA firms and organizations involved in providing technology related services.
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