User-Centred CRM

There's an old CRM white paper I read again the other day, that mentioned how CRM (Customer Relationship Management) needs to be more about Customers managing their own relationship with a company (CMR). Thinking about this further, I realise that whilst that's an ideal situation and the utopia of the personalised website experience, not everyone wants to do this and not everyone needs to.

In my mind CRM should be user-centred, just as user-centred design is an essential part of creating the right website for your target audience.

So... if CRM is traditionally based around: People, Process, Technology & data, then user-centred CRM should evolve this thinking. But rather than being around the 'what' you need to do, it should be far more about the 'how' & 'why':

• People becomes: Identify, observe, understand and analyse
• Process becomes: Timeley, relevant and flexibile
• Technology & Data becomes: Integrated, optimised & scalable

If your previous CRM intiatives have not achieved your ambitions, perhaps focusing on the user may be a better plan in 2009?

Update 4/1/2009:
The document I was referring to was "Multichannel customer managment" by Stone, Hobbs & Khaleeli.