A useful CRM brief starts with what happens to an enquiry: who receives it, what they need to know and how the next person takes over. Screens and dashboards can follow once those decisions are clear.
Here is the discovery sequence we recommend for a business deciding whether its current tools need configuration, an integration or a custom system.
Follow one enquiry from start to finish
Ask the people doing the work to walk through a recent example. Record each handoff, approval, repeated entry and unanswered question. Include the email, phone call or spreadsheet that sits outside the existing software.
The Digital Services Playbook recommends understanding user needs, addressing the whole experience and developing iteratively. Those principles provide a useful foundation for this workflow-first brief.
- Who owns the next action at each stage?
- Which information must be present before work can continue?
- What happens when a record is incomplete, duplicated or overdue?
Sources and release notes: [1]
Agree on records and access
Choose a clear source of truth for customers, contacts and opportunities. Define what can be imported, edited, exported and deleted, and by whom. Include ownership history and the integrations that need the same records.
Use a sample of existing data to discuss duplicates and missing fields. A migration plan should explain how records will be matched and how staff can report mistakes.
Define a complete first release
Pick one workflow that the first version will handle from entry to completion. Agree on the evidence of success before building: for example, every open enquiry has an owner and a visible next action.
Compare configuration, integration and custom development against that brief. Include ongoing support, data export and the effort of moving staff to the new process. A custom CRM is a choice to justify against the work, not a prerequisite for improving it.
Sources and release notes
Original analysis by AtmosGate, based on the sources below. Vendor claims and release status are attributed to their publishers.
- Digital Services Playbook: understand user needs, the whole experience and iterative delivery
Digital Services Playbook