How Man Becomes Ape

Has anybody noticed how many truly awful customer relationships are being produced in the name of CRM?

While the big chiefs wax eloquent about customer centricity, bizarre things are happening when their companies attempt to achieve it.

Annoying phone calls at dinner from telemarketing agents?
CRM run amok.

Hyper-aggressive Customer Service Reps who try harder to up-sell you than to solve your problem?
CRM poorly translated.

Infuriating 14-level voice response systems that absolutely refuse to let you talk to a human?
CRM on bad steroids.

Why is this happening? Why are so many customers getting harassed rather than helped?

More often than not, it's because the people handed the CRM mandate are put under enormous pressure to quickly demonstrate bottom-line impact. So the lofty vision of customer centricity quickly devolves into short-term sales efforts and cost reduction initiatives.

And it works. For a while. Until short-term sales techniques and dehumanizing technologies turn once-happy customers into hacked-off customers.

Increasing revenue and aligning costs are imperative. But do so in ways that don't monkey with your customers.