K3 lifts Dudson’s service to new levels
Dudson Group, the world-leading ceramic tableware manufacturer and supplier, is a power user of K3’s SYSPRO ERP system and Microsoft Dynamics CRM. The system is used worldwide at locations in Stoke-on-Trent, London, Toronto (Canada), Valencia (Spain), Rosebery (New South Wales, Australia) Paris and Digoin (France) and Raleigh (North Carolina, USA). Dudson recognised that it could gain more benefit from its IT investments by integrating ERP with CRM. This would empower its sales force and make it easier for managers to monitor sales activity and performance.
K3 recommended and installed the Dynamics CRM SYSPRO Integration module into the UK business, which provides seamless functionality between the two systems. Dudson recognised that Microsoft® Dynamics CRM and SYSPRO are powerful systems that integrate readily and work together to enable their users to work very efficiently. It allows data to be entered once only, eliminating duplication and allowing the information to be accessed from anywhere.
“We wanted to combine SYSPRO and Dynamics CRM so that we have one point of access for all our business processes. We wanted everyone to have instant and easy access to all the information they required all in one place,” says Kevin Barker, Business Analyst, Dudson.
For example, the integration allows Dudson’s salespeople to see details of their customers’ SYSPRO quotes, orders and invoices from their laptops and other mobile devices. This gives them the information they need when speaking to customers. Sales calls and activities can be logged with ease, and the powerful CRM workflow engine can be used to trigger CRM sales processes when new quotes and orders are entered into the integrated system. Through one easy to use CRM system, sales staff can look at the current stock levels in SYSPRO, with a breakdown to show where the stock is held and how much is available for their customers.
Dudson makes life easy for its sales team
Dynamics CRM allows the sales people to use Microsoft Outlook as the main software user interface, giving them a user friendly, familiar software environment. The technological advantage of Microsoft Dynamics CRM is that it is updated regularly with new functionality. For example, the forthcoming updates will allow Dudson to introduce dashboards and tablet PC functionality.
Dudson currently has more than 80 CRM users on the system, enabling remote management of its sales force all over the world. The integration was implemented for UK users to establish the solution and working process before rolling it out to Dudson’s worldwide sales offices.
“Originally we only integrated SYSPRO and CRM for our UK offices. The rest of our networks are not quite as advanced as our UK base but now that we have found the solution to be successful, the pressure is on for our other sites globally to integrate SYSPRO and CRM,” says Kevin Barker.
Mobility benefits
“The best thing about CRM is that everything comes to us through a Microsoft interface. We are all familiar with Microsoft software, so using the CRM system is a relatively simple procedure. It is also easy to demonstrate to new staff how to use it – and everyone picks it up quickly,” says Kevin Barker.
The system provides a fully mobile system for Dudson’s sales team. This is extremely important as they rarely have access to a desktop computer. Instead, they are equipped with laptops and mobile phones so they can quickly access CRM and provide updates on meetings and note important information. Sales managers are able to look at this information in real time and use it to review and pinpoint new opportunities.
“For example, if someone has a good meeting with a hotel in one specific region of the UK they can record minutes from the meeting or other information into the CRM package and we can then use it to identify similar opportunities from hotels in that region. It really helps us to plan our growth moving forward and identify potential new customers that would be interested in what we do.”
Being a cloud solution Dudson also benefits from having its data hosted by K3 Managed Services’ datacentre. This is secure and resilient, freeing Dudson from the worry of backing up data and other IT security and management issues. As the software was rolled out around to worldwide users, it was important that it was available in multiple languages.
“It was extremely important for us to have SYSPRO and CRM in different languages. Only a few of the people in our French and Spanish offices speak English, so it was vital that we had a way they all communicate and use the system. Currently, we have CRM available in English, American English, French and Spanish” says Kevin Barker.
“We have always prided ourselves on being a forward thinking company that realises the importance of investing in the latest technologies. Our clients acknowledge that through the use of technology we are offering them the very best levels of service and stringent business processes. We like to perform well for ourselves and for our clients,” he concludes.
Editorial - Ellen Hoefste, Marketing Manager, K3 Syspro on 0161 876 4498 or
John Edden, Bridge PR & Media Services on 024 76 520025, or e-mail john@bridgepr.co.uk.
About K3 Syspro
K3 Syspro employs 80 people at its Manchester head office and its branches throughout the UK and Ireland. The company offers solutions in enterprise resource planning (ERP), customer relationship management, advanced planning and scheduling, warehouse management, human resources and e-business. SYSPRO is used by some 14,500 sites in over 60 countries. K3 Syspro is a division of K3 Business Technology Group, a global leader in providing next-generation enterprise software for businesses in the retail, manufacturing and distribution sectors. With more than 3,000 customer installations in over 30 countries, K3 is recognised as a safe, innovative and reliable provider of world-class solutions, backed by world-class service.
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