Dearne Valley's new CRM system keeps them right at the heart of the community
01 April 2009
Dearne Valley College has enhanced its offering to its students and the local community with the introduction of a Sage 200 CRM (customer relationship management) system. Moving from ad hoc systems to centralised CRM will improve efficiency all over the college. And to ensure Dearne Valley extracts maximum value, they've partnered up with Wharncliffe. The Barnsley based technology specialists have bespoked the system to offer all the reporting capabilities and relationship management functions they require.
Providing top notch services in the education sector is a day-to-day challenge. As a vocational college, Dearne Valley enjoys close links with the community it serves. While they have always required clear processes for tracking student enquiries and maintaining relationships with businesses, they just haven't had the infrastructure in place to allow it, until now.
From initial tender, Wharncliffe proved their value and their adaptability: two pre-requisites for Dearne Valley. According to Marketing and Communications Manager, John Gray, "Wharncliffe ticked the boxes – but it wasn't just about the product – we needed to know they could give us exceptional ongoing support."
Installing Sage 200 CRM has shown its worth, within just a few weeks of the pilot getting underway. Alan Exley, Wharncliffe Director sums up: "Dearne Valley really needed a standardised, centralised process. Sage 200 CRM will streamline their relationships with employers – vital links for a vocational institution, and it will make sure students have a clear path from first enquiry to hopefully enrolling. Users are already seeing how this will transform their working lives."
Sage 200 CRM lets staff see the communication strings very clearly. Upon full installation – to be achieved in the next 12 months – Sage 200 CRM will enable them to stay abreast of internal and external communications and employer links. So there is an immediate time and cost saving; CRM eliminates the need to double check information with colleagues, or waste time repeating previously completed processes.
Making CRM work in a college environment is a great test for Wharncliffe too. They have had to make it fit a different set of drivers from industry application. But the net results are essentially the same: improved processes in all internal and external communications, together with reporting systems which will keep the college moving forwards more efficiently than ever.
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