Does customer relationship management influence call centre quality performance? An empirical industry analysis

This study is designed to evaluate the role of customer relationship management (CRM) applications in perceived service quality (PSQ) within the contact centre industry. To examine the influence of CRM on call centre quality performance, 400 questionnaires were distributed to contact-centre managers in Malaysia via mail and web survey. This empirical study found that of the four dimensions of CRM, knowledge management (KM) and technology-based CRM (TCRM) are the most important factors that predict CRM impacts on call centres' quality performance. Both KM and TCRM significantly influence PSQ in call centres. The findings of this research have provided the required empirical evidence in support of CRM literature where KM and TCRM have been conceptualised as major factors that contribute to the success of CRM applications in service industry and call centres in particular. For those call centres that are currently considering implementing sophisticated CRM technology, it would be efficient and prudent if they can first determine their customer characteristics and human resource capability. This study empirically concludes that its outcome has validated the claim that CRM implementations have significant influence on the quality performance of call centres.