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161IntroductionBillJacksonneedsamortgagetobuyanewhouse.Aftersomeshoppingaround,hedecidestodobusinesswiththecompanythathasalsobeenhandlinghisprimarycreditcard–oneofthelargestbanksinthecountry.Whilefillingouthisapplicationandspeakingwithacustomerservicerepresentativefromthemortgagecompany,hementionsthathehasacreditcardfromthesamebank.Bill’sten-yearrelationshipwiththebankhasabsolutelynoeffectincuttingdownthepaperwork.Essentially,BillJacksonwasabrandnewcustomertothemortgageofficer—hehadnocredithistorywiththebank.ThemortgagedivisionofthebankdidnotknowMrJacksonfromthemaninthemoon.MrJacksonreceivesthemortgagebutafterafewmonthsherealizesthatheneedstoextendhiscreditcardlimit.Afternotifyingthebankofhisneed,Billreceivesaletterinforminghimhemustsendinacopyofarecentpaycheckstuboraletterfromhisbossindicatinghissalary.Slightlytweaked,Billpromptlycallstoremindthebankthatallofhispersonalinformationresidesinthemort-gagedepartment’scomputers.Thebank’sresponse?“I’msorry,itdoesn’tworklikethat”.Billasks,“Whynot?”Theservicerepresentativeresponds,“Themortgagedepartmentusesadifferentcomputersystemthanthecreditcarddepartmentandwecan’taccesstheirinformationandtheycan’taccessourinformation”.Aftergoingthroughapaperworkhassle,Billreceiveshislineofcreditextension,but,whilenotdownrightangry,Billleavesfeelingalittleputoffandannoyedwiththebank.ManyofuscanrelatetoBillJackson’splightbecauseweseethistypeofconfusingandirritatingencounterallthetime.Thistypeofinteractionhappensalltoofrequentlytodaybetweencustomersandbusinesses,andyetwehavecometoexpectmore.Insteadoftreatingcustomers“holistically”andprovid-ingthetypeofexperiencethatwillleadtoimprovedrelationshipsandhighersatisfac-tion,thebank’sinefficiencycreatesanothercustomerwhoiseitherdissatisfiedtothepointofdefectionoratleastmorewillingtoinvesti-gatethecompetition.Thebank’sproblemslieinitslackofcommonvisionaroundbuildingTheTQMMagazineVolume11·Number3·1999·pp.161–171©MCBUniversityPress·ISSN0954-478XTechniquesCustomerrelationshipleadership:aleadershipandmotivationmodelforthetwenty-firstcenturybusinessJeremyGalbreathandTomRogersTheauthorsJeremyGalbreathisaSeniorBusinessStrategistandPrincipleResearchAdvisorinLucentTechnologiesNetCareProfessionalServicesOrganization.TomRogersisaSeniorConsultantatJohnstonWellsPublicRelations–Denver,Colorado’slargestPRfirm.KeywordsCustomerloyalty,Customerorientation,Customersatisfaction,Leadership,MasscustomizationAbstractCustomerrelationshipmanagement,orCRM,isanewmanagementconcept–anewapproach–tomanagingcustomers.CRMisaboutthemanagementoftechnology,processes,informationresources,andpeopleneededtocreateanenvironmentthatallowsabusinesstotakea360-degreeviewofitscustomers.CRMenvironments,bynature,arecomplexandrequireorganizationalchangeandanewwayofthinkingaboutcustomers–andaboutabusinessingeneral.Creatingsuchanenvironmentrequiresmorethanadequatemanagementofthecus-tomerrelationshipornewtechnologies,itrequiresnewformsofleadershipaswell.Customerrelationshipleader-ship,orCRL,isanewmodelthatleaderscanembracetorecreateorreadjusttheirleadershipstylesinordertofosteranatmosphereintheirbusinessestoadoptandpracticetheprinciplesofCRM.WhileCRMenvironmentsimprovebusinessperformance,initiativesundertakeninthisnewmanagementfieldrequiresoundleadershipaswell.CRLisarecommendedapproachtobridgethegapbetweenaCRMvisionanditsreality.TheauthorswouldliketothankJacksonLambforhiscontributionstothisarticle.:theycomprisemanyindividualpieces.Theproblemwithmanybusinessesisthattheyfailtosuccinctlyintegratethevariouspieces,orto“de-fragment”theenterprise,asitwere.Businesseshavegrownuparounddistinctproductorservicelines,whichisverymuchaverticalapproachtosellingtoandservicingcustomers–withlittleornohorizontalintegrationacrosstheenterprise,asourBillJacksonstoryillustrated.Tocreateabetterenvironmentformanagingcustomerrelation-ships,businessesneedtolooktoanewapproachcalledcustomerrelationshipman-agement(CRM).However,effectivelyimple-mentingsuchanapproach–whichmayrequireradicalchangesinprocesses,tech-nologies,andemployeesifabusinessisnotalreadysomewhatcustomer-focused–requiresnewleadership,orcustomerrelation-shipleadership(CRL)thatheadsthechargeandralliesanorganizationaroundCRM.Inourexample,thebankneedstotakeaseriouslookatintegratingCRMandCRLintoitswayofdoingbusiness.Inthisarticle,wewillfirstintroducetheconceptofCRMandwhatcustomerswant.Wewillfollowthatdiscussionwiththenewapproach–CRL–thatwillbenecessarytoeffectivelycreateaCRMenvironment.SettingthestageCustomerrelationshipmanagementCRMisarelativelynewmanagementconcept–anewapproachtomanagingcustomers–currentlysweepingthroughbusinessesworld-wideandisespeciallyfindingareceptiveaudienceintheprofessionalservicesector.CRM,thoughnotaformalprogram,general-lycombinesvarious