Data Quality

Every once in a while I need to talk about data quality. What does data quality mean anyway? Well, you could say that data quality is good if data is fit for its intended use in operations, decision making, and planning. In short, quality is good if the data is usable. Like CRM, and just about any other business concept for that matter, data quality involves 50% people, 30% process, and 20% technology.

Unfortunately, we’ve encountered a few systems recently where everyone was frustrated, no one trusted the system, and no one wanted to use it. Upon further review, we found that everyone was putting data anywhere and everywhere (if at all). Data quality was non-existent. The donor’s home address was sometimes stored in the “Main address,” other times in “Home address,” and sometimes in “Other address.” To make it worse, the donors’ work addresses were also stored as “Main address,” “Other address”, and (gulp) sometimes in “Home address.” This extremely valuable data is now totally useless!! The whole situation was compounded by similar inconsistent use of demographics and other codes and flags that rendered the system impossible to use.

Probably the most common source of poor data quality is new staff. Inevitably, new hires come with great ideas about how to do things better. Nothing wrong with that! They start implementing new data standards but either leave before they are fully implemented or yet another new hire comes in with yet another better way. You end up with numerous incomplete standards and procedures that contribute to poor data quality. Too many standards really means you have no standards. The impact of new procedures need to be assessed and their implementation needs to be planned before any changes start. Once started, they must be completed.

Data is your organization’s most valuable asset and it has to be treated that way. Procedures and standards need to be established early on and everyone needs to be trained in their use. In my book, not following procedures destroys the company’s most valuable property. Staff needs to know this, and consequences for not following procedures need to be clear and very serious.

Data quality must be enforced “top down”. This is not something that can be ignored or completely delegated. Management is ultimately responsible.

Data Leakage

Just 15 years ago, only limited amounts of data could be stored on CD and taken home. Now the equivalent of many 100s of disks can be carried on your pocket. Worse, with web sites such as www.logmein.com or corporate terminal servers, staff can access their desktop computers and network from anywhere in the world. Placing a document in the wrong folder, on the wrong network computer could expose it to the entire world on the Internet. A virus on your home computer can quickly spread to your corporate networks.

As technology gets simpler to use, mistakes are easier to make and the consequences are far more serious. The opportunities for data leaking out can easily get out of control. Laptops and smart phones are so convenient that they have become a standard for staff to work remotely from home or on the road. These and USB storage devices are notorious for getting stolen from cars, left in coffee shops, or often just plain lost. Imagine all those passwords you have saved on your laptop!

Does your organization have policies for managing these devices and network access?

Got Blind-Sided?

Have you ever gone on a CEO call to present your organization only to have the CEO interrupt your pitch to say, “Aren't you aware that I know all about your organization and I’ve been a committee volunteer for years?”

Yes, that is very embarrassing.

The above scenario is often used in CRM training sessions as a classic example of poor CRM skills. Andar offers a very simple solution to avoid this kind of situation. Everyone on staff (including your own CEO) should be entering their notes into Andar’s communication logs after every interaction with every constituent. Then, before making your CEO call (or any contact, for that matter), make sure you review the communications on the CEO’s constituent profile.

This process is extremely simple and easy in Andar. In fact, it’s simpler and easier with Andar than with any other CRM software on the market. As all consultants will tell you, CRM is mostly about people and process and much less about technology. The scenario described above is a perfect illustration of a people and process failure.

Information Security

You probably know that your network administrators have full access to all your servers. But did you know they may also have full access to your workstation? Even while you’re sitting at your desk, your administrator may access any file on your workstation without your knowledge through “administrative shares.” Private or highly confidential corporate documents on your executives’ computer may be just as vulnerable.

Read more...

Relationship Building

Do you want to get started quickly with CRM? It’s actually easy. CRM is all about building relationships. Relationships start with communication. As you probably know, communication is not just about talking, it’s actually more about listening. An important tool for listening is Andar’s communication logs. This tool allows you to track what constituents said so that the next time you converse with them, you’ll build upon the last conversation (hence the term "relationship building").

Although it sounds easy, in reality it takes great discipline and commitment to enter your communication logs after each conversation. That’s why consultants say that CRM is 50% people and 30% process.

Backups, Part 2

What should I back up? How often should I back up? How many copies of my backup should I have? These are all great questions! Your backup should include your databases, e-mails, websites, file servers, applications, etc. Ideally, you should back up everything! You should also document your backup procedure as well as your various server configurations, security settings, network configurations, etc. Should you suffer from a total site disaster, your configuration information will be invaluable in recreating your infrastructure and get your business operational.

How often you back up also depends on how much data you can afford to lose. Some organizations have sophisticated backups involving live shipping of database transactions (changes) through the Internet to one or more remote storage sites. Most organizations perform a daily backup only. Their backup software creates a copy of the database somewhere on a local server within the network or on a tape device. Most of us know that these database copies should be taken off site in case of a site disaster such as a tornado, flooding, hurricane, etc.

Because storage devices (removable drives or tapes) are getting very inexpensive and therefore justify multiple copies of your backup. For example, you could create copies of your backup onto several servers (or workstations). You could also use 8 or more devices and use one each day (say Monday through Thursday) to get two weeks of “daily” backups. Then get another 8 devices and use one each Friday to get two months of “weekly” backups. Some companies will even have an additional “monthly” backup that gets recycled every five or so years. The latter may be going overboard for most nonprofit organizations.

Backups are not just for site disasters. We have seen many cases where an individual will inadvertently delete a file or record and no one may notice for months. Having backups going back that far could be invaluable in recovering this information.

As discussed earlier, you should use your off-site backup device to test a restore of your entire environment on a regular basis. Don’t use your network copy of the backup, these would typically not be available in a site disaster situation. Also, your procedures for creating your off-site devices could be flawed so testing such a restore from these devices is a must.

Backups

Is your data backed up every day (at least)? Too many people think that's all that's needed. Very wrong! We have seen on more than one occasion someone trying to restore their data only to discover that their backup was not readable or critical information was missing!

If you have not tested your restore procedure,
you do not have a backup procedure!

You should test and document your restore procedure. This ensures that you know what to do when crisis strikes. You should practice a full restore at least once a year and make sure that you test all critical business applications to make sure they work in your restored environment. It's better to practice your restores now. Take your backup media, go to a completely isolated computer, restore everything on it, and test your applications.

Remember, eventually, you will have to restore. It will happen to you, count on it.

Moving Forward

Imagine going to your bank to make a deposit only to realize that it's the teller's first day on the job and he's never been trained on the bank's computer system. (OK, imagine a real person and not an automated teller machine.) Would you trust them with your money? What will this encounter do to your relationship with your bank? Now put yourself in your donor's shoes...

Staff training is not an option anymore, it's a requirement. It's part of doing business. Anyone who accesses information should be well trained in your systems and your business processes. Annual refresher training should also be part of your annual budget, since all your processes and systems will inevitably change over time. This is an important component of any successful CRM strategy.

A Rant On Discount Pricing

It seems appropriate that you, being a nonprofit, should ask for a discounted price for everything you buy. Being a donor, I also expect you to be a good steward, keep expenses low, and get the best price possible.

Example:

click for more examples...

We at Helix understand this and therefore have priced our products and services accordingly, right from the start. We also strongly believe in being fair to all our customers.

Many vendors offer discounts to new customers. Meanwhile, everyone else who have been loyal customers for years pay full price! Have you ever considered moving to another provider only to find out that your current provider will offer you a better price to keep you? Wait a minute! Does that mean they’ve been overcharging you all this time?!

For vendors that sell mostly to for-profit companies, I can understand that they would give a discounted price to nonprofits. That is a philanthropic gesture on their part. Organizations that market exclusively to nonprofit organizations could give everyone a nonprofit discount; but the reality is that they would need to increase their prices to cover that lost revenue. That’s just playing games.

My conclusion is: “the same price for everyone is fair for everyone.”

System Integration

Perfect! Let’s take the best systems available on the market that support the functions of each of our departments and then let’s integrate them together. It’s that simple!

Well,... not really. Even with only two applications, the task of exchanging data can be extremely complex and challenging. There are many hurdles in the path of integration. As I like to say, “the devil is in the details.” Let’s look at a few.

Staff: The first step is to find someone that understands both applications very well and also understands the business processes addressed by both applications. Let’s not forget that two different applications means two different sets of training sessions from two different vendors. Inevitably, some staff will need to learn both applications. That means learning two different ways of working and two different user interfaces.

Languages: There are hundreds of computer languages in the field. Different languages don’t always have bridges between them so a communication pipeline infrastructure such as web services need to be developed in each application to enable the exchange of information. This is just laying the groundwork for the integration to happen.

Data Models: Data is usually stored differently in different applications. Mapping the data from one application to another can be very complex. Take the simple case of addresses. Some systems have two lines of address, others have three. Going from two lines to three is easy, but not so when going from three lines to two. What do you do with the extra address line? What about if one application has address lines of 40 characters while the other application has 60 characters? What do you do with the extra 20 characters? Some applications store the company’s contact address with the contact while others store it with the company. Some applications store a two character state code while others store the full state name. Some applications don’t validate the state name so typos are common and this complicates the translation from one system to the other. If one system validates the street names based on city and zip+4, what do you do with errors?

All of these are very critical details that can very quickly corrupt massive amounts of data. And this is only looking at simple addresses. Remember that your applications probably have very complex data structures that will make this address issue seem trivial by comparison. There is no easy solution here.

Development Infrastructure: Any significant software development needs an infrastructure. Developers will need their tools. These include development environments, code version control software, editors, compilers, debuggers, automated testing tools, etc. You’ll also need numerous test workstations to test your applications under various configurations. You’ll need a software test team and someone to write your documentation. Yes, all of this costs money.

Upgrades: Each application typically has a new release every year or so. Each new release means upgrading the application in a test environment first. It may mean some changes to the interface applications and procedures, updating documentation, and retesting the entire integration process. In an environment involving many applications, staying ahead of all these various upgrades can be a full-time job for more than one person.

Error Handling: Most application interfaces can’t handle every case. For example, most of you with handheld devices such as Windows Mobile will know that very long notes attached to calendar or task items get truncated. If you edit these truncated notes, data will be lost. Similarly, when enterprise applications are integrated, similar data issues (as described above) usually get written to an integration error log file. Someone has to manually handle each of these conditions in a timely manner to prevent further data corruption. The reality is, this function often falls by the wayside and data corruptions multiply unnoticed, sometimes for years.

Staff Turnover: With staff turnover, finding someone else with the expertise to maintain the integration may be very challenging. Without a large enough staff, it is very common to see application interface maintenance deteriorate or die altogether.

Consultants: Third party consultants are often used to integrate applications. They usually have the development infrastructure in place and the expertise on staff to take on such projects. Realize that integration is not a one time task, it’s ongoing. Consultants are always more expensive than full time staff and the ongoing costs of consultants can be very high.

The bottom line: Integrating applications appear to be the right choice on the surface, but after digging into just a little more details... not so simple.