GroupLink ContactWise - Novell GroupWise CRM

Northwestern Michigan College

Background

Northwestern Michigan College’s Training and Research Staff deal with over 200 businesses and 700 individuals. Located in Traverse City, Michigan the college offers a variety of degrees and instruction on corporate training.

The Problem

NMC was experiencing many problems in its sales efforts due to inefficiency in its contact management capabilities. The inability to link their Access database with Novell GroupWise or Microsoft Outlook was costing them time and productivity. In email communications with clients, salespeople would have to first locate information from various sources then cut-and-paste, spending a lot of time to transfer data. Due to limited capabilities in contact management the ability to record, track, and locate crucial information just wasn’t there.

Vicki Rumbach is a Training and Research Specialist for Northwestern Michigan College. “We were using a system that forced us to deal with lost information on every level, and the information we did have was virtually inaccessible. In order for someone to gather information on a client they would have to track down specific individuals with first hand knowledge of that particular contact,” said Mrs. Rumbach. “There was no effective way of accessing that information from our database.” The inability to effectively record and access contact information proved to be a big barrier in the communication processes for NMC.

The Solution

Through the integration of GroupLink’s ContactWise NMC has been able to transform their ineffective contact management abilities into a quick and effective communication tool. The seamless integration of ContactWise has leveraged NMC’s existing infrastructure investment(whether an office uses Novell GroupWise or Microsoft Outlook), while maximizing their operating abilities.

“ContactWise has provided our staff with the ability to record and access information in a way that enhances our department’s productivity as a whole,” said Mrs. Rumbach. “We are now able to keep histories in various sorts on all of our clients. The ability to access all of the information we need in one location saves us tons of time and allows us to perform our tasks more effectively.”

GroupLink’s ContactWise provides the ability to record, sort, and filter information quickly and easily allowing for effective contact management and communication. “Since the implementation of ContactWise we no longer have to rely on person to person communications to get vital information; everything we need is available to us instantly,” said Mrs. Rumbach. “Our ability to communicate effectively has improved office-wide, as well as person-to-person. Our department has seen a definite increase in business retention as a result of implementing ContactWise.”

Conclusion

With the implementation of GroupLink’s ContactWise Northwestern Michigan College has seen immediate and lasting improvements in their ability to manage vital contact information and communication. The ability to tie-in to Novell GroupWise or Microsoft Outlook and essentially expand their existing platform has facilitated productivity while simultaneously leveraging their previous investment.

“ContactWise has given our staff the ability to function at a higher level,” said Mrs. Rumbach. “We are no longer forced to play the he-said-she-said game, and this has meant that our overall efficiency has gone way up!”