Streamlined processes enable operational efficiency and new revenue for Casema

"We chose CGI for their breadth of skills and expertise to provide program management and strategic consulting support, as well as technical capabilities and legacy systems expertise. CGI also has a robust, fully developed, tried and tested methodology for enterprise integration."

Erik Joustra, CIO, Casema

The Client
In today's telecommunications market, providers must constantly find ways to improve efficiency, delight their customers, and increase profitability. Casema, the largest cable services provider in the Netherlands, faced a formidable challenge in managing growth effectively and enabling enterprise-wide operational efficiencies while ensuring continued customer satisfaction.

The Challenge
Casema had enjoyed decades of stability offering cable television services. However, its basic cable services were forecasted with limited growth and revenue potential, while its enhanced revenue streams and customer retention required increased attention. Going forward, Casema needed to transform its enterprise structure to one focused on customers and new services.

Struggling to build the business case and align its business with IT, Casema stepped back to analyze the entire spectrum of its business operations. This effort was led by Erik Joustra, chief information officer and the mastermind of the company's vision of becoming a customer-focused full-service provider. For help and rapid results, Mr. Joustra turned to CGI, a company highly experienced in business transformation and process integration.

Working with CGI, Mr. Joustra and his task force identified a set of issues standing in the way of Casema's transition into a full-service provider. Challenges included:

• Inadequate access to customer information - Customer-facing applications unable to provide complete and comprehensive information regarding customers, accounts and orders.
• Limited options for customer management - Access to customer service limited to call centers.
• Insufficient access to order processing information - Many manual and duplicated processes, resulting in redundant and sometimes inaccurate data.
• Inflexible systems and technical architecture - Existing support infrastructure unable to support time-to-market and product-specific requirements.
• Inefficient systems for managing service problems - Lack of effective trouble ticket management resulted in increased operational costs and slow response times.
• Inability to effectively apply decision analytics - Existing information systems could not provide the necessary decision support for developing expanded services.

The Strategy
Initially, Casema asked for advice in making some key optimization and direction decisions. The CGI Quick Look Assessment took an enterprise-wide look at customer relationship management processes, staff and technology at Casema, and identified a more flexible systems architecture and process harmonization - across business units, employee functions and technology - as key success factors.

As product stovepiping had led to complexity and duplication, one of Casema's key objectives became an enterprise-wide unification of as much as possible while laying the foundation for the future.

This included reducing the number of systems in operation; maximizing reuse of existing human and technological resources; introducing an effective Customer Value Management program; offering expanded channel management; and reducing time to market for new value-added services

Together, Casema and CGI defined an integrated road map and long-term strategies for improving operational efficiency and established a strategy for enterprise integration and customer relationship management (CRM). The first part of the road map called for increased accessibility of the call centre; unification of customer data; automated customer processes; and set and measured process targets These steps were prioritized based on Casema's immediate business needs, to secure early returns on the way to achieving the overall business objectives.

Fundamental to achieving both short and long-term business objectives was the identification of the right components to be used. Aided by CGI's detailed evaluation, Casema chose market leading CRM and billing platforms to ensure consistent treatment of its customers. To help leverage existing information by the most efficient means possible, enterprise application integration (EAI) software was selected to tie together the new component-based architecture, implemented with the help of CGI's award-winning EAI methodology.

While the initial phases of the project were focused on quick wins and new systems implementation and integration, Casema's long-term goal is to ensure a return on investment in new software. As a result, Casema is keen to implement enterprise-wide business processes that support end-to-end customer service.

Integration of the CRM solution with back-end systems ensures that all customer-related data is accurate, up to date, and available for easy access. As a result, customers receive intelligent and consistent service every time, regardless of the customer contact channel. By ensuring superior customer service and a proactive approach to its customers, Casema greatly reduces the risk of customer churn.

The Results
The bottom line benefits that Casema has realized include:

• Immediate cost savings - Significant cost savings resulting from reduced processing time due to streamlined processes. For example, the time to complete an address change was slashed from 25 minutes to less than 5 minutes. Expanding the IVR capabilities has helped customers manage their accounts without in-person phone contacts to the call centre, further cutting costs.
• One face to the customer - A unified company image that is consistent, intelligent and individual across product lines enables better customer care and troubleshooting.
• Upside revenue potential - Integrated systems and a centralized customer database result not only in operational efficiency but also in the ability to cross-sell and up-sell new value-added services, and ensure a higher response to direct marketing efforts.
• Rapid deployment of innovative products - Enabled by the introduction of a robust EAI methodology, the proportion of Casema's revenue derived from value-added services will rise significantly in the next few years.
• Future flexibility/scalability - The flexibility inherent in the new integrated system ensures the capacity to accommodate rapidly evolving market demands for new value-added services, cost effectively.