CRM Success Factors in Software Services firm: A Case Study Analysis

This study is undertaken to gain better understanding of Customer Relationship Management (CRM) success factors in software service and Information Technology (IT) companies. The literature on CRM gives the impression of being inconsistent. The objective is to uncover the success factors associated with a CRM project. A case study involving a Bangalore based IT company which had implemented CRM, was done. Semi-structured interview method was adopted for gathering data. The key finding is that effective leadership is critical for CRM success. The study confirms that the people, process and technology factors are crucial for a CRM program. IT companies are emerging significantly all over the world especially in Asia. These companies operate in a very competitive market and there is a need to distinguish a service from the competition, for survival. The effective use of CRM systems to improve service, performance, customer satisfaction and productivity is essential. However, the success factors for CRM in the service industry have not yet been studied. The value of this paper is that it illustrates how a case study approach can be used to understand the real CRM success factor in software service firms. Keywords: Software service industry, CRM success factor, Implementation, Case study investigatio

Business Drivers for CRM Adoption in the Software Services Sector: A Case Study Analysis

This study was undertaken to gain better understanding of the business drivers for CRM adoption in software service companies. The literature on CRM gives the impression of being inconsistent. The objective is to uncover the market trend and reasons for CRM adoption. A case study analysis involving three Bangalore based software service firms which implemented CRM, was done. Semi-structured interview method was used for gathering data. The key finding of this research is that competition and customer retention are the major motivators for a firm to adopt CRM. Software services companies are fast emerging all over the world especially in South Asia. These companies operate in a very competitive market and there is a need to differentiate a service from the competition, for endurance. One of these differentiators could be the adoption of CRM to improve service, performance, customer satisfaction and productivity. However, the process of CRM adoption in the service industry has not yet been studied. The value of this paper is that it illustrates how a case study approach can be used to understand the real market scenarios and identify business drivers for CRM adoption by software service firms. Keywords: Software service industry, CRM implementation, Key drivers, Case study investigatio

CRM Implementation in a Software Services firm: a Case Study Analysis

This study is undertaken to gain better understanding of CRM implementation in software service companies. The literature on CRM gives the impression of being inconsistent. The objective is to uncover the process of CRM implementation. A case study involving a Bangalore based software service firm which had implemented CRM, was done. Semi-structured interview method was adopted for gathering data. The key finding is that effective leadership is critical for CRM success. Also, findings have shown that CRM implementations have been successful and thus achieved corporate satisfaction. The study confirms that the people, process and technology factors are crucial for a CRM program. Software Services companies are emerging significantly all over the world especially in South Asia. These companies operate in a very competitive market and there is a need to distinguish a service from the competition, for endurance. The effective use of CRM systems to improve service, performance, customer satisfaction and productivity is fundamental. However, the process of CRM implementation in the service industry has not yet been studied. The paper outlines a guideline for a flexible CRM program. The value of this paper is that it illustrates how a case study approach can be used to understand the real implementation process by software service firms. Keywords: Software service industry, CRM implementation, Key drivers, Case study investigatio

The mineralogy of newly formed dust in active galactic nuclei

The tori around active galactic nuclei (AGN) are potential formation sites for large amounts of dust, and they may help resolve the so-called dust budget crisis at high redshift. We investigate the dust composition in 53 of the 87 Palomar Green (PG) quasars showing the 9.7 micron silicate feature in emission. By simultaneously fitting the mid-infrared spectroscopic features and the underlying continuum, we estimate the mass fraction in various amorphous and crystalline dust species. We find that the dust consists predominantly of alumina and amorphous silicates, with a small fraction in crystalline form. The mean crystallinity is 8 +/- 6%, with more than half of the crystallinities greater than 5%, well above the upper limit determined for the Galaxy. Higher values of crystallinity are found for higher oxide fractions and for more luminous sources.Comment: 24 pages, 9 figures, accepted for publication in Planetary and Space Scienc

Cancer Loyalty Card Study (CLOCS): protocol for an observational case-control study focusing on the patient interval in ovarian cancer diagnosis

Introduction: Ovarian cancer is the eighth most common cancer in women worldwide, and about 1 in 5 women with ovarian cancer do not receive treatment, because they are too unwell by the time they are diagnosed. Symptoms of ovarian cancer are non-specific or can be associated with other common conditions, and women experiencing these symptoms have been shown to self-manage them using over-the-counter medication. Results from a recent proof-of-concept study suggest there may be an increase in the purchases of painkillers and indigestion medication 10–12 months before ovarian cancer diagnosis. We propose a case–control study, as part of a larger project called the Cancer Loyalty Card Study (CLOCS), to investigate whether a significant change in medication purchases could be an indication for early signs of ovarian cancer, using data already collected through store loyalty cards. Methods and analysis: Using a retrospective case–control design, we aim to recruit 500 women diagnosed with ovarian cancer (cases) and 500 women without ovarian cancer (controls) in the UK who hold a loyalty card with at least one participating high street retailer. We will use pre-existing loyalty card data to compare past purchase patterns of cases with those of controls. In order to assess ovarian cancer risk in participants and their purchase patterns, we will collect information from participants on ovarian cancer risk factors and clinical data including symptoms experienced before diagnosis from recruited women with ovarian cancer. Ethics and dissemination: CLOCS was reviewed and approved by the North West-Greater Manchester South Research Ethics Committee (19/NW/0427). Study outcomes will be disseminated through academic publications, the study website, social media and a report to the research sites that support the study once results are published

Arsenic exposure and outcomes of antimonial treatment in visceral leishmaniasis patients in bihar, India:a retrospective cohort study

Funding: This work was supported by a Clinical PhD Fellowship to MRP (090665) and a Principal Research Fellowship to AHF (079838) from the Wellcome Trust (http://www.wellcome.ac.uk). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Dental Fluorosis: its prevalence and sternness in Dindigul district

Background: Dental Fluorosis is still a depreciated condition which lacks felicitous awareness among people. Fluorosis is an endemic problem affecting different parts of the country. This condition is generally perceived in places where there is excessive amount of fluoride in the drinking water. Clinical Dental fluorosis is a biomarker of exposure to fluoride. Hence, this study was conducted among 1505 school children of age 3-5 years to find the existence and severity of dental fluorosis in Dindigul district, one of the endemic areas of fluorosis. Materials & Methods: A cross sectional study was carried out in 1505 children of age group 3-15 years from two schools in Dindigul. The schools were selected by random sampling. All the students were screened for presence or absence of dental fluorosis and graded based on Dean’s fluorosis index. The children were divided into 9 groups based on their residential areas. Water samples were collected from the 9 areas and fluoride levels were assessed. Results: An overall prevalence of 43.05% of dental fluorosis was observed among the study population. It was also observed that a high prevalence rate of 47.25% of fluorosis was prevalent in subjects using bore well water as drinking source. The levels of fluoride in drinking water ranged from 2.2ppm – 2.9 ppm.  In our study Dental fluorosis was found to have a positive correlation with age, source of drinking water used and level of fluoride in drinking water. There is a gradual increase in severity of dental fluorosis with increase in levels of fluoride present in drinking water. Conclusion: We conducted this study to assess if, children living in endemic areas of fluorosis consuming water containing more than 1.5ppm of fluoride are at increased risk of developing dental fluorosis and the same has been reflected in our results. Skeletal and dental fluorosis should be managed by providing surface water from nearby dams if any. Rain water harvesting can be done and provided as source of drinking water. Water sources which are good as per WHO guidelines should be used for drinking and cooking purposes

Drug Susceptibility in Leishmania Isolates Following Miltefosine Treatment in Cases of Visceral Leishmaniasis and Post Kala-Azar Dermal Leishmaniasis

Resistance to antimonials has emerged as a major hurdle to the treatment and control of VL and led to the introduction of Miltefosine as first line treatment in the Indian subcontinent. MIL is an oral drug with a long half-life, and it is feared that resistance may emerge rapidly, threatening control efforts under the VL elimination program. There is an urgent need for monitoring treatment efficacy and emergence of drug resistance in the field. In a set of VL/PKDL cases recruited for MIL treatment, we observed comparable drug susceptibility in pre- and post-treatment isolates from cured VL patients while MIL susceptibility was significantly reduced in isolates from VL relapse and PKDL cases. The PKDL isolates showed higher tolerance to MIL as compared to VL isolates. Both VL and PKDL isolates were uniformly susceptible to PMM. MIL transporter genes LdMT/LdRos3 were previously reported as potential resistance markers in strains in which MIL resistance was experimentally induced. The point mutations and the down-regulated expression of these transporters observed in vitro could, however, not be verified in natural populations of parasites. LdMT/LdRos3 genes therefore, do not appear to be suitable markers so far for monitoring drug susceptibility in clinical leishmanial isolates