Summary
It's clear that the professional services field hasn't just packed up and faded away. Part of that is due to the continued existence of on-premises CRM implementations, which many analysts say will always have a place in the industry. With the emergence of Web services, consultancies are reshaping their offerings to meet the changing frontier. Matthew Goldman, VP at Gartner, says that he sees a noticeable reorientation within consultant services. With SaaS solutions on the rise, the need for systems integrators has significantly declined. Consultants now spend less time technically configuring an actual implementation and more time on consulting. Aside from helping to spawn a rise in business consulting, SaaS has shortened each implementation job, a factor that has forced many consultancies to adjust their operations. Consultants and analysts say the best of the firms pitching in on a CRM implementation -- SaaS or not -- are those trying to develop a positive customer experience.
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Extract
The New Breed of Crm Consultant
When Mark Benioff cofounded Salesforce.com, in 1999, he loudly declared that the software-as-a-service (SaaS) model would drive into obsolescence the exorbitant installation-and-maintenance fees once commanded by consultancies. On-demand software could be up and running in a matter of days without putting a huge dent in budgets. SaaS vendors have stuck to the promise in many respects, providing lowcost, viable options for even the largest of enterprises. But pity the poor consultants! (Well, OK-maybe not.) Seriously, though: How are consultants faring in the changing software landscape? In the Age of SaaS, has the need for consultants evaporated alongside expensive license fees?
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