As organisations look to extract greater value from CRM investments, aligning technology with real-world user needs has become critical to long-term success and adoption. Heath Huxtable, CEO at Braintree, a South Africa-based Microsoft-focused CRM consultancy and implementation partner, tells us how early and ongoing collaboration with end-users, a focus on standard-first design and the intelligent use of AI-driven capabilities, help ensure Microsoft-based CRM platforms deliver measurable ROI while supporting sustainable growth.

Heath Huxtable, CEO at Braintree

How does Braintree work closely with end-users to understand their operational challenges and cocreate a CRM roadmap that delivers immediate value while supporting long-term growth?

The core tenet of our approach is that we don’ t just deploy a product; we deploy a solution. To do this effectively, we engage with the business – incorporating end-users – long before the deployment process begins. This allows us to understand their specific pain points and operational challenges, ensuring the solution is designed not just for their current needs, but for their future vision. We aim to be part of the IT strategy for every organisation on an on-going basis. By establishing a‘ radar process’ or heat map of their long-term goals, we can assimilate that information and devise strategies that support their five-to-10-year outlook.

This ensures we aren’ t just delivering immediate value but are positioned to help them transition into their next generation of business growth.

How does Braintree engage with end-users early in a CRM project to ensure the solution aligns with how teams actually work day to day?

Upfront engagement with a subset of end-users is a non-negotiable part of our process. Unlike mission-critical systems like ERPs, CRM is often viewed as administrative, meaning that if you don’ t get the user experience right, the risk of low adoption is high. To make the system relevant and entrenched, we must secure end-user buy-in by making them part of the design process. We have learned that relying solely on high-level directives, such as those from a CIO

The core tenet of our approach is that we don’ t just deploy a product; we deploy a solution.

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