{"id":95,"date":"2017-01-02T03:31:30","date_gmt":"2017-01-02T03:31:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.originatemoredeals.com\/?p=95"},"modified":"2017-01-02T03:32:19","modified_gmt":"2017-01-02T03:32:19","slug":"technology-is-changing-how-investment-professionals-source-deals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.originatemoredeals.com\/index.php\/2017\/01\/02\/technology-is-changing-how-investment-professionals-source-deals\/","title":{"rendered":"Technology is changing how investment professionals source deals"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"Today\u2019s investment professionals are relying on technology more than ever to help manage the increasing amount of information streaming in from distinct sources.\u00a0 Investment opportunities, referral sources, CIMs, limited partners, NDAs, portfolio company reports, financing sources, industry contacts \u2013 the list only continues to expand.<\/em><\/p>\n

I\u00a0recently conducted a survey of dozens of private equity professionals, investment bankers, and other business executives to better understand how they use technology to keep organized, automate mundane tasks, and hold members of their team accountable.<\/em><\/p>\n

Major Takeaways<\/h2>\n

\"0416_ForumArticleCharts01\"<\/p>\n

About two-thirds of those surveyed use a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system \u2013 one of the most common data management solutions.\u00a0 Their usage is often very frequent with over 70% of those that use a CRM accessing the system multiple times throughout the day.<\/p>\n

Salesforce was the dominant platform with about one-third of respondents confirming the usage.\u00a0 Interesting was the large diversity in platforms that firms use.\u00a0 Over 15 different platforms were noted in the survey including DealCloud, Microsoft CRM, SugarSync, ACT!, and Podio.<\/p>\n

For the one-third that currently don\u2019t use a CRM, the number one reason cited for not using a system was the lack of knowledge to make a buying decision.\u00a0 Only 15% of nonusers said they didn\u2019t believe the value exceeded the cost.<\/p>\n

Firms spend a considerable amount of money on systems with per user per month fees ranging from $10 to $300.\u00a0 The broad range had considerable correlation to CRM brand.<\/p>\n

\"0416_ForumArticleCharts03\"<\/a>And even with all of that cost, only about 60% of respondents said they were satisfied with their existing system.\u00a0 User satisfaction had correlation to several factors, but most significant was the ease of the original implementation.<\/p>\n

Regarding ease of implementation, about half of those surveyed had little difficulty while the other half had tremendous difficulty.\u00a0 There was little correlation between difficulty of implementation and the brand of CRM which was an interesting result.\u00a0 Instead implementation was most negatively impacted by the following three factors:<\/p>\n

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  1. Lack of technical skills required to properly implement.<\/li>\n
  2. Staff preference for existing systems and methods.<\/li>\n
  3. Lack of commitment and engagement from senior leadership.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    \"0416_ForumArticleCharts05\"<\/a>Unsurprisingly, less than 35% of those surveyed that experienced a poor CRM implementation were currently satisfied with their system post-implementation.<\/p>\n

    When participants were asked what they would change about their current system the responses were broad.\u00a0 Many cited the desire for better reporting, more integration with other systems, more automation around frequent activities, and a better mobile experience.<\/p>\n

    When asked what advice they\u2019d give those currently exploring CRM options the responses were insightful:<\/p>\n