For years, Vinson Process Controls, a strategic Emerson Partner, relied on a host of legacy systems and disconnected tools to manage customer data. To keep growing and delivering for customers, they needed a unified CRM to coordinate resources, supply actionable insights, track progress and gain greater visibility into customer needs. They engaged SalesProcess360 and eVerge, an Alithya company, to translate their vision into reality.
Challenges
Disorganized Sales Process
- Lack of a Dedicated CRM for Sales
Vinson did not have a dedicated CRM system for sales management, relying instead on a patchwork of tools including Microsoft Teams, Smart Sheets and Trello to manage company initiatives. Existing legacy systems lacked full adoption, leading to inconsistent usage and limited effectiveness.
- Inconsistent Call Logging and Team Selling
Sales activities such as call logging and team collaboration were inconsistent, and leads were often trapped in silos rather than shared across teams.
- Ineffective Account and Territory Handoffs
Both planned and unplanned account or territory transitions were unsupported, with non-standardized materials and insufficient documentation of customer interactions. Vinson didn’t have a comprehensive view of customer engagement or follow-up actions taken by sales and service personnel, leading to gaps in customer experience and accountability.
Fragmented Data
- Siloed Customer Data
Vinson did not have a unified platform to view individual performance against established metrics and expectations. Customer information was fragmented across business units, with no consolidated 360-degree view, resulting in missed opportunities and difficult coordination.
- No Single Source of Truth
The business lacked a reliable, unified source for tracking KPIs and credit, making it difficult to consistently measure performance across the organization.
- Inability to Create On-Demand Reports
The organization struggled to extract relevant data for third-party principal business reviews. Salespeople also require the ability to look at Major Accounts from the highest entity down to the individual site level for orders and quotations. This 360-degree view requires tight CRM integration with the ERP and Quotation tool.
Limited Accountability
Vinson had no effective mechanism to ensure accountability across multiple offices, sales support resources and sales channels (direct, indirect, matrix), including the management of quotes, contacts, opportunities, and leads.
Solution: A CRM That Everyone Would Use
“We took on what was a tall order going from no CRM to a fully functional deployed CRM in a very short period of time. This was only achieved by working with a committed team and a total vision to start with the end in mind.” – Vinson Sales Manager Caleb Morris
The first step was assembling a team with the right mix of expertise and influence. Vinson carefully selected heavy users, early adopters and group leaders to ensure broad representation and buy-in. Super Users provide front-line support at each field office. The project was anchored by a three-pronged partnership between SalesProcess360, eVerge, and Vinson.
Expert Design and User Experience
Brian Gardner, Founder of SalesProcess360, took on the role of “interior designer.” With 25 years of experience in industrial automation sales, Brian expertly guided Vinson through the journey, scope of work (SOW), vendor evaluations, process and system needs. He also included testing and user training, and then designed the dashboards to tie it all together.
As Monte Pearson, Vice President of Vinson, noted: “Dashboards are where account managers live. If the data integrity is not solid, or if the key metrics are not visible, we have a problem.”
Brian’s approach ensured that the CRM would meet the evolving needs of users and drive adoption.
Integration and Implementation
eVerge, an Alithya company, served as the “general contractor,” translating business needs into technical solutions. Shay Sanders, Alithya’s Senior Director of CX Cloud Services, said: “We helped build a true sales productivity tool on the Salesforce platform, which included the robust connectivity interfaces between the CRM and ERP, this included a legacy quotation program, and other back-office and legacy systems.” This integration was crucial for streamlining workflows and ensuring data consistency and continuity across platforms for all users accommodating a multi-BU and third-party taxonomy.
Leadership, Oversight, and Support
Caleb Morris, Sales Manager, assumed the role of CEO for CRM, supported by Pearson, the executive sponsor. Working with SalesProcess360 and eVerge, they signed off on the CRM Roadmap for Success using a phased approach that drove execution from concept to rollout in just nine months.
“We carefully selected individuals in our company who would represent different roles, business units, and operating regions. The team consisted of invested stakeholders in the final product and therefore we wanted them as part of the evaluation team and ultimately becoming super users supporting the rollout. This team was crucial in getting us across the finish line,” Caleb said.
Consolidated Account Data for Accountability
Vinson played host to 28,000 different Bill To and Ship To locations in the ERP. These entities and sites were compressed into 2,800 Parent /Child relationships. This visibility allows targeted coaching and KPI accountability. Brian said: “We needed to have the actual sites the sales team were working to document all activities including transactions, touchpoints, opportunities and quotes. This was a big lift but was well worth it in the end.”
Multilayer Taxonomy to Accommodate Sales Pursuits
The two-level taxonomy (manufacturer and part numbers) in Vinson’s ERP system would not support future needs. Vinson needed middle layers of taxonomy to link touchpoints, leads and opportunities. For example, when pursuing an opportunity, they may not have the part number yet but need to associate the product family (middle layer of the taxonomy) to the opportunity. SalesProcess360 helped Vinson build out the right structure.
Live IT Help Desk and Ticketing System
To address user issues efficiently, the team established an IT Help Desk. This structure allowed them to quickly resolve urgent matters while prioritizing longer-term fixes for more complex challenges.
The Results
We started with a SalesProcess360 CRM Audit with the core team members, looking closely at processes at each stage of the selling cycle. Brian leveraged his 20 years as a CRM architect to work with Vinson and eVerge to document gaps across the board. We also considered gaps that may affect performance in the future.
That process resulted in a roadmap for Phase 1, which was completed. This was the framework for dashboards, data organization (categories, taxonomy, parent-child accounts, etc.), team selling and more. Testing scripts were written and tested to prove connection and functionality, including with the quotation system and ERP.
The benefits of Phase 1 were:
Stronger customer connections
With a true 360-degree view of every customer, Vinson can track inquiries, share field knowledge and follow opportunities from initial contact to order fulfillment. This 360-degree visibility ensures every team member is a consultant aligned and responsive to customer needs.
Empowered teams and better collaboration
By unifying Vinson’s sales and support functions on a common platform, Vinson broke down siloes and fostered real-time collaboration. Account and regional managers, business development and inside sales all have access to the data.
Cultural transformation
CRM adoption has become part of Vinson’s culture. Sales teams are spending less time on administrative tasks, going from tool to tool. They are spending more time engaging with customers, thanks to efficient processes and tailored dashboards. As a result, Vinson has increased selling time and improved customer engagement.
Outcome-based selling
The teams are better equipped to deliver consultative, purposeful solutions. By coordinating resources across business units and regions, Vinson’s team helps customers better understand and benefit from its value proposition.
What’s Next: Phase 2 Improvements
In Phase 2, Vinson has significant opportunity for tuning and improving the system, including:
Better data utilization
Continue to actively mine CRM data and ensure important insights are routed to the appropriate teams for timely and effective action.
Continued improvement of internal resources
Provide greater ownership and faster response to IT help desk tickets.
Lead-focused, results-based coaching
Increase emphasis on coaching sales teams toward lead prioritization and customer-centric purposeful selling strategies.
Role-specific dashboards
During Phase 1, the team completed custom dashboards tailored to the needs of each user role. The next area of focus is training and coaching the team to leverage their dashboards providing focus and improved customer experience. We promote the “Why” and use the dashboards to drive better business decisions.
A stronger culture of training and coaching
Training and coaching are critical for adoption. This is not one-and-done training, but a consistent cadence of ongoing sessions supported by coaching. At Phase 1, basic training and coaching was completed monthly for six months.
Structured onboarding
Strengthen onboarding processes with a digital playbook and a training schedule to accelerate user adoption. When a territory needs to be transitioned, a digital playbook enables the process to be shortened to a matter of days vs. months.
Integrate CRM into company sales culture
Make CRM usage a core part of company culture by establishing account strategies for team selling and the entire portfolio. Establish a quotation tool that can show different business units for team selling. Focus on expanding wallet share by analyzing account as a 360-degree customer.
Plan for AI integration
Develop a long-term strategy for adopting AI technologies within the CRM ecosystem, with the goal of unlocking future value and enhanced decision-making capabilities.
“In just nine months, the CRM initiative has fundamentally transformed our internal operations and customer relationship, setting the stage for sustained growth and innovation. The CRM platform is not just a solution for today. It is a framework for tomorrow with the groundwork laid for AI integration and ongoing enhancements. We are poised to unlock even greater value for our customers and internal support teams. Choosing to invest in the power of a properly built CRM is less about buying a software solution and more like choosing a way of life for your company. The choice has implications that stretch far beyond the capital effort, and well into the day-to-day operations of your sales team.” – Monte Pearson, Vice President, Vinson Process Controls