Trying to decide between a CRM (Customer Relation Management) product and a SRMS (Stakeholder Relationship Management System) can be tricky if you haven’t been exposed to any of these types of software before. You may not be sure if you need a stakeholder database or what the difference is between the various consultation tools out there. Or perhaps you’re wondering if you should stick to Excel as it’s worked well for you in the past? How about all the fancy new products popping up all over the place, focusing on one type of consultation, be it mapping or online forums, where do they fit in?

I’ve put together this simple flowchart to help you navigate through some of the basic considerations. It is looking at needs at a fairly high level, in order to keep it simple…and readable!

A few brief points of explanation:

• Qualitative analysis refers to the need to analyse and report on text-rich data such as responses to open text questions in a survey, or formal submissions
• I’ve distinguished between Basic SRMS which don’t offer true qualitative analysis and more Advanced SRMS that have specific functions and reports for qualitative data
• I’ve distinguished between a CRM and SRMS in terms of how well each can track and analyse the content of interactions with stakeholders

Download a copy of the flowchart here.

Let me know what you think – is this helpful for navigating through a high-level needs assessment of the various tools available? What other considerations have driven your decision on the right tool for your stakeholder management needs in the past?

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