1) Customer Relationship Management at Capital One

The case illustrates how CRM can be translated into strategy, organizational design, hiring, marketing processes, and IT infrastructure of a company.

Suggested Preparation questions:

* How would you define CRM as implemented at Capital One * What are key CRM activities and processes at Capital One? You may prepare a table as the one below * What similar activities/ decisions/ situations can be found in other industries/ at competitors? * Does CMR create competitive advantage for Capital one? How? Why? * How do CRM activities differ from one customer segment to another? * What are futures challenges for CRM at Capital One? * -------------------------------------------------
How has Capital One advanced their CRM strategy/ tactics since 2003 (=date when the case has been published)? Please check www.capitalone.co.uk

INTRODUCTION

Capital One is a US based bank holding company, created in 1988 by Richard Fairbank and Nigel Morris, specialized in credit cards offers.
This company is particularly interesting from a customer relationship management thanks to the aim of Mrs Fairbank and Morris to create an information-based company. In effect, they took advantage of the situation in the 1980’s concerning the market of credit cards that suffered from a lack of customization offers.
However, contraring to their competitors, they understood a very important point: “Credit cards are not banking, they are information”; and this is the point that made their competitiveness in this period.

ANALYSING We can understand easily that Capital One was the first company in banking to integrate customer relationship management in its strategy in order to improve its portfolio of products and services, so in order to be competitive by proposing “customized” offers to its customers. This declared the beginning of credit card’s market competitiveness as we know it nowadays.

The