Creating a ring of commitment to customers

Customers are widely demanding that organizations be committed to achieving higher and higher standards, in return for their loyal support. Information technology (IT) can potentially help to achieve this commitment, and we examine some successful cases. Yet, for most organizations, the implementation of such strategies is fraught with problems. Databases which should be gold mines degenerate into dustbins, and inter‐departmental strife tears apart the organization's commitments. We examine how organizations can negotiate binding commitments to customers, which cross departmental boundaries, and draw some lessons about the successful use of IT to support organization's marketing objectives.