Customer knowledge management: Micro, small and medium - Sized enterprises in Bogotá - Colombia

Abstract

The idea of Customer Knowledge Management (CKM) is quite new, especially linked to operations within an organization. In this context, it is required to recall 80’s worldwide concepts as Customer Relation Ship (CRM) or Customer Lifetime Value (CLV). CRMs were complex and focused on large companies in the 90’s. At the beginning, CRMs worked through connections in infrastructures; nonetheless, from 2010 it was normal to use Cloud Computing versions. CRMs arose in Colombia firstly in large companies, now it is available for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME). There are approximately 2.5 million MSME operating in a competitive environment, pursuing their market share. Besides, customer loyalty appears to be a difficult issue as well. Hence, the present paper aims to identify the Customer Knowledge Management Strategies developed by Colombian MSME. The methodology incorporates primary data, through a validated instrument by experts. Research results confirm that MSME work on customer loyalty strategies without systematization or measurement technology. Thus, an opportunity emerges for MSME regarding the use of cloud computing or CKM.