Complaints and Returns Management 
Purpose
You can use this business scenario to process customer complaints within your sales and service organizations. A complaint is an expression of dissatisfaction that a customer makes in relation to a service or product. If a customer returns a product without first making a complaint, this is a return.
You can use complaints management in your company to represent the entire complaints process from recording a complaint, the technical analysis and relevant follow-up process steps, through to the statistical evaluation.
Within the context of the following business scenarios, complaints in SAP CRM can be processed using the following channels of communication:
· In the Interaction Center, in the Complaint Management with Interaction Center business scenario
· In E-Service, in the Complaints and Returns Management in E-Commerce business scenario
· In the mobile client applications for Handheld using the Field Complaints Management with Mobile Service for Handheld business scenario
The following complaints management components ensure efficient processing:
· Complaints Processing:
¡ You can create complaints with reference to a sales transaction or service process, service order, confirmation, service contract, in-house repair order, or CRM billing document. This simplifies the creation of complaints since all of the data (for example, partners, products, quantities, and prices) is copied from the preceding document (copying control). It is also possible to create complaints without reference to a preceding document.
¡ You have the option of creating links to documents in existing complaints documents. You can refer to CRM business transaction documents, billing documents, or documents in integrated systems. Referencing is supported at header and item level.
¡ An automatic warranty check informs you about whether or not a warranty exists. You can use the warranty information to decide what action should be taken in response to a complaint. If, for example, the warranty allows a refund in the case of a defective product, you can immediately create a credit memo.
¡ You can use the status function to track complaints processing (status tracking).
· Logistics integration: You monitor and track products that are returned, or replacement products that are delivered.
· Escalation management: A valid service contract can be assigned to each complaints item. Assured response times are determined based on the Service Level Agreements (SLA) defined in the contract. The times determined by the system enable the monitoring and prompt escalation of overdue complaints.
· Defect tracking: You can define your own catalogs with damage codes and reasons. You can access these catalogs from the complaint document. Predefined damage codes make it easier for you to enter complaints, whilst giving you an option for evaluating products, customers, and reasons for complaint with the aim of preventing further complaints by identifying the defect causes.
· Task management: You can plan, track and process tasks relating to the complaint, such as assigning responsible employees.
Prerequisites
Business Partner |
SAP Application Component |
Configuration |
Provider |
SAP CRM 4.0 SAP BW 3.10 CONTENT SAP R/3 4.6C |
Use SAP Solution Manager |
Process Flow
...
The customer calls the service organization to complain about a service performed, or a product delivered.
The agent enters the customer name and creates a complaint. He or she enters the subject of the complaint and complaint reason in the relevant input fields.
The agent takes steps to satisfy the customer as quickly as possible. The complaints transaction offers him or her a whole range of options for action. The agent can, for example, authorize a credit memo for the customer, trigger the return delivery of a product and the simultaneous provision of a replacement, or ensure that a field service employee deals with the problem.
SAP CRM saves both the complaint subject and the reason for complaint, which the service center agent usually selects from a predefined catalog. It also saves actions, such as the credit memo, substitute delivery, or returns request. This makes it easy to identify the weak spots during the subsequent service analysis, and enables appropriate steps to be taken to remedy this.
To measure customer satisfaction following the processing of the complaint, an agent calls the customer and questions him or her in regard to this. The responses are stored in the system.
The business processes run as follows:
2.
Inbound Delivery
Processing
3.
Outbound Delivery
Processing
5.
Billing