Customer Relationship Management in EU Project Application: Research Study of Agronet System Berislav Andrlic, PhD Marko Sostar, PhD Anton Devcic, PhD Polytechnic in Pozega EU Office of Pozega Town Panora Pozega 34000 Pozega, Vukovarska 17 34000 Pozega, Holy Trinity Square 34000 Pozega, Zupanijska 9 bandrlic@vup.hr marko.rada@gmail.com anton.devcic@gmail.com relationship management is to introduce customers to help them get some additional benefits. Customer connectivity assumes that customer needs are fulfilled Abstract as customers want it, as customers want and at the time they want it to become a key source of competitive Customer Relationship Management is a edge for the enterprise or government institution. fundamental determinant of the business With Croatia joining the European Union, it is philosophy in economy, especially in field of easier to approach Croatian companies in the European rural development, so paper will give key market, the interest of companies from the European definitions of this term including advantages Union and beyond for Croatian companies is enhanced, and disadvantages. Furthermore, this scientific access to some new knowledge and technologies, as paper will give an overview of Agronet system, well as structural and cohesion funds. In this regard, which is a new platform in the system of Internet technology has helped in the application of application to the European funds, with which projects in the field of agriculture and rural applicants may submit their applications in virtual, development, in particular through the Agronet system, electronic way to receive financial support for their developed by Ministry of Agriculture. family farm. The whole Agronet system is introduced by Ministry of Agriculture in Croatia, and has goal to make applications of projects and 2. Theoretical background of Customer use of funds, more efficient and more effective, and Relationship Management consequently, to achieve successful projects and withdrawn EU funds in bigger amount. For the first time, the term Customer relationship management appears in 1983 by author Berry where it Key words: Agronet system, EU project, strategy defines it as: marketing relations, attracting, retaining, and improving customer relationships. Further development is also conditioned by the growth and 1. Introduction development of information technology. [Ber83] In basic conceptual determination, customer In 1990 Grönroos, author explains it as a business relationship management is an approach to e-business relationship that directs marketing to the development management that seeks to increase its competitive of long-term relationships with customers and other ability and strengthen its market position, based on stakeholders. The same author redefines the previously understanding customer behavior and influencing them defined term in the following statement: Relationship through long-term mutual communication, with the goal marketing is a tool for planning, developing and of attracting new and (or) retain existing customers, improving relationships with clients and other partners, increase their loyalty, and increase profitability of the with profits, in order to meet the goals of the partners company. Customer relationship managenent rests on involved, achieved through mutual exchange and the fact that clients are the company's most valuable fulfillment of promises. [Grö90]. According to this asset. It is considered that the research and research, the basis of customer relationship understanding of their wishes and needs is the starting management today is the knowledge of the clients so point for developing a business relationship that the company "delivers" greater value, so customer management strategy with clients. relationship management is one of the fundamental and Customer Relationship Management is a strategic determinants of the marketing philosophy of fundamental determinant of the marketing philosophy business. of business. It places the customer first and his Given the strategic level of customer relationship satisfaction so that all processes within the company are management, it can be said that this is a strategic directed towards the client. The basis for customer process of identifying and selecting clients that the company can deliver in the most profitable way by creating interaction between the company and the implemented strategy contains a database of all selected clients in order to optimize the company's customers and their desires, needs, habits of buying, current and future value for clients. purchasing products, etc. The processing and analysis Pizzani in his article in 2005 explains that once system of information comes from the information that is already implemented in large banking institutions, its companies use to achieve such a personal contact with implementation also begins in the area of asset clients. Detailed analysis of the company's database management and private banking. [Piz05] enables software to automate certain business activities. A group of authors Rootman, Tait, Bosch in 2008, Automated customer service and support is a business in their article, conducted an empirical study of the influence of employees on customer satisfaction in function that, in addition to cost savings and personal banks. They concluded that there are two essential contact creation with customers, aims to minimize characteristics of employees that depend on customer errors and standardize support elements and services. satisfaction, which is the employee's expertise and their Automated sales support support significantly attitude toward clients. [Roo08] contributes to greater customer satisfaction, leads to In further analysis, meaning of abbreviation will cost reductions and faster customer demand processing. be explained. Regardless of the type of economic activity, there are many advantages that are common to all systems where C (ustomer). The first goal of every company is to it is successfully implemented this system, such as win the client. Clients have in the meantime gone [Mil11]: through the process of transformation: starting with the generic role of clients, in which they were initially a  Increasing the efficiency of the call center, kind of business partner, to transform into the most  Easier implementation of marketing important subject in terms of valuing, re-examining and campaigns, improving the company's output. In any case,  Increase of total revenues, companies are trying to anticipate the potential benefits  Reduction of costs, of applying system.  Greater quality of service, R (elationship). This component is complementary  Increasing the competitive advantage, to the above. The biggest challenge facing system is to  Actuality of customer data, create additional value in relation to clients. The  Increasing Customer Satisfaction, relationship with the clients must have a long-term  Increasing efficiency in routine tasks, character that needs to be dynamically positively  Reduction of marketing and support costs, transformed.  More efficient monitoring of sales teams, M (anagement). Since the relationship with clients  The necessity of team work, should not be done by itself, there must be a  Increasing the efficiency of all communication management process in which these relationships will channels, be directed to each other.  Facilitate key system performance monitoring. The mentioned authors believe that the model and methodology of sales and customer relations will Regardless of the type of economic activity, there are a change and that the new models will be based on the number of common shortcomings, such as: return on investment model.  Failure to Implement - Complexity,  The price of the entire solution, 3. Advantages and disadvantages of  Non-involvement of top management, implementation  Poor planning,  Poor leadership of key teams, Customer relationship system brings many benefits  Fear of employees, in managing customer relationships. The main  Lack of adequate change management, advantage and reason for introducing this system is that  Too large amount of data, enables personal contact with millions of clients. The  The necessity of continuous updating of data - available to member states of the Union. The resources repetition, of these funds are used to reduce the development gap  Dehumanization of the process, between the regions of the Union and to reduce the  Reliance on information technology alone. disparities in the living standards of their residents. [Mir09] 4. EU project application in rural The nominal benefits of the project are above all development programme those measurable benefits resulting from the implementation of financial resources implemented by By joining the European Union, the Republic of project beneficiaries within their project activities, such Croatia became a beneficiary of European funds. In the as the number of educated users, the area of a newly financial period 2014-2020 from the European built facility and the like. The real or actual benefits or Structural and Investment funds (ESI) 10.676 billion damages that a project generates are much harder to euros in total is available for Croatia. Large amounts measure, which is because it is difficult to separate of available funds need large absorption capacity, of them from other indicators, or because it is the result of course, if we want to achieve the greatest possible multiplier effects of the project, which last long after absorption of EU funds. [Ost10] the project is implemented. We talk about the benefits, The absorption of EU funds generally depends on but also the possible damages that a particular project three main determinants, such as macroeconomic, brings, and whether we bring them into relationship financial and administrative, i.e., institutional with the stakeholders affected by the project, we can absorption capacity. Macroeconomic absorption distinguish two types of stakeholders; those to which capacity is important for opening up possibilities for a the project has a direct impact as well as those to which sufficient number of efficient investment opportunities, the project has an indirect impact. It is also always administrative absorption capacity is a key determinant necessary to take into account the fact that there is no of the success of implementation of structural policies absolute interest for each project, ie there is no project of the EU and the financial absorption capacity defines that generates benefit to everyone, on the contrary, a the capacity of co-financing of projects. well-done stakeholder analysis or analysis of Rural areas cover about 80% of the total territory stakeholders will reveal that there is always a group of of the European Union with about 25% of the total stakeholders or at least a stakeholder whose interest is population [Vee05] some project in opposition or contradiction. The role of the state in regional development is When we talk about the capacities needed to very important, especially when it comes to regional attract and use the European Union funds, they are planning and guidance. The orientation of regional divided into three categories: [Zam09] development to optimize development in the areas of regional units and optimization of development as a  Administrative capacity. whole includes the following elements [Kub75]:  Financial capacity.  a system of regional planning,  Macroeconomic capacity.  implementation of regionalization, The administrative capacity primarily relates to  determination of general criteria and principles the ability of the stakeholders individually, but more to for the deployment of production forces, the ability of the system as a whole to carry out the tasks related to the preparation and implementation of  a system of direction of development of all the foreseen and entrusted procedures related to EU economically insufficiently developed areas, funds.  directing the development of cities. 5. Research study of Agronet System in The Structural Funds and the Cohesion Fund are Croatia the "engines" of the realization of the European Union's economic and social cohesion policy and are only On May 26, 2015, the European Commission approved the Rural Development Program of the Republic of Croatia for the period 2014-2020. The  send calls for import and export permissions Decision on approval is the crown of this long-lasting in electronic form process involving local experts, mostly Ministry of  apply projects for EU funding Agriculture Agencies for payments in agriculture, fisheries and rural areas. The rural development program of the Republic of Croatia for the period 2014-2020 worth about EUR 2.4 billion has so far had four changes. The program defined 18 measures aimed at increasing the competitiveness of Croatian agriculture, forestry and processing industry, as well as improving the living and working conditions in rural areas at all. Eligible investments within the measures of the Republic of Croatia's rural development program for the period 2014-2020 were mostly financed by the European Union through the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) while the remainder was co-financed by the State Budget of the Republic of Croatia. In this chapter, there Agronet project application system in Croatia will be explained with main functions and phases of online project application by farmers (users), beacause it is very useful for their agribusiness. Figure 4: Agronet system functions Agronet is an system purposed to communicate with the clients of Paying agency for agriculture, fisheries and rural development with the main goal to form an easier and faster way to respond to the needs and rights. One of the modules of Agronet app is also a module for help to agricultural economies in submitting for supports in agriculture as well as applying projects to be financed from EU funds. According to the rules of direct support programme implementation and specific measures of state support in agriculture in 2018 the submitter fills out a Request for support specifically electronically, through Internet, by using this app. Electronic application designed as a help tool to agricultural and other users in gaining rights to support in agriculture. In Agronet, farmers can: Figure 5: Agronet business plan for farmers  browse through data from the Agricultural Agronet system should be used by farmers in mean registry of easy access to information and funding sources.  fill out electronic forms for direct supports Although, many limitations of the system have a negative effect on the Agronet app image. When we  browse the regulations for gaining right to speak of the problematics of Agronet system, it is support mostly appeared online in submitting projects. Most common problems in the system are:  Slow system function, slow data upload [Grö90] Grönroos, C., Relationship approach to the  Bugs in the system function, system failure marketing function in service context, Journal of Business Research, Vol. 19 No.1, 1990. p. 3-12  Inconsistencies of certain data entry fields [Kub75] Kubović, B.:Regional developmnent,  The system does not support a large data Ekonomski institut, Zagreb, 1975, p. 389. capacity for upload [Mil11]Miletic, D.: Customer relationship management  During the project application, the system is on investment funds market in Croatia, Faculty often in maintenance Varazdin, 2011, p. 23.  During the project application, system is under [Mir09] Mirić, O.:Regional policy, European overload due to a large number of applications movement in Serbia, Beograd, 2009., p. 31.- at the same time 37.  System often does not accept the first entry [Ost10] Osterloh, S. (2010): The Fiscal Consequences data. [Šos14] of EU Cohesion Policy after 2013, approach 12.09.2018., available on Concerning that in Croatia, a majority of elderly http://www.ief.es/documentos/recursos/publica citizens with lower education degree practice ciones/revistas/p su_gasto_publico/57_04.pdf. agriculture, it is questioned how this system is applicable to them in project application. The research [Piz05] Pizzani L., Mutual fund going mainstream, shows that 87% of agriculturists is unsatisfied with this Money Management Executive, Vol. 13 Issue project application method and are more leaned 1, 2005.p 5. towards the traditional approach to project applications [Raj03]Rajola, F.: Customer Relationship Management through written ways and sending through post office. –Organizational and Technological [Šos14]. Perspectives, Springer-Verlag, Berlin – On the base of stated above, it is obvious that the Heidelberg ,2003.,p. 149-150 system needs upgrade and additional editing, because [Roo08] Rootman C., Tait M., Bosch J.: Variables this way it has made it difficult to the agriculturists to influencing the customer relationship reach financial support, the main objective was the management of banks, Journal of Financial opposite. Services Marketing, Vol. 13 Issue 1, 2008., p. 6. Conclusion 52-62 Focusing on a customer is the future of business and [Šos14] Šostar, M., Drvenkar,N:. Financing Limitations EU project application. The introduction of business of Regional Development: Case of Croatia 4th system is aimed at achieving a good organizational International Conference" Vallis Aurea", business environment, which compiles a good and Focus on: Regional & Innovation systematised client base in one place, especially in field Development. 2014. of EU funding. In addition to good connectivity and [Vee05] Veer, M., Tuunter: Rural Tourism in Europe, communication with current and prospective future An exploration of success and failure factors, farmers, there is good coordination, connectivity and Stichting Recreatie, Hague communication between key and major business units using Agronet system in Croatia. [Zam09] Zaman, G., Georgescu, G.: Structural fund absorption: A new challenge for Romania? , Romanian journal of economic forecasting, References No.1, 2009. [Ber83] Berry, L. L., Relationship Marketing. In AMA (Ed.), Emerging Perspectives on Services Marketing, Chicago, 1983. p. 11-14