How long does a CRM implementation take?

What Really Determines the Duration

Data Quality. A well-maintained dataset can be migrated in days. Fifteen years of accumulated Excel spreadsheets with duplicates and inconsistent spellings can take weeks – and this work cannot be done by anyone else because only you know which dataset is correct.

Decision-Making Processes. If every inquiry waits a week for a response, the project duration doubles, regardless of the technology.

Scope of Interfaces. Each connection to an external system brings its own coordination, test data, and error cases.

A Sensible Approach

Not everything at once. The following approach has proven effective:

1. Contacts, companies, and tasks – the core that is worked with daily
2. Sales process with status and evaluation
3. Interfaces to accounting and email
4. Automations as soon as the process is stable in daily operations

After the first step, the team is already working in the system. This is more valuable than having a complete system after nine months.

What Saves Time

A dedicated contact person with decision-making authority, early identification of test users from daily operations, and the willingness to leave out old data instead of trying to include everything.