What:   Gartner Customer Relationship Management SummitWhen:   September 11 - 13, 2006Where:  Chicago Hilton and Towers, Chicago, IL.Details:Companies are realizing that the fundamental principle behind CRM --becoming a customer-centric organization -- is the key to exploitingthe customer lifecycle (acquisition, retention, and cross-sell) fornew growth opportunities, and they are preparing for a second wave ofCRM investing. The Gartner Customer Relationship Management Summit isthe most comprehensive conference of customer strategies andtechnologies ever held. It offers the latest actionable insights andbest practices in all areas of CRM, from business strategy to softwareimplementation, from change management to metrics.The Gartner Customer Relationship Management Summit will tackle thecomplex IT issues and offer the most relevant and timely answers tothe challenges of getting CRM right, including:    --  The latest trends for customer strategies and technologies    --  How to create a single view of the customer    --  How to improve marketing, sales and customer service processes    --  How to manage the customer experience    --  Which vendors and solutions to consider for different aspects        of CRM    --  How new technologies (VoIP, Gaming, Interactive TV) impact        your CRM initiativesFive high-value tracks will provide razor-sharp insight, proven bestpractices and how-to-do-it strategies, while over 60 sessions by theindustry's largest and most experienced team of CRM analysts, alongwith practitioners from a wide-spectrum of industries, will shed lighton the key topics of interest to all organizations today, including:    --  How Analytics Changes the Future of Customer Service    --  Managing the Customer By Changing Business Processes    --  Organizational Change Management Techniques    --  Technologies and Processes to Differentiate Your Customer        Service Strategy    --  Improving the Customer Experience    --  Driving Innovation and Creativity With the Next-Generation of        CRM    --  The Future Direction of Loyalty MarketingKeynotes:* Frederick F. Reichheld, Loyalty Expert, Director Emeritus: In thisgroundbreaking presentation, Fred Reichheld describes how the conceptsbehind a new metric - the Net Promoter(R) Score - set new standardsfor understanding and managing customer loyalty. Chock-full ofexamples from leading-edge organizations, this presentation will showyou the future of customer relationship management...and what to donow to prepare for it.* Don Peppers, Founding Partner, Peppers & Rogers Group: In thiskeynote presentation, Don Peppers, will answer key questions forcompanies that want to become truly innovative, including how acustomer-oriented organization can stimulate "open source" innovationfrom customers, how companies can balance the short-term and long-termbenefits of innovation, how "routine" innovation is generated, and howto create a culture of customer trust to improve innovativecapabilities.Guest and Case Study Speakers include:*CRM authority, Paul Greenberg*McKinsey experts Marc Singer and Jeff Schumacher*CRMGuru founder Bob Thompson*end user practitioners from AARP, Bank of America, Bellsouth,Citigroup, Sprint, State Street, Visa, Well Fargo and more.CRM Excellence AwardsSix finalists among the best CRM projects submitted to Gartner willpresent their case at the conference, and the winner will be chosenand announced onsite.

For complete event details, please visit the Gartner Customer Relationship Management Web site at www.gartner.com/us/crmsummit.

More than 25 companies will be sponsors exhibiting at the Summit. A listing of Summit sponsors is available at www.gartner.com/us/crmsummit. Additional companies interested in participating as a Summit Sponsor should contact Christopher Callaghan at 203-316-1760 or at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Members of the media can register for the event by contacting Christy Pettey at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .

About Gartner

Gartner, Inc. (NYSE: IT) delivers the technology-related insight necessary for its clients to make the right decisions, every day. Gartner serves 10,000 organizations, including chief information officers and other senior IT executives in corporations and government agencies, as well as technology companies and the investment community. The Company consists of Gartner Research, Gartner Executive Programs, Gartner Consulting and Gartner Events. Founded in 1979, Gartner is headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut, U.S.A., and has 3,700 associates, including 1,200 research analysts and consultants in 75 countries worldwide. For more information, visit www.gartner.com.