The impact of AI-enabled CRM systems on organizational competitive advantage: A mixed-method approach using BERTopic and PLS-SEM

The recent advances in machine learning and deep learning algorithms, along with the advent of generative AI, have led AI to become the "new normal" in organizations. This trend has extended to CRM, resulting in the development of AI-enabled CRM systems, or AI-CRM. Despite the growing adoption of AI as part of competitive strategies, many firms report minimal or no positive effect of AI on performance. This study addresses the research questions: "What are the critical features of AI-CRM systems?" and "How do these features impact organizational competitive advantage?" To explore this, we aim to identify key characteristics of AI-CRM and assess their impact on organizational performance. In Study 1, we utilize BERTopic topic modeling to extract critical features of AI-CRM from user reviews. Study 2 employs PLS-SEM to examine how these features influence organizational competitive advantage. Study 1 reveals four main characteristics of AI-CRM (general, marketing, sales, and service/support), each comprising distinct features. Study 2 shows that these characteristics differentially impact CRM capability, significantly affecting performance and competitive advantage. The findings offer valuable insights for both theory and practice regarding the effective use of AI in organizations.