Startup licenses Purdue technology that improves duplicate record management in CRM systems

December 22, 2015  


WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Software company STAF LLC has licensed DupeBuster™, a Purdue University-developed application that automates the finding and merging of duplicate records created within customer relationship management databases, more commonly referred to as CRM systems.

Jack Betten, associate director of the Office of Enrollment Management and Reporting at Purdue, developed DupeBuster to address the management of duplicate records within a CRM used for the recruitment of undergraduate students. He also owns STAF LLC, which licensed DupeBuster through the Purdue Research Foundation Office of Technology Commercialization.

"The CRM system uses email, postal mailings and interactive Web pages to automate recruitment communications with prospective students," he said. "Records are constantly being created either by the importing files or by individuals, which results in a significant number of duplicate records."

Betten said duplicate records lead to individuals receiving multiple copies of the same communication, which could cause a negative perception by the recipient.

"Duplicate records also mean individuals may receive conflicting communications. An applicant can receive communications related to the applicant record, for example 'Thank you for applying to Purdue,' plus at the same time receive prospect communication, for example 'Please consider applying to Purdue," he said. "Duplicate records also cost additional money when communications are delivered by postal mailings. The elimination of duplicates from postal mailing campaigns results in the saving of several thousands of dollars each year."

Betten said although the CRM system used by Purdue for undergraduate admissions had a tool to merge duplicate records, it was labor intensive and did not find all duplicates. DupeBuster was developed, refined and validated over a two-year period to automate this process and is now in its fourth year of servicing a variety of universities.

"Each day a defined set of records is exported from the CRM into DupeBuster. These records are then searched to find the duplicates," he said. "Regardless of the number of duplicate records found, the automated identification and merging process takes approximately 15 minutes and doesn't require special skills. Other applications on the market can find duplicate records, but unlike DupeBuster, they do not have the capability of automating the merging of those duplicates."

Betten has been in conversations with providers who are interested in incorporating current and future versions of DupeBuster into their CRM systems. He said STAF LLC also is looking to sell DupeBuster directly to other organizations that use CRM systems.

About Purdue Research Foundation Office of Technology Commercialization

The Purdue Office of Technology Commercialization operates one of the most comprehensive technology transfer programs among leading research universities in the U.S. Services provided by this office support the economic development initiatives of Purdue University and benefit the university's academic activities. The office is managed by the Purdue Research Foundation, which received the 2014 Incubator Network of the Year from the National Business Incubation Association for its work in entrepreneurship. For more information about funding and investment opportunities in startups based on a Purdue innovation, contact the Purdue Foundry at foundry@prf.org. For more information on licensing a Purdue innovation, contact the Office of Technology Commercialization at innovation@prf.org. 

Purdue Research Foundation contact: Steve Martin, 765-588-3342, sgmartin@prf.org 

Source: Jack Betten, 765-496-1744, jackbetten@purdue.edu 

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