The set of knowledge and relationship management systems at most funds is dispersed. They usually include:

CRM systems (for both): In theory, the CRM is the knowledge and relationship hub of the firm. When done well, it houses the core relationships of the firm (LPs, referral sources, management teams, other investors, portfolio companies, service providers), and the core knowledge (meeting notes, pitch decks, portfolio data, etc.). However, most CRMs used by PE + VC require a lot of manual input, and so the data that makes it into the system is often incomplete + stale. Document management systems (for knowledge): Many firms will store pitch decks, investment memos, financial models, portfolio analyses, and other relevant documents in some sort of document storage system. The most common ones are Dropbox, Box, Google Drive, and Sharepoint. Social + deal networks (for relationships): Many investors use LinkedIn (either in basic versions or Sales Navigator) to track relationships, engage followers, and search. In VC, many use Twitter as another format for connecting + engaging with relevant connections, and so Twitter DMs + graphs are another relationship repository. In PE, networks like Axial and BankerBay that exist for deal sourcing also connect bankers to potential investors, and so also are a source of relationships to be managed. Notetaking systems (for knowledge): Most investors have a notetaking system of choice that becomes a de facto knowledge management system, either for individual or team use. Some examples include MSFT Word, OneNote, Evernote, Google Docs, Dropbox Paper, and Notion. Some investors use a draft email for taking notes during meetings. Internal communication systems (for both): Many VC firms use Slack for their internal discussions. You’ll see some set up specific channels for deal flow, specific portfolio companies and other initiatives. In addition, there are external Slack groups where they may interface with other VCs, portfolio companies, and prospective entrepreneurs - so relationships will get formed / engaged with here as well. Email (for both): Because almost all communication flows through the inbox, email is probably the most robust de facto repository of firm knowledge and relationships. Pitch decks, who you’ve contacted at a specific firm, and more is generally a search away. Ultimately, I think the landscape of tools that investors use will continue to remain robust. But because easier access to information enables the team to be most productive, the next generation of software will

Automatically capture as much data as possible - so the investors don’t need to worry about data entry + can rely on a system to be the hub Apply intelligence so they’re able to take action on that shared repository of relationships, deals, and knowledge - like knowing what your best connection is to a given corporation to help a portfolio company make the sale.

If you want to build your business and track it success along the way, you need specific software to measure analytics and move your business forward.

To understand analytics better, this article will be quite helpful https://thriveglobal.com/stories/the-power-of-data-and-analytics-to-build-a-purposeful-business/. You can learn a lot from it.

Specifically: how to build it, how to calculate everything, and, more importantly - how to retain customers. That's only the basics that you may need. If you need additional help, I can tell you about other useful articles about business or just talk about more advanced CRM systems.