APRIL 2019 NEWSLETTER – TAKING YOU FORWARD
Software Integration – Worth It?
Yes, it is worth it, in the end!
Software integration is like pulling up the carpet in a fully furnished home, it is a challenge regardless of the transition length or size. Your new software company should have an integration plan with a carefully thought out schedule to discuss with you. A few examples of items to anticipate are:
- Gain remote access to the server
- Install database software
- Install Lumber/Trader Expert on server
- Overview meeting with staff
- Enter master data
- Detailed staff training
- Overview meeting with traders
- Training for traders/sales
In the interest of minimizing interruptions to your company, the following are several items to engage your staff in building a quality implementation plan:
As I mentioned in one of my previous blog posts, How to Choose the Right Software Company for you, employee engagement is a valuable tool during the decision process but you also have an incredible opportunity to engage staff during the implementation process and the effect will be better than you bargained for. I’m sure I don’t have to tell you about the rewards that team building and staff empowerment have on productivity.
So, how do you engage your employees in the implementation process? Anne Prins,
Director of Growth at Hot Air Blog says, “Evaluate each of them to determine which of the five groups they fall under”, see below: [i]
- Innovators – These are technology enthusiasts by nature, and they’re excited to dive in and figure out how the new software can improve their existing workflows. Engage & encourage these Innovators! They will be your champions of change.
- Early Adopters – Like innovators, these users will try new software faster than the majority. Getting buy-in from this group is critical because their opinions influence how the Early Majority feels about trying the new tool.
- Early Majority – This group is more practical in their approach to new software. The Early Majority typically waits until the software is vetted by others. They want to know how new software improves their existing workflow before they feel comfortable adopting it.
- Late Majority – These users will only adopt new software when they need to, or when it becomes unreasonable not to. The Late Majority will use the software once you’ve made it a concrete part of your business operations.
- Laggards – Laggards tend to use familiar technology and software as long as they possibly can. They’re often uncomfortable learning and using new tools. The only way to move this group may be to force them to use the new software by eliminating legacy options.
Create an understanding with your staff, engage them early and often, set specific goals and update staff with your timeline regularly. We all know who the decision makers are but your staff will certainly appreciate your efforts.
Training should be flexible and meet the needs of your company. Do you want individualized in-person or online training? Do you want instructor-led training classes? Do you want the software company to train a team of your employees on the processes so they can train the rest of your staff? There are options and it is up to you and the software company to navigate what the best option is for your company. It is important to show your employees how exciting this transition is, how useful the new software will be for them, and to set a fair but firm timeline.
Let’s set real and proper expectations here. Having a transition path doesn’t mean that you won’t have any hiccups while integrating. What it does mean is your new software should have utilities that will transition the information from your database(s), i.e. vendors, customers and general ledger accounts from your old software to your new software or, at least, have the ability to code one for you. This saves time in transition and helps to alleviate some of the stress.
With the ease of use, I see $avings! Who doesn’t like a stronger bottom line? If your new software is easy to use, it will likely be easy to learn, manage data entry errors, and increase productivity. The effect of this is seen in the strength of your team and, of course, your bottom line.
Taking your company through a software transition is stressful regardless of how much you prepare or how great the software company is. The best way to ensure the least amount of stress is by following the steps outlined above. Make sure to encourage employee engagement, know your needs, and build a viable plan for transition. If you follow these steps, your transition will be as stress-free as one can possibly be.
MARCH NEWSLETTER – MAKE A CUSTOMER, NOT A SALE
Post-Sale Support – What you Need to Know
We find that one of the largest factors our customers consider is post-sale support, because with this type of purchase there will, without a doubt, be a need for it.
It is best to inquire with your prospective software company at the beginning of your search as to which types of support are offered, will these fit your needs, and which types of support the software developer will require you to have.
Below are just a few questions to ask yourself and your prospective software company regarding post-sale support.
- Will you designate someone in your office to get trained in the entire system to help manage future inquiries from staff? This can help alleviate redundant and possibly expensive calls to the software development team and allows for the expectation of due diligence from your employees.
- Will there be in-house training or will your training happen remotely? This is a question you should work closely with your software company to answer. In-house training is always the best option but could lead to additional, yet worthwhile costs.
- After the agreed upon personnel training is completed, will there be additional support available if needed? All credible software companies have thoroughly thought-out and developed training processes. Once standard training is complete and your company has gone “live”, there should always be options for additional support.
- How do they provide technical support? Software companies should always offer multiple options for technical support i.e. email, phone or website.
- Is technical support free or does it have to be paid for? This varies to a great extent from company to company, something to consider.
- What if you need to add additional users? Most software companies will likely charge to add additional users.
The truth is as consumers, we don’t know what we don’t know; the answer is to research & know your position. As always, feel free to give us a call 541.330.5483 or email us and ask any questions that come to mind.
Inclusion: Customer Led – Customer Driven
In today’s market, it is easy to see why it is important to make the switch to a customer inclusion business model with customers as a part of the business plan and/or part of the team. Customers have not traditionally been as deeply involved in companies as they are now, but we all know how vitally important it is to ensure company-wide inclusion in the workplace. Making inclusion a priority can result in extraordinary benefits.
So, let’s think, for a minute, about the outcomes of customer inclusion. I’m not talking about asking “how was your meal?” Or, “Did you find everything OK?” While these are an important type of question, in their own way, customer service and customer inclusion are not created equal. Would you bring your customer a burger they didn’t order? NO. So, let’s get back to the outcomes of customer inclusion and why leveraging them will increase the customer experience. “Leading organizations are devoting significant resources to truly understanding the needs of diverse customers and translating their findings into insights that anyone in the organization can act on to improve the customer experience,” said Tom Champion, a senior analyst with Forrester. “The idea is to bring the voice of the diverse customer into the organization as a form of creative fuel – so when teams are making decisions, they have more perspectives at their disposal,” said Craig Donaldson with Insider HR.
Talk about benefits and we take our bennies very seriously around here…
At RDB Solutions we pride ourselves on our customer relationships. YES – we have a tightly integrated system, YES– we have a module specifically for your sales force to have the information they need to get the job done – at the click of a button! And, YES – we have an extremely intuitive system that is incredibly easy to use and WILL save you both time and money. But more than that, we have an inclusive customer led and driven business plan. We work with you to ensure that your needs are met before your company goes live and after.
Call or email Luke for your free demo now 541.330.5483