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![]() ![]() What stops the implementation from succeeding? What are the factors needed to keep the process going? Who succeeds and who fails? Let's review the process and find out.
By Eric Hall, CASper Eazynet Solutions Inc.
Establishing targets dates throughout the process is an effective delivery optimization tool.
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The processes of the company have been analyzed, the software application has been selected and the implementation plan has been developed. The three integral components needed for the successful integration of a management solution to an enterprise are in place. Ready, set, WAIT! What stops the implementation from succeeding? What are the factors needed to keep the process going? Who succeeds and who fails? Let's review the process and find out. The application delivery process comprises:
All three are integral components needed for the successful integration of a business management solution to an enterprise. But the derivative step that is often missing is the evaluation of the commitment of the corporate community. This crucial variable measures the sensitivity to change of the community's various members. A basic tenant of successful application implementation is to review, measure and document the process. No matter how you measure the impact of application performance, in the age of instant-everything, failing to consistently provide structure and forward momentum can hinder content delivery and risk forming a bottleneck. Recognizing and reacting to each implementation process will improve the application performance and integration into the organization . Though the consensus may be that application performance is paramount to success, the debate about how to achieve that goal continues. Application performance is affected by a wide variety of factors that are specific to each organization. Resistance in the corporate community will often be a decisive factor without a solid implementation plan in place to address each issue. Since no single software solution encompasses the entire business process for all companies, no single solution can completely resolve the problem of poor application performance. Resolving this problem requires taking a more holistic approach to optimizing the entire application delivery.
Analysis Managing the change introduced by a new solution is costly and can be an obstacle to implementation. The implementation process must address the changes that will take place and plan to adapt to new challenges that arise as the process works forward. What part of the process do we redesign to fit the software, and what part of the software do we customize to fit our process? And conversely, what do we give up and work around? These are fundamental decisions, as the perfect out-of-the-box solution does not exist for most companies. Low-cost solutions that are not customizable are rigid and require the enterprise to work around the built-in process. Customization of the solution requires increased costs but reduces both the changes in internal processes and the cost of managing that change. Change is hard and resisting change is expensive. Understanding the processes that course through your business helps to dentify the changes required to those processes or to the software.
Due Diligence
![]() The key factors in the selection are the capabilities of the business solution as compared to the identified requirements of the enterprise; the philosophy and design of the training team supporting the solutions; and the cost of ongoing maintenance, updates, training and support. What is determined here is not only the best match to the process but also the best match to the philosophy of the two companies.
Changing the software will require a fee. Inspiring software enhancements should provide product adjustments at no charge in future releases. In this phase, the customization to the software and the costs involved should be clearly laid out. While flexibility is required during the implementation phase, it is in this second phase where major expenditures must be outlined in detail.
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Defining Hidden Agendas Anyone from a sales manager to a bookkeeper may hold a position that will change with the new solution. If the new process affects power or influence, then resistance will build. It is counterintuitive to think that a corporation that has just agreed to and paid for the purchase of a well-researched business management solution would nee to be compelled to act upon an implementation plan, but that is sometimes the case. Has the administration made a clear decision to move forward at this time? The use of testimonials and anecdotes along with a concrete timeline for delivery of each phase are useful devices to this process. Part of the implementation program is to provide data that will demonstrate the effectiveness of the process over time, and show the future return on the present investment of time and resources. Paramount to the success of the implementation is recognition of the delivery shelf life. Once a company and a product are selected to provide the business solution, an expiration date is stamped onto the project. This date must be expressed in the implementation plan and controlled with objective goals and timelines. A helpful tool in this process is to present a content delivery timeline that expresses what is required from each area of the company on a specified date. Once the timeline is developed, present it to each department with the contributions required from them. This process will continue with the distribution of goals and training objective timelines.
Price Versus Cost
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Upgrades, Maintenance and Support Including the service and support agreement within the implementation plan provides coverage of the company's policy on how support issues are to be documented and processed. Reinforcing the policy during training provides the employees with an added level of comfort that a support mechanism is in place to assist them in the transition.
Defining the Upgrade Delivery Process Of the many factors involved in a successful implementation process, momentum throughout the company is clearly the most significant and difficult aspect to maintain. Fundamental to the process is the business analysis. Clearly documented processes and timelines with concrete and well-defined goals establish the foundation of the plan. Providing the momentum and maintaining it is as much of an art as it is a science. Initiating contact through emails and webinars is a routine tool, and providing schedules and timelines on a timely and regular basis are required tasks. Adding routine software announcements and invitations to advanced training to the mix of communication devices provides a window into the ongoing support processes, and reassures the staff that they have a stable process. Include success stories and customer reference statements with correspondence, and celebrate milestone and task completions, especially if they are difficult. Eric Dexter Hall is CEO of CASper Sign Business Software. He has worked in the sign industry as a consultant in software systems implementation for over 30 years. He has designed software for the sign industry, specializing in estimating, enterprise work flow and production management. Mr. Hall studied psycho-educational processes and developed and expanded the philosophy of extended expertise while teaching at Temple University where he received an M.Ed. He currently resides in Petaluma, Ca. He can be contacted at erichall@casper123.com This article appeared in the SGIA Journal, September/October 2014 Issue and is reprinted with permission. Copyright 2014 Specialty Graphic Imaging Association (www.sgia.org). All Rights Reserved.
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