Growing a business is tough. Hiring, managing cash flows, HR, etc. can become a nightmare if you aren’t adequately prepared. Another thing that happens during growth or natural maturing phases of a company is transitioning to different software systems. Like with the other growing pains this improper handling can spell trouble.
There are a couple reasons companies in this position decide to take the plunge and adopt new technology. The most common reason is that small companies use spreadsheets and emails to communicate, track and produce work. Which is fine, but there is a point that that method becomes unworkable. Too much data. Too many cooks in the kitchen. Not enough control.
The next most common reason is companies hire a champion that knows how to fix data management problems. So the new sales manager is all about Salesforce. The new marketing manager likes Marketo. The new HR manager likes cascade. The new IT manager likes Jira. And so on. These folks are brought in because they know how to manage a process and the people behind it. Part of that is letting them use the tools they know are successful.
The next most common reason can be explained by the old adage about the grass being greener on the other side. While not all software is created equal most purpose built applications do the job they are intended to do if used correctly. I’ve sold a lot of software because my grass was greener, but the honest truth is the groundskeepers probably weren’t doing the best job at keeping the grass green.
You might think that it matters if the technology pivot is because of growth, manager preference, or greener grass – but it isn’t. What matters is that the decision is made and the change is executed flawlessly.
The most important aspect of flawless execution is management buy in. In my experience if none of the C-Levels mandate or back the technology pivot, I’ll give it a 5% chance of success. (My definition of success is replacing the previous technology completely in 3 months.) I have overseen and witnessed many, many software implementations and I can tell you that the average employee is going to hate the new system and be worried that it will cost him his job. The result is that the average employee will simply not use or embrace the new system unless management and a C-Level has bought in. Takeaway 1. Unless an executive makes the software decision, backs it, or owns it there is a 95% chance of failure.
The second most important aspect of execution is data preparedness. You use software to store, process, manipulate, track, and report data. If you and your team are slow to assemble and format your data, the implementation is more likely to fail. For example, one company I worked with couldn’t agree on a document numbering format for our document management tool. Our on-site implementation specialist took on the role of mediator and arbitrator to get engineering group A to agree with engineering group B. This process took a group of 6 people more than a week to agree on a numbering format. Middle ground was agreed to in principle but neither group made any changes in process thereby none of their data could go into our system. This debacle coupled with the other headaches my company was hired to solve proved to be too much for this company. Their data was never ready and the company lost interest. Takeaway 2. If your data isn’t prepared and your team isn’t willing to prepare it, save your money and keep doing what you are doing.
The third most important aspect is keeping your technology provider involved. Presumably, your technology provider has solved similar problems for similar companies. This is a HUGE asset. Before, during, and after an implementation executives, managers, and employees should ask not ask for advice – rather, they should demand advice. I possible, structure times for your technology partner to come and evaluate how your teams are using the system. A good software partner will welcome usually agree to this interaction, but a great software partner loves this interaction because they get to help you be more successful. Takeaway 3. Use your technology partner as a consultant. They have seen a lot. If your software partner wants to sell you tools and walk away –fire them.