Eight Mantras to a Successful Software Implemetation

Wether it is E-Commerce, CRM, SCM, ERP or any comparable initiative, if you are taking on a high-impact implementaion that could result in organizational shifts, you have eight things to remember. Here they are

Put in Place a Change Management Program
Mission-critical initiatives will most likely change anorganization’s culture. Therefore, it is necessary to includethis important aspect in your implementation strategy. Determine how todeal effectively with change. Be prepared for issues such as these:

• Resistance:  People will resist the change for fear of losing some control over their business unit, system or even their jobs.   
• Fear of Failure:  Onthe other hand, people may choose to sit on the sidelines rather thanrisk project failure. This may foster a low sense of urgency that couldresult in delay of project initiation and delivery. 
• Non-Visionaries:  Youwill be dealing with people who don’t have a clear understandingof the long-term relevance and importance of the project. 

Thekey to any change management program is communication, communicationand communication! Management needs to communicate the importance ofthe project throughout the organization.

Secure Management Support and Commitment
Secure a "projectchampion." The champion is usually the visionary with access to variouslevels of management. Top management commitment can be secured bydemonstrating that technological automation enables business strategyto be realized. A good way to show this is to start with the strategyand then identify the business processes that are or will be in placeto fulfill the strategy. The next step is to visualize and outline howthe new system will help the organization execute identifiedprocesses.  Also include quantitative and qualitativebenefits like improved margins, higher sales revenues, higher customerand employee satisfaction, better employee productivity and reducedcosts.  Document a business case for automation based onbusiness impact. 

Setup a steering committee that includes a senior IT manager,implementation team project manager and business unitmanager.  This committee should provide updates to seniormanagement and project sponsors periodically concerning the status ofthe project. 

Know Your CIO's and the Organization's IT Priority
One of the keyissues organizations run into is the dilemma of deciding between a"best of breed" solution versus a "one vendor" solution. For example,lets say your organization implemented a SAP solution for your ERPneeds and now a CRM initiative is on the agenda. There are several CRMsoftware vendors out there with Siebel leading the marketplace and SAPmaking a strong entrance into the CRM market. The dilemma of choosingbetween a known vendor SAP with the benefit of tight ERP  andCRM integration ("one vendor") versus going with Siebel, which has aproven CRM product with rich front office functionality ("best ofbreed"). What do you do? In your recommendation, make sure you show aclear advantage in going with the option you choose. The end result isthat you will have to convince top management of your recommendationwith cost comparisons, factors that contribute to competitiveadvantage, and a comparison that shows the degree to which the solutionsatisfies your business and technical requirements.

Develop a Roadmap
The roadmap isdesigned to show various phases of the overall initiative. Show whatthe end result will be and the time scale anticipated to achieve it.Make sure the roadmap is blessed and communicated by managementthroughout out the organization. Include this in your change managementcommunications.

Start with a Pilot
A phased approachcan provide several benefits. Start with business units, functions andgeography that will generate the biggest "bang for your buck." Thesuccess of the project will build confidence and motivate individualsto execute on the rest of the phases outlined in your roadmap. It iscritical not to have an extensive scope for the pilot phase toaccommodate "speed to value." The sooner a solution is rolled out to abusiness, the faster a company will begin to see a return oninvestment. However, keep in mind that the scope should encompassenough functionality to provide value to the users. The pilotfacilitates the introduction of new technology, testing it with limitedrisk and cost, and helps bring change to your organizationincrementally.

Pick Your Implementation Team Wisely
Organizationshave several options when it comes to choosing the implementation team.Usually there are three options: internal IT organization; consultingorganizations; and package software vendors’ client/professionalservices groups. Internal IT staff are ideal when time is in yourfavor, however, issues regarding resource availability and a learningcurve can propel you to look for assistance outside the organization.Consulting organizations serve a good purpose, since they can provideunbiased third-party recommendations and also provide insights intoprior challenges faced when implementing a similar system. However,consultants may not be exposed to all aspects of the product related tonew version upgrades, new features, etc. The software companies'professional services groups can provide benefits such as intimateproduct knowledge and vendor's product strategy, however the bias canstill exist when recommending strategies, and sometimes the skills andinterest to integrate external systems to the software may be limited.Organizations have their own preference in choosing the implementationteam, however I believe that it may be beneficial to have a flavor ofall three sources:

• Includesome members of your IT organization to ensure knowledge transfer aswell as to provide insights to existing systems and internal resources. 
• Engage consultants to provide implementation expertise, skilled resources, and for unbiased recommendation.   
• Include one or two members from the software vendors’ professional services or product development groups.

The challenge should be to decide on the ratio and balance of the implementation team.

Choose Your Angels
Pilot system orend users should be treated as angels, hence the term "Angel Users."Get users involved early to make sure that the automation systemaddresses their needs. The process should include documenting  a "wish list" of how the new system would improve their work processes. Ifusers and their "wish lists" are not sufficiently represented on thetask force, they can end up revolting against the system. However,remember to maintain scope balance. Negotiate with the endusers.  Don't be afraid to hand over "ownership" of thesystem to the users. 

Ensure Adequate "Angel User" Training
If the users areunable to understand and use the system, the project is a failure evenif you executed everything else perfectly. That is why it is extremelyimportant that adequate time is allocated to end user or "Angel User"training. The best approach is the "train the trainer" approach, wherethe end users are trained by one of their own, someone within the samebusiness unit. Usually the trainers are exposed to the systemthroughout the implementation cycle. Users should have access tonon-technical user documentation and should be shown how to access anduse the new system. It is also good to have telephone support for a fewmonths after the initial rollout of the system.

If you fail to consider these issues "straight up," your implementation has a high risk of going "straight down" the drain!

 

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