7 Tips to Securing a Successful Software Implementation
December 23, 2022 As you plan for 2023, one of the items you may be budgeting for in your greenhouse operation is a software upgrade. Growers and vendors should work together on a successful software implementation, and much of the hard work has to be done before the purchase.
The following areas can help a grower and vendor work toward a successful outcome if the proper assessment, functional planning, and processes are understood and planned for in the implementation process.
System Function
System function deals with how the software will handle the needs of the grower’s specific business model or situation so that the use of the software will improve the grower’s business processes.
Training
Training, whether direct, online, or through various materials will help improve both the implementation and the grower’s staff use of the system. Any new system will require training and practice so the employees will develop confidence and competence.
Support
Any software provider needs to make sure the grower understands and agrees with the support plan. The grower has to assess whether the vendor will provide the needed support in a manner that is advantageous and helpful for the grower and in a competent and timely manner.
On-Boarding
On boarding involves getting the grower’s employees, data, processes, and needed historical data setup and functional in the system. The grower needs to understand and be confident in how the vendor will help the grower get their operation going on the system including data migration and setup.
Reporting
Data reports are the keyway to see what the system contains and should represent the reality of the business (if records are up to date). Growers have a wide variety of needs for reports to ‘see’ what they need to see from the system for operational and analytic questions and metrics. An effective reporting system should make it as efficient as possible for the grower to see what they need statistically and operationally from the system.
Budget
Budget deals with the cost of the system and the implementation and training. A full understanding of the costs and the total cost of ownership is crucial to the grower’s decision.
Results
The grower has to decide what ‘success’ looks like. It could be that success is just getting away from another undesired vendor or success is getting better support or more capability from the system. Success could be better automated reporting and analytics or better inventory control.
Learn more in my original post on the Advanced Grower Solutions website.
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