There’s no shortage of business software on general offer out there these days. That makes choosing from among them sincerely confusing. Layer that reality with the considerable expense of the stuff, and you’ve got a veritable minefield for potential error.
No wonder so many individuals take so many steps wrong when it comes to selecting the solution that will be the backbone of their business.
In the spirit of a philosophy that says if you know what not to do, you can avoid it doing it, here are the main ones:
Giving software brand names too much credit
It’s folly to imagine that, just because a piece of software is created by a known manufacturer, it’s going to be functionally flawless and come out of the gate poised to meet your every need. Better to work in the other direction and put together a prioritized account of each department’s requirements, a summary of your organization’s corporate goals — and the challenges keeping it from meeting them.
When you’re done, hold each software contender up against the list.
Exempting yourself from the selection process
Yes, you’re busy. No, you cannot be involved in every last aspect of your company’s daily operations. But some things are worthy of your participation — and choosing the business software that’ll carry your livelihood on its back is high on this list.
Letting the IT department lead the charge
Similarly, managers make the mistake of handing complete oversight of this critical decision over to the “tech guys.” These are individuals whose expertise may be the height of technical currency, but they can hardly claim knowledge of the entire operation — whose existence will stand or fall with this choice.
Picking for price above all
Business software and process automation are nothing short of the lifeblood of a company. Skimping on this essential to save a few shekels makes as much sense as choosing a heart surgeon because he’s the cheapest with the scalpel.
Being precious about revealing corporate details
Imagining your company’s particulars to be so top secret that you refuse to share them with software vendors vying for your business only shoots your own foot. Providing limited data to these guys — who are on your side, after all — actually leads to the vendor inflating his estimates to make up for the unknown. Opening your books and getting specific about your requirements will only benefit you in the end.
Letting yourself fall for the demo
The view into a piece of software’s suitability for your operation that’s revealed in a demo is about as short as the sightedness of a corporate leader who picks it based on that evidence alone. Selection needs, instead, to be predicated on those essentials that have the most bearing on risk and cost.
Failing to collect references
The input of at least three industry-relevant references is a bare minimum for such an expensive, important business decision.
To read the complete Whitepaper click here “7 Software Mistakes that Spell Failure”.