In 2019, there is still a large misconception that switching your PSA software to another vendor is a colossal process and will cause major disruption within a business. This misconception leads to 1000’s of business continuing to operate using their legacy PSA solution, which in most cases are slow, cumbersome & not capable of scaling with growth.
Many vendors are not clear about how painless and clean the whole process can be with the right industry experts and teamwork. Whether you’re unhappy with your current PSA software, or if you’re considering moving to new PSA software from an existing legacy solution, here are some specific questions you need to ask before you consider making a switch:
1. How much disruption will this cause?
This is entirely dependent on how well the implementation process is planned and the experience of the vendor’s implementation team. Many businesses make the mistake of viewing their new business software implementation as something that will be done along with their current workload. This is really not the case, doing this would actually cause more disruption to the business. Look at it this way, if your team was already fully resourced to working on other client projects, you couldn’t just book another new customer project and expect your team to complete it outside of their work hours and the project to be successful? Of course not! The practical approach is to treat the new PSA software implementation just like any other new customer project. Start with a defined scope, resource allocation, budget and time frame, balanced against other customer projects.
2. How much time will this take? My team is already at capacity?
When making the switch it’s important that you have the resources readily available to work on the implementation. This will ensure the process moves as quickly as possible enabling both you and your vendor to stick to agreed timelines. You should always have a clear conversation with your vendor in advance to define the exact resources and time needed on both ends to make the implementation successful. Before you get scared away, It’s also important to remember that your PSA vendor will complete the majority of the work involved from gathering requirements, configuring the software to your specific needs and even training your end-users.
3. We already have a process in place, will this need to be done again?
When it comes to process, many business take on the daunting task of figuring out their own way that “kind-off” works. A much cleaner approach is for the businesses stakeholder to work with the vendor’s consultation team from day 1 to help them learn and document current business processes. Before you implement your new PSA solution the vendor can instead have a discussion with your team on the ‘best practices’ about how to map your business processes to the take full advantage of the new software’s capabilities. Sometimes this will be handled by configuration options in the software, and sometimes you may want to consider altering your business processes slightly to take better advantage of your new PSA software’s full capabilities.
In conclusion, there will never be an ideal time to switch your businesses PSA software. But remember, the more your business grows, the more you’re going to need a scalable PSA solution to help your team become more effective and efficient. If you decide to ignore the inevitable now, there will come a time in the future where you may lose clients, employees, and money due to outdated processes. Always consider your competition is already using a scalable PSA solution allowing them to quote more competitively, deliver more efficiently & profitably and provide a higher level of customer service than you can, no matter how dedicated and hard-working your team is.
Check out our previous blog “Four Signs Your Business Needs PSA Software“, this will help you decide if you are ready for PSA – https://www.crossconceptinc.ca/single-post/2019/04/03/Four-Signs-Your-Business-Needs-PSA-Software
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