Guest Blog by Rhys Roberts, Cloudsolve
As a business owner or leader, you most likely have an extremely high level of expertise in whatever it is you do. Whether it's making or importing products, providing a service or a combination of products and services, the business you’re in is what you’re damn good at.
That being said, you as the business owners or leader are most likely time-poor. There’s always more to sell, customers to help and solutions to find. Not to mention bills and wages to pay, stock to order, quotes to do, suppliers to source and the list goes on.
As your business grows, you may also be finding that your systems are outdated and no longer serving the business productivity or profitability well, but there’s already too much on your plate to find a new solution.
The idea of sourcing even a handful of demos and free trials, trying to understand the pros and cons of each software platform and how it will impact on your business and workflows whilst getting the day to day done is… frankly… exhausting. Analysing software and deciding whether or not it’s the right fit for your business is a thankless task, and a time consuming one at that.
Unless you use the software every day it can be hard to tell you if it ticks all the boxes for your business. Can you be sure there aren’t better options you haven’t considered? Can you afford the time to invest in the process?
The question we always ask, is: Can you afford not to? Finding the right system can improve the productivity of your staff, reduces costs and improves your profitability.
On the bright side, achieving process improvement in your business doesn’t have to be an onerous task. Consultants can help you identify the right product fit and help you get the most from it.
It’s not a one size fits all approach, but there are things we can do that almost all businesses benefit from. Here are a few things that we provide to take work off your plate and help make your transition smoother.
Any consultant you engage to onboard your business with new systems should be experienced and understand the ins and outs of the software they recommend. We know every product we implement intimately because we work with the businesses like Work Guru, and Xero every single day to find the right solution for businesses of all shapes and sizes.
No two businesses are the same. Your consultant should take the time (and a considerable amount of it at that) to understand your business and the outcomes you need. Have a list of your frustrations at the ready, but also come to any discussion with an open mind. After a discovery session, you may even find the consultants find solutions to further improve your business! At Cloudsolve we have talked to and found solutions for, hundreds of businesses. We’ll never recommend a software solution that we know won’t work for your business.
You can’t be expected to understand if the products will work for your business if you can’t see how the software works. Cloudsolve will always give you an initial introduction to the software we propose and contextualise it for the processes within your business. If you have a complex business with complex processes, we may recommend a second product demo customized for your business using a small sample of your data.
This is not a self-serving point, honestly! To our earlier point, not knowing the ins and outs of the software you’ve selected can and, in many cases, does lead to a poor outcome: it sucks up your time trying to learn the product when you’re already time-poor and the Go-live date often gets pushed back. Mistakes, if the set-up isn’t done correctly, can be costly and lead to stock outages and unhappy customers. Our expertise lies in finding the right software and helping you transition to the new way of work through a comprehensive timeline of data cleansing, implementation, training, and support.
When implementing any software solution that has an impact on different areas of the business (warehouse/accounts/sales etc.) having your whole team on board is essential. Everyone needs to know the business leader is invested in and supportive of the process of change.
If you’re doing both inventory management and job costing chances are you have some complex business processes that suit software like WorkGuru. If you think investing in your business is a step in the right direction, then please call Cloudsolve, we love talking to businesses and helping you find solutions.
email: rhys@cloudsolve.com.au
Phone: 02 8188 9030