When it comes to a complete upgrade/overhaul of an enterprise business application, there’s probably not a more stressful and complicated adventure on the planet. I often say, we’re not delivering babies, but we’re darn close”. The following are three nuggets of gold to better ensure you and your organization have a successful digital transformation journey.
- Properly set expectations with internal stakeholders. Extended business disruptions, reengineering business processes, and overtime will all be part of the process. Getting everyone’s acknowledgement and incorporating a strong change management process is critical to keeping people from getting frustrated and becoming less productive. This could include hiring temporary staff to back fill some day-to-day tasks while stakeholders are in training or design workshops, getting key stakeholders involved early in the process so they understand the scope and magnitude of the project and/or constantly reminding the stakeholders of “what’s in it for them”, i.e. Getting work done in less time so they can spend more time at home, fishing or playing golf.
- Fully vet implementation partner. This doesn’t begin and end with references. Every partner is going to give you references that will give glowing accolades of their work. Do you think they’d list one that wouldn’t? Of course not. As part of the selection process, spend at least a 1/2-day meeting face to face with the implementation team. Fully understand their culture to ensure they align with your organization’s culture. Dig into their approach and methodology. Do they have the flexibility to accommodate unforeseen changes and events (key stakeholders leaving, pandemics, etc.) without additional cost and change orders? Meet the practice heads to make sure you and your team have compatible work ethics, mindsets, and personalities. Finally, and probably most important, make sure there is sufficient post go-live support and training for your organization. Standard is 30-days, but I recommend budgeting an additional 30-60 days or even a small, 1-year, managed services agreement as tweaks and small punch list items are always popping up.
- Conduct a thorough pre-game assessment/gap analysis. This is easier said than done. Because so many departments, processes and stakeholders are involved, this needs to be left to the professionals. If your organization has internal staff and design resources skilled in this area, then of course, use them. If not, there are highly qualified consulting firms that can provide this service. Conducting this with excellence is the foundation for successful change management as it gets the stakeholders involved as early as possible in the process, and begins the conversation around modern, industry best practices and how they can improve workflow efficiency and productivity.
Incorporating these three items into your enterprise application upgrade process will greatly improve your chances of a successful go live. As a boutique consulting firm, 100% dedicated to Oracle applications, infrastructure, and technology, FourthSquare can assist you and your team in all phases of your digital transformation. Our extensive experience, gold standard customer service and our trusted partner approach make us uniquely qualified to serve you and your organization.
Kerry Boudreaux has over 20 years of software sales experience, orchestrating dozens of software implementations.
Kerry S. Boudreaux, MBA
Senior Vice President of Sales, FourthSquare
