4 Enterprise Software Implementation Errors (and How to Avoid Them)
Depending on your business, enterprise software might make more sense than consumer software. However, implementation mistakes could thwart the benefits of choosing the former over the latter.
The global enterprise software market was worth an estimated $263.79 billion last year and is on pace to expand at a compound annual growth rate of 12.1% from this year to 2030. Grand View Research adds that this growth is a function of factors like the increasing move toward integrated and automated solutions. More and more businesses want streamlined, reliable applications to lessen dependence on human resources, reduce instances of manual errors, and automate routine tasks.
You can imagine, however, that implementation errors can fritter away the benefits. Continue reading to see four common enterprise software implementation mistakes and how to avoid them.
1. Lack of Clear Objectives
A big mistake that many businesses are guilty of when implementing enterprise software is failing to have a clear plan or objective.
If your company doesn’t have specific goals, it’ll be hard to measure success or make sense of analytics. Failing to plan, as the adage goes, is planning to fail. When investing in enterprise applications, you must know what you want to accomplish with the rollout. Whether you want to automate tasks, reduce expenses, improve the client experience, or accomplish something else, you need to have clear objectives in mind.
You can avoid this problem by laying the groundwork before implementing enterprise software. That means writing down specific goals and success metrics after dialoging with the parties who will use the enterprise software.
2. Insufficient Stakeholder Involvement
Enterprise software doesn’t just affect one department. It’s often a company-wide solution. If that’s the case at your company, you need to ensure adequate stakeholder involvement in the process. Whether marketing, human resources, sales, or some other department, your business needs to ensure that integration is done after sufficient input from all stakeholders.
You can steer clear of problems by engaging with end users early in the process and throughout the entire process. You’re more likely to succeed during the implementation stage when all stakeholders are on board.
3. Underestimating the Time and Resources Required
Yet another problem to avoid on the implementation front is underestimating the time and resources the implementation process requires.
If you move forward without thinking things through, you may have unrealistic expectations about how long the implementation will take and what it will take to accomplish it. Don’t make the mistake of being so naive about what’s required that you fail to test the enterprise system adequately, make decisions too fast without looking at things strategically, or commit other missteps that lead to higher expenses and delays.
4. Inadequate Training and Support
Yet another implementation mistake that some companies make is rolling out the enterprise software without providing proper training and support to the people using it.
If the end-users don’t know how to use the enterprise software or how to use it properly, your business will be wasting money. You need to ensure proper training so that the people using it can do so effectively, and there needs to be ongoing support so that any issues can be resolved.
You can avoid problems by providing targeted initial training, ongoing training, help desks, and manuals so users have what they need.
Avoid these implementation mistakes like the plague if you want your enterprise software investment to be a success. One way to get the right enterprise software for your business is to go to the right source. A reputable enterprise software developer will deliver an application that meets the needs of all stakeholders and will offer ongoing support.
Going with an enterprise application has its benefits. You just want to ensure you avoid implementation mistakes that throw a wrench in your plans.
