Selecting the right software – Part 1/10 – People, Process, then Technology

November 03 , 2017

Selecting software for your business may be no walk in the park, however, it is important. Software can unlock efficiencies, reduce costs and allow you to visualize what may and may not be going well. We’re going tackle this topic in our next 10 blog entries to help you pick the best software/apps for your organization. While we at Plaidypus build custom-crafted software and mobile apps out in the wild, we’re going to put that aside for now. Instead, let’s have a simple holistic discussion about how to select software, while keeping the good and discarding the bad & ugly.

Consider Your People

For our first venture into this topic, we want talk about what we believe is one of the core foundations of selecting software, the people. My first business, providing short-term, furnished housing for medical students, required software to help me with my book keeping, Customer Relationship Management (CRM) and the scheduling/managing of tenants. I bought the accounting software off-the-shelf, the CRM was an open source tool that I downloaded, and I had the scheduling software custom-made. I wish I could tell you it all went well.

Selecting Software - People, Process then Technology

What was the main thing I did wrong? I bought technology, developed my processes around it, and then introduced it to myself and employees for use.  What’s wrong with that?  Well, its exactly 100% backwards.

The Better Way

This is how it should be done:

  • Speak with employees regarding the desire to select software for the areas needed
  • Determine employees’ willingness to adopt technology for their job
  • Engage employees in developing processes that best suit the business and their position
  • Find and trial software that fits the company culture and processes

There is rarely a rush to go out and select a piece of software for your business. Give your team some ownership in that endeavor. I think as business owners, we overlook the fact that software is only as good as the data that we enter into it.  If you want your employees to enter that data, make sure they are fully invested in the process and ultimately the software itself.