United States
Norge
Sverige
Suomi
UKSam Dodge, Direct Solutions Manager at Xledger UK, recently held a speaking session at the HAPN Expo to discuss the six steps that finance leaders can take to achieve a successful software implementation.
Sam’s role sits at the beginning of a customer’s Xledger implementation journey, and he sees firsthand how good preparation can lead to great implementation projects.
Here are the key considerations that digital transformation leaders should consider before starting their finance software transformation:
If you want to learn more about Xledger’s implementation process and how our finance solution can help streamline your operations, get in touch to book a demo.
Setting objectives helps give vision to your digital transformation project. You may want to invest in new finance software to integrate with your housing management system or to leverage consolidated group reporting. By setting clear objectives, you outline your reasons for change and create measurable goals to achieve.
For example, if you want to reduce the time it takes to create management accounts, you can work towards this, then measure the new figure against the previous time taken.
Milestones are smaller, scheduled goals that you complete to achieve overall objectives. These give your project schedule and momentum, and should follow the SMART criteria.
Make sure your milestones are:
When discussing the project with its key stakeholders, break down each objective and identify the key deliverables associated with it. These could be, “When do we want the system to be up and ready to be tested?”, or “When do we expect the true value to be coming out of the system?”. Answering these questions early on helps to focus the project into larger objectives that are composed of smaller, achievable milestones.
A project scope outlines what will and, equally, what won’t be delivered during the project. Essentially, it encourages stakeholders to identify the high, medium, and low priorities of the project, splitting these into different phases or scopes to maintain momentum.
A key benefit of this is to prevent your project team from getting bogged down with things that aren’t in their current project scope. For example, if you are migrating from a legacy system, the project objective may be as simple as, “Access a usable system by the time the project closes”. Below that, there can be more granular objectives that break down the urgent integrations that are needed.
Without the differentiation, it is easy to panic and feel as though progress is stunted. But with the agreed scope, you can celebrate wins, review improvements, and move on to the next phase of the project with confidence.
Scope creep refers to a situation where the key objectives of a project keep shifting to align with expanding requirements. These requirements are not usually outlined in the original preparation and, consequently, can lead a project away from schedule and budget.
Agreeing on the different objectives within your scope keeps focus. It defines what needs to be achieved in a set timeline and avoids the dreaded “scope creep”. If change does occur, stakeholders and project managers should allocate time for change management. This could include reassessing timelines, reevaluating budgets, creating new project objectives and communicating the change with all those involved in the project.
Identifying the roles that are required throughout the project early on is essential to success. Ideally, you want to get all involved users in the same room with key stakeholders as early as possible.
In this scenario, you can set key project objectives and understand where resources may need support during the project.
Of course, all stakeholders and users have a voice in the project, but we suggest each project should always have the following roles accounted for:
Software implementations are a lengthy process; these projects will demand time out of your BAU. Allocating the above roles before you begin your journey ensures that you mitigate the BAU risks that come with a lack of resources, unclear responsibilities, and vague escalation points.
The best approach to change management is to grasp the specific buy-in for each member involved in the transformation. For example, the benefits of a new finance software will be different for the CFO when compared to the end-user. Leaders who understand these nuances can manage the change with tact and create internal champions who promote the change to peers.
First, ask yourself, “How does the whole business buy into the change of a digital transformation?” Then break this down user by user. After this, you can begin a strategic and well-presented ‘hearts & minds’ process to ensure all users are invested from an early stage.
It’s worth noting that people may feel their jobs are at risk, so it’s a leader’s responsibility to scope out what their jobs will look like in the future and get people on board.
Most businesses only complete one or two transformation projects per year, whereas your providers perform digital transformation projects on a daily basis. This is to say: lean on your providers. They have the expertise to predict and prevent risk.
Risk is most common in the following four areas:
To mitigate these risks, outline your contingency plan early in the planning process and always refer back to the project scope. Similarly, lean on your project sponsor if you are concerned about any risk. This ensures that decisions are decisive and positioned to manage scope creep.
Managing data effectively is one of the most critical challenges in any digital transformation. Each digital transformation will be different; there isn’t a one-size-fits-all method. To alleviate concern, it’s important to discuss the following questions with your digital transformation team and your software provider:
If you know the solution to these questions early in the planning stage, you can mitigate the associated risks.
Digital transformations are lengthy processes, and reviewing small, achievable milestones helps keep the project focused over long periods. Not only does reviewing milestones map the project’s success, but it also uncovers areas for improvement. And, understanding the successful elements of the project will give those involved a sense of progress, momentum, and a feel for the impact of the project.
If the objective outlines automation, you can review the success of the integration build, if the integration’s automation works efficiently, and tick the objective. Reviewing milestones helps to map your progress — remember to take a step back and celebrate the small wins, as these make up the success of a project.
During the phase one review, you may feel panicked that you still have phase two objectives to complete. In these cases, take time to celebrate the wins, close the scope, and move on to the next phase of the project. This helps to maintain focus, budget, timeline, and positivity.
Xledger places significant importance on preparation. Our expert integration consultants, project managers, and accountancy-trained consultants can help you outline project scope while delivering high-quality implementations that align with your business objectives.
To discuss how Xledger can streamline inefficiencies in your organisation by successfully implementing true-cloud accounting software, see how we work or get in touch with one of our dedicated team members.
In the podcast we will explore:
Apex Housing Association (Apex) provides and maintains more than 7,000 high-quality homes and provides support to almost 18,000 tenants and residents across Northern Ireland. Since 1965, they have provided support services, associated care, and accessible high-quality housing to their community.
Are you a finance leader of an expanding business with multiple entities?
Our guide to Mastering Multi-Entity Finance explores the challenges faced when working with a multi-stranded business, the pitfalls of using legacy systems, and how a centralised hub can improve your insight into group financial health.
Have any questions on Xledger’s finance software?
Get in touch with one of our dedicated team.
