Let’s just be honest here: implementing a new management system is a time-consuming, resource-intensive affair. On top of that, system switchovers can be quite disruptive for business. After all, if you are a retailer, what you care about is selling, not your tech. And yet, old technology is a liability. Technology is moving fast, and customers are following suit. To remain relevant and keep customers coming back, you need to be able to deliver quick sales (this means, for example, having a system that doesn’t get stuck or slow down during the rush hour); you need to have total overview over your inventory (what’s in transit, what is sold, what is in which location); you need to be able to track your customers across the sales channels. Today your retail system needs to do more than it did yesterday, and faster. It’s inevitable: at some point, retailers just need to make time for a system upgrade. Although system implementations can be tough, there are some best practices that can help make the process simpler and painless. Here are three tested pieces of advice from the combined experience of our experts, partners and customers.
Make sure everyone is involved
A system change affects everyone in the company. To increase enthusiasm and commitment to the project, it is important to involve people from different departments. When Hobbycraft, the largest arts and crafts retailer in the UK, installed LS Nav, they picked people from across the company to join the implementation team. Although few of these individuals had any prior experience of change management or system implementation, this proved a successful decision. Not only did it ensure that the team was fully committed to the project, but many of these individuals subsequently moved into better roles within the company, a testament to the fact that system implementations can have wide-ranging and long-lasting effects on a company. Even if not everyone is directly involved in the implementation, it is important to keep all parties in the company up to date. Here is what Sven Vesik, Development Director at building materials company Optimera Estonia AS, told us about sharing information: “All company employees must have a clear understanding as to why the changes are implemented, and what good they will bring. Then people will be more inclined to go along with the changes, and they will have more tolerance for the workload increase during the transition period.”Follow the standard solution
Do you want to minimize complications and delays during implementation? Then you should stick to the standard solution, many of our experts say. By implementing the standard solution, you can:- reduce complexity during the installation and afterwards
- decrease the risk of glitches and problems
- upgrade your system more easily and quickly.