Are you about to purchase your company's very first time tracking service or are you considering changing service providers?
It is worth spending some time purchasing a time tracking service to get the most out of the service for your company. This article contains tips for purchasing a suitable time tracking system. The tips can also be used in other SaaS system purchases.
Name a responsible person or procurement team
Find the right people to lead the procurement project. Try to include people who are not already overworked.
The appropriate number of people responsible for procurement is always case-specific. Usually, one person in charge makes the procurement decision in a company with fewer than 20 people. In a medium-sized company, dividing the responsibilities between 2-3 people ensures that needs are taken into account more broadly. In large companies, it is worth building the project team in such a way that people from different functions are involved as comprehensively as possible. For example, it is usually worth committing HR staff, management and financial administration to the project at an early stage so that their needs are heard and can be responded to if necessary.
Get to know your company's current processes
Together with the procurement team, identify and describe how your company's current processes work. Note that different units or departments may have different practices. Be prepared to make changes to processes if necessary. Standardize your company's practices (e.g. TES and sliding procedures) where possible. Exceptions complicate the implementation and use of the system. Successful implementation of an information system almost always requires small changes to processes and it also serves as a good opportunity to update old established practices.
Define procurement objectives and create a list of requirements
Name the goals that the acquisition is intended to achieve. Write down the most important requirements of the system. In a large company, it is a good idea to request a list of requirements directly from the people responsible for different functions. It is not a good idea to make the requirements too detailed at this stage. You can refine the list of requirements once you have familiarized yourself with the options.
A good time tracking system saves time, nerves and costs. At best, it will serve the company for years as part of a continuously developing enterprise resource planning system. If the system has special needs due to the industry, find out what the service provider's ability is to programmatically modify the system to meet these special needs.
Set a realistic timeline and budget for the acquisition
Try to set a realistic schedule and budget. A tight schedule is not necessarily realistic and can lead to bad decisions. It is also worth setting aside time to test the system with different user groups and process feedback. Set a budget for the acquisition.
Especially in larger companies, you should try to assess the profitability and benefits of the investment in advance. Evaluating profitability is challenging when purchasing a system that adds value to many company functions. Contact your sales representative if you need help assessing profitability.
Run a pilot and collect feedback from different user groups
It is worth taking the system for a free test to a limited group. It is worth checking the ease of use especially with those employees who would be entering work into the system daily. Collect user experiences from different user groups and, if necessary, adjust the system settings based on the feedback you receive. It is also worth testing the quality of customer service by asking them for help with system configuration. When you are dealing with customer support, your expert's service orientation and the meaningfulness of the cooperation will become clear in a natural way, while the service can be tailored to better meet your needs.
Make a choice
Choose the service provider that you feel is the best fit for your business. Good selection criteria include:
- A service package that meets your needs
- System customizability (user interface & possibly programmatic customization for special needs)
- Customer service expertise and service orientation
- Budget-friendly price
- (Domesticity)
Tips for the end:
- The list of requirements should not be too specific at first, but rather broadly drawn. A list of requirements that is too specific can make the procurement process difficult. Refine the list of requirements once you have familiarized yourself with the options.
- It is worth setting a realistic schedule so that rushing does not lead to bad decisions, but on the other hand, the acquisition should not become a perpetual project.
- Talk to the salesperson about your company's software needs. In addition to gaining useful information, you'll also get to know your customer service representative better.
- Ask for opinions from trusted people (including field workers) who will use the system daily. Good communication and inclusion will reduce potential resistance to change!
- If you feel that implementing these points is too laborious or demanding, you should consider hiring a consultant for the task. A well-designed time tracking system will save a lot of time and money and provide good tools for continuous development.
Do you want help? working time tracking in procurement? Contact us!