1. Establish your budget
What’s your budget for the implementation project? You’ll need to think about the implementation process itself, and post-launch support and training!
2. Make a list of must-have features for your next solution
Think about:
- what features does your current solution have that your business can’t function without?
- what features do you not currently have access to, but would save you and your team time and/or money if you did have them?
3. Think about what your business needs
If you work within a wider finance team, or there are employees in other departments who also use your current system, speak to them all and establish what they each need from your next financial management software solution.
Make a list of these functionality requirements to help in your decision-making process.
4. Prioritise!
Ideally, you’ll be able to find a solution that allows you to cross every point off your functionality and feature lists. But to help you work out which financial management software solution is best for your business, take a look at each list and prioritise them!
Consider the benefits of having access to these functionalities or features in terms of time and cost – for individuals and the overall company.
For example, if John has told you that month-end reports are taking him three weeks to compile, automated reporting should be at the top of your list. John can then reallocate most of that time to tasks that will help bring additional revenue into the business.
5. Cloud vs On-Premises
By now, you should have a shortlist of potential financial management software solutions that you’re considering for your business.
To reduce this list even more, categorise the solutions into cloud and on-premises solutions.
Do some research into the pros and cons of both hosting methods and use what you learn to whittle down your list. You’ll either be able to delete one category entirely, or you’ll be able to look at each solution and their features in greater detail to establish their benefits.
6. Come back to basics
Come back to the basics of what your business needs. The most important things to consider here are how many users you’ll be needing, and the flexibility for adding and removing users, if there is any.
Which brings us onto our final step…
7. Think about the future!
What is your business going to need from your solution in 6-18 months. And what about 5-10 years? Think about your business’ short-term and long-term strategies.
This is a big investment, so your chosen financial management software solution should be future-proof and ready and capable of growing with your business.
