On a more positive note, I have not encountered many companies that specialize in custom workflow automation software. There are countless IT services companies out there, but offering an array of services leaves a company at risk of being perceived as a jack of all trades and a master of none. Harsh economic conditions also contribute to fewer competitors being present.

At this point the challenge is finding companies that have a budget for a project and a need for software automation. Fortunately, we are in the middle of budgeting season and many companies are compiling a short list of potential vendors. It remains to be seen how many projects will come of this in the coming months.

Targeting and alleviating the major pain points is the key to process improvement and the benefits that come as a result. It is crucial to prioritize and start off with the most excruciating business problems. Taking this approach will deliver the greatest results and the highest ROI. Even if your budget is drained as a result of focusing on these major pain points, you will end up with greater results than if you tackled several minor inconveniences. Minor problems may simply be symptoms of much larger problems. When alleviating pain points, it is crucial to observe the symptoms and then create a methodology to fix or remove the root cause.

In the design process project managers can easily fall into the trap of focusing on the wrong changes.Managers are in the best position to lobby for changes that benefit them the most, even if their employees have more serious workflow challenges. Losing sight of the primary targeted pain point by focusing on the low hanging fruit will bring some instant gratification, but doing so poses a much higher risk of going over budget and having a lower ROI. In addition, users in a supervisory role should typically be satisfied last in a large software project as the workflow must be in place before any reporting data can be extracted. Trying to do this backwards to satisfy management rarely offers good results.

Implementing a solution can be time consuming because the users of the new and improved process methodology will need to become acclimated to whatever changes have been made. They will need time to develop a rhythm so they can most effectively utilize the improved process. Don’t lose focus of the primary pain points during this transition. Make sure they are solved before any other problems are considered. Once the new process has been effectively implemented, smaller pain points can be diagnosed and alleviated. This process should not be rushed as there will be minor glitches as everyone adapts to their new process, glitches that will go away in time.

Focusing on alleviating the biggest pains first will result in the greatest impact on workflow, and the best ROI. Whenever possible, the objective should be fixing the root cause of the problem. This strategy will result in a wider impact on the company, and it is cheaper in the long run than fixing endless symptoms. After the root cause of the problem has been addressed, allow some time to breathe. This downtime will allow employees to adapt to their new methodology. Once the major pain has been alleviated, new ones may crop up. Handle them in order of perceived pain, not in a politically motivated order. The benefits will speak for themselves.

Establishing a timeline for release and implementation is critical. The longer the project goes without being released and implemented, the higher the risk of running into major setbacks and failing to obtain an adequate ROI. The most crucial deadline involved in workflow software development is the release date. When does the project go live? The majority of software projects are not released on time because of modifications. It is important to focus on producing a program that satisfies the major requirements before worrying about ancillary modifications. Users frequently feel a need for features that were unavailable previously and not considered for the initial release. If the feature was unavailable before, how does the user know they need it? Might that requirement change in the near future? Is it possible there are more important expenditures that your budget could be used for?

Input and feedback coming from end users is crucial to the success of your project. The longer users go without actually utilizing the program, the more difficult it will be to change, as more and more infrastructure will be relied upon to continue development. Getting feedback on small steps on your project allows users, management, and consultants to adapt. Performing a trial implementation of small parts of the project can provide valuable information into the current success of the project. It is beneficial to the cost and lifecycle of a project to identify and alleviate issues before they are “cemented” into place. It is almost always counterproductive to build on an untested foundation.

The budgeting process must be handled delicately when investing in workflow software. It is extremely easy to go over budget with additional feature requests. Decision makers, end users, and software developers must be striving towards the same goal if the project is to remain within its budget. It is of utmost importance that project managers maintain discipline and stick to prioritizing the major requirements instead of raising costs through ancillary requests. The decision makers, end users, and developers should commit to delivering the major goals of the project. In many cases, it is helpful to set aside a portion of the budget for special requests that will come throughout the project, mitigating some risk of going over budget. By thinking ahead and maintaining discipline, project managers can keep a project eager to grow within its budget.

Building custom workflow software is a big investment and cannot be taken lightly. While there are many challenges offered by taking on a large project, the benefits outweigh the risks. By using some of the tips in this article, your project will most likely be cheaper, developed faster, and have a higher return on investment.

Facilitating user buy in is the key to the success of any workflow project. For many, change from the status quo can be met with stress, frustration, and fear. In the workplace this can be manifested in many ways, but usually in negative behavior towards the source or agent of change. These negative behaviors can: lower morale, slow the training process, reduce the effectiveness of your new program, and lower the quality of data. Everyone responds differently to change, so it is important to recognize the personal aspect of making workflow changes. Avoiding some of the easy pitfalls when implementing workflow changes will lead to happier employees and a more successful launch.

The easiest way to turn fear and stress into excitement and relief in a workflow project is to listen carefully to your employees input. Input should be encouraged, and received before, during, and after the creation of your workflow software. Not only will your employees feel more in control of their jobs, you will likely get a better product in the end! It is their tasks you are automating, so naturally, they are the most important person to talk to while doing it. The most common pitfall in the software creation process is making too many assumptions about how employees actually get their jobs done, and not asking the right questions because of it.

Another great way to reduce the resistance to change is to encourage an open discussion about existing shadow systems. Shadow systems are tools that are developed by employees to make their jobs easier. They are usually made privately, without help or even knowledge from management or IT. Give the lack of resources they are most likely only partially effective. Many of these systems make work easier, but are kept secret for fear of being asked to discontinue their use for any number of legitimate reasons. Discussing these systems openly and without risk can shine a light on which areas of a job need automating. Not only do you gain insight into which tasks need automating, but also an idea about how they should be automated. Not only does that information help with the design of new software, it puts the user at ease knowing that their ideas are being considered and their job may soon get easier. After all, no one complains when you make their life easier.

Although employee resistance to change is a real roadblock for decision makers, and the consultants responsible for implementation, it can be either contained or reduced through the proactive measures described in this article. Additional obstacles preventing a smooth implementation and their respective solutions are certainly worthy of the consideration of everyone involved.

Developing software requires lots of planning and attention to detail in all stages of the project. Software requires a virtual foundation, much like a physical foundation of a building. Both require significant preparation, planning, time and effort. Once the foundation is laid, one must consider the connections that will be made and the integration between programs, databases, etc that will take place. These connections are crucial to the effective transfer of data that is inherent to automating a company’s workflow. These connections are the plumbing of your application. Installing plumbing requires significant planning and is difficult to move once in place. If a builder decides halfway through construction that a bathroom should be moved to another location, water pipes will need to be rerouted, which presents the builder with added costs. By planning for that extra bathroom, even though one isn’t needed yet, wasteful expenditures can be avoided.

The analogy between building software and building a house could go on and on, but there is one simple point to be taken from it. Planning the development of a software program should be taken no less seriously than planning the construction of a house. If crucial aspects of a software program (foundation changes, changes to specifications, altering data transmission) are changed halfway through, it will probably end up being very expensive and time consuming to change. If time allotted to planning in the beginning of a project is insufficient, specifications may change halfway through. Avoiding these changes by planning ahead can save tens of thousands of dollars.

In addition to planning for the technical side of software development, planning must be done on the business level, and the political level. Anticipating potential changes in the business as a whole may bring to the surface issues that have yet to be accounted for. Developing software to cover these potential issues ahead of time can save a great deal of money. For example, perhaps you only have one location right now, but the idea for building a second location has been kicked around. Developing software with the knowledge that it may be expanded to other locations will mean design changes in the foundation. These changes don’t require a great deal of time to make if they are caught early, but adjusting completed software to work for multiple sites may mean a massive overhaul. Obviously, anticipating all possible business changes is impossible, but considering your options ahead of time may drastically reduce your budgetary needs in the future.

There are also political forces at work inside your company that can affect the success of your software. Employee buy-in is critical to the implementation of any project. If the end-users of your software don’t like it, don’t understand it, or don’t want to use it, there will likely be issues when you roll it out. The discussion of why employee buy-in is necessary is an article in itself, but that doesn’t affect planning for the future. Getting your employees on board shouldn’t be a problem if you remember why you are automating your workflow in the first place; to help your employees! Be sure to include them and use their input as much as possible. They are the ones experiencing the pains of inefficiency, and will know their issues better than anyone else. Generally, if you are providing the opportunity for your employees to make their lives easier, you won’t have any buy-in issues. This is only one strategy, and buy-in may be achieved in many different ways. How employee buy-in is achieved is irrelevant, as long as it is part of the planning process the likelihood of rolling out a successful project with an attractive return on investment is significantly increased.

Technology and its utilization are in a state of constant change and market savvy programmers need to plan carefully in order to meet the demands of tomorrow. Developing the software of tomorrow requires significant planning today, by programmers and by businesses. A virtual foundation must be created, and significant planning must occur to determine which programs and databases will be connected and integrated. Finally, implementing a new solution must be carefully planned out in the business and political spheres in order to maximize the return on investment.