What to check before buying new business software

Before spending money on new business software, get clear on what needs to improve and how the work is currently being done. That gives you a much better basis for deciding whether to replace your tools, adjust them or change the process around them.

The pressure to change often builds gradually. Staff cover a few extra tasks. The owner stays back to finish the paperwork. Everyone assumes it is just a busy patch, until the longer hours become normal. Sometimes the team feels busier even when the amount of work coming in has slowed.

At that point, a new system can look like the answer. In my experience, it pays to look closely at the job you are asking it to do before committing.

Look at how the work actually flows

One business I worked with thought it needed new software and other changes to improve production. I looked at the numbers, but I also looked at how people moved around the workplace.

Staff were having to walk a long way around to get where they needed to go. That repeated movement was costing the business time throughout the day. I recommended installing two doors to create more direct routes.

Those two doors improved the flow of work and helped increase production. Looking beyond the software gave us a practical way to address the delay.

That is why I like to watch people doing their jobs before recommending changes. The cause might be the layout, a handover between teams or information that arrives too late. You need to understand that before choosing a solution.

Check what your existing tools can do

A lot of the time, the software already in place can do more than the business is using it for. It may need a configuration change, an additional feature or a better way of getting information into it.

For example, someone might be manually typing website enquiries into a customer management system. It may be possible to connect the enquiry form to the existing system so a contact is created automatically. That could remove repeated data entry without replacing the whole platform.

I start with the desired outcome and work backwards. If the aim is faster follow-up, I look at how enquiries arrive, who receives them and what happens next. Then we can assess whether the current tools can support the process.

Sometimes replacement is necessary. But there is a cost to every change, so I want a clear reason for making it.

Test the details before you commit

A product can look right in a demonstration and still create problems in daily use. I have seen businesses commit to changes before finding out how the new system would interact with the rest of their operation.

Check how information will move between the tools you rely on. For a transport business, that might include customer bookings, dispatch, tracking and invoicing. If staff have to copy information between systems or create workarounds at each step, the expected time saving can disappear.

Ask the supplier to walk through a real job from your business, including the awkward parts. What happens when a customer changes an order? Can the right staff find and update the information? How will existing records be moved and checked?

These questions help you assess how the software will work in your business before you commit to it.

Involve the people doing the work

The staff using a system every day know things that may never appear in a management report. They know where information goes missing and which steps take longer than they should.

They may also have a few clever workarounds. I want to understand those. A useful workaround can sometimes be developed into a consistent process that benefits the whole team. Others reveal a problem that needs fixing.

Watching staff work also shows me what they are comfortable with and where they need help. If we can build on familiar ways of working, we can reduce the time and stress involved in learning something new.

That input needs to happen while we are deciding what to change, so the people using the system can help shape it.

Allow time for training and the transition

Even capable software will struggle to deliver value if the team cannot use it properly. Giving people a login and telling them to give it a crack leaves too much to chance.

I prefer to work through the tasks staff actually need to complete, give them time to practise and answer questions as they come up. Training needs to cover their daily work, including what to do when something goes wrong.

The transition also needs planning. Depending on the business, it may make sense to start with key staff or one department before introducing the change more widely. If two systems need to run temporarily, everyone needs to know where the current records are kept and who is responsible for updating them.

Include that time in the cost of the change. The subscription price is only part of it. Moving data, training staff and helping them through the first few weeks all take effort. Missed follow-ups or delayed invoices can add to the cost if the transition is poorly managed.

Start with the result you want

Before comparing software, write down what a better working day would look like. It could mean fewer enquiries being missed, less double handling or the owner being able to leave on time.

Use that outcome to guide the decision, then check whether the change delivers it. The right answer might be new software, a better process, staff training or a physical change to the workplace. It depends on what is causing the problem.

At Empowered Growth Solutions, I help business owners across Newcastle, Lake Macquarie, the Hunter and surrounding regions work through these decisions and put practical improvements in place.

Book a confidential call to talk through what is slowing your business down and where to start.