LISO BLOG

10 Steps Your So ware Implementation

Should Have
By Carlos L. Aguilar (https://www.lisoblog.com/author/admin/)

I’ve had a lot of people ask me how the Four Phase Training and
Implementation Plan (http://lisoblog.com/secrets-of-a-successful-
so ware-implementation-part-1-of-4/) fits in within an enterprise so ware
project.

To do this, I thought it best to take a moment to break down the anatomy

of a large so ware implementation project.

This diagram illustrates all of the major steps in a large so ware

implementation project. Read the diagram from le to right, top to
bottom. For instance, the first circle is “Vendor Selection” and below
vendor selection are the steps needed to complete the so ware vendor
selection step.

You may have to click on the image to see every box. Go ahead, do it now
to get a better view.

Note: A couple of paragraphs below, you can download this so ware

implementation process in PDF.
FREE DOWNLOAD
(http://lisoblog.com/wp-
content/uploads/2014/07/anatomy_of_an_implementation.jpg)

As you can see, there is a ton of e ort put into a large so ware project. But
did you also see where the Four Phase Training and Implementation Plan
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fits in?
Get our free diagram of the 10 steps you need to take for
a successful so ware implementation.
The implementation plan commences at Process Refinement and ends
at Month-End Support.

That’s almost the entire project.

I’m going to break down each one of those circles and also highlight the
appropriate phase for each activity.

To provide some context and background, I’ll be referencing my

guidebook to so ware implementations that explains exactly how to use
the four phases along with some prerequisites and a cutover plan.

>>Want this diagram in PDF format? Click here to download this one
page resource. Then print it out and put it on your wall or share with
your colleagues.<< FREE DOWNLOAD
Step 1) Business Justification
Prior to doing anything on a so ware project, there has to be a definite
business need, a solid value proposition
(http://conversionsurge.com/value-proposition/), along with a gain or
benefit a er implementing the so ware. Typically this benefit will come in
the form of a return on the investment (ROI) the company made to procure
and install the so ware. The formula for ROI is as follows:

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Get our free diagram of the 10 steps you need to take for
(http://lisoblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/ROI.png)
a successful so ware implementation.

Since ROI is calculated in percentage, multiply this result by 100.

Example: let’s say a manufacturing company decides to implement new

so ware. The estimated total investment for this so ware is $15MM USD.
The anticipated cost savings (or gains) from implementing this so ware is
$25MM USD. Therefore, the anticipated ROI for this project is 67%. I say
“anticipated” because this calculation is based on assumptions and those
assumptions may or may not happen.

Calculating the benefits of implementing so ware is always the first step;

a business case, or justification, has to occur before anyone talks about
buying new so ware.FREE DOWNLOAD
Am I right? I mean, no company would go out there and just spend money
willy nilly without having any idea of what the anticipated benefits would
be would they?

With the business justification out of the way, let’s say top management
likes the ROI and everyone gives the green light to proceed with the
project. Who wouldn’t like a 67% return on a so ware investment for the
company?

(http://lisoblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/2014-
07-24_1555.png)
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Step 2) Vendor Selection
Get our free diagram of the 10 steps you need to take for
a successful so ware implementation.
With the business justification made and management agreeing to
commence with the project, it’s time to select the so ware vendor. Epicor
has a pretty simple process for selecting vendors and it closely mirrors my
experience in how companies complete their selection.

Create an evaluation team. Assemble a team within the organization who

will assist in the evaluation of the so ware vendor. This team should
comprise of members from top management, functional experts and end-
users. If you can find one, bring in a neutral consultant to help evaluate.

Business Assessment. Conduct an assessment of the current state of the

business. Look at critical processes and note what is being done well and
what benefits a new system can deliver for these processes.
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So ware Criteria. Develop a selection criteria to evaluate the available
solutions. Criteria can include features, price, platform, and anything else
the evaluation team can think of. Group the criteria according to
importance to your business, i.e. very important, important, and less
important. Assign a score (such as 1-5) to each to make the evaluation
easier.

Some of the criteria can include:

Industry Expertise. How well does the ERP vendor understand your
industry? Does the vendor o er industry best practices or pre-defined
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processes that are generalized or horizontally focused? ERP solutions
should
Get our freeat the very
diagram least
of the 10 stepsaddress
you need toyour mission critical business
take for
a successful so ware implementation.
requirements specific to your industry.
Total Cost of Ownership (TCO). Determine the long-term TCO for
hardware, so ware, and support—pre and post implementation.
Multi-Site Operations Support. If you need to collaborate with
multiple operations then ensure your ERP vendor can support multi-
site operations. Can your ERP vendor support all your locations with a
small centralized IT sta ? Do they require complicated architectures?
Customer Support. Does the ERP vendor have its own in-house
support or does it outsource? You’ll gain the most out of your
investment if you have access to a customer care center that can

answer your key application and technical questions and advise on

best industry practices
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Ask for specific references. Don’t let them send you a list of “pre-
screened” references who will surely tell you all the great things about this
particular vendor. Instead, ask them to provide references of companies
who are in the same industry as yours and faced similar business
challenges. If desired, ask to visit these customer to see what they like and
dislike about the so ware and whether or not it is working as expected.

(http://lisoblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/2014-
07-24_1556.png)

Step 3) Project Kick-o

With the vendor selected, it’s time to get the project started with a good
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kick-o ! The first part of kicking o the project is to assemble the team.
Get our free diagram of the 10 steps you need to take for
Thisawill takesosome
successful time and is a crucial step in the implementation
ware implementation.
process.

This is the time to identify key resources to oversee the project and ensure
its success.

Governance structure. To ensure accountability and success of the

project, a governance board or steering committee needs to be put in
place. This purpose of this committee is to help the project sustain its
potential to deliver its promised value.

The committee must also help managers assess the project’s current state
and adjust content and direction if necessary. They should also allow
management to refine theDOWNLOAD
FREE definition of success to maintain alignment
with evolving business strategy.

Typically this committee is comprised of the project manager, project

sponsor, project management o ice (PMO) and most importantly senior
business unit managers with a vested interest in the success of the project.
The last group is important because they will be representing the users
within each function of the company.

Executive sponsor. An executive sponsor is a C-level administrator who

has a vested interest in seeing a project to completion.

Ideally, the executive sponsor should be the highest-ranking manger

FREErelative
possible, DOWNLOAD
to the size of the project. Successful sponsorship
requires
Get ourafree
deep understanding
diagram ofneed
of the 10 steps you organizational
to take for culture and awareness of
a successful so ware implementation.
how the project will help the organization achieve its goals. Part of the
sponsor’s job is to promote the project within the organization, making
sure everyone understands the benefits the project will provide.

In some organizations, the executive sponsor is the person who is

responsible for financially authorizing a project and creating the project
charter. The sponsor should work closely with the project manager, but is
probably not the project manager’s boss. Typically, the project manager is
responsible for day-to-day execution and the sponsor only steps in to
make decisions when change requests might a ect the project’s scope.

Project Management O ice (PMO).  The primary goal of a PMO is to

achieve benefits from standardizing and following project management
policies, processes and methods.
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For the so ware implementation project, they will be the source for
guidance, documentation, and metrics. If necessary, they will get involved
with project-related tasks and follow up on project activities through
completion. They may report on project activities, problems and
requirements to executive management (CEO, CFO, CIO, etc.) to keep
these decision makers moving toward consistent, business focused goals
and objectives.

Project Manager. The individual responsible for the project’s overall

performance and success. He or she will liaise between the
functional/technical leads and the PMO/Project Sponsor/Steering
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Committee. It is a huge role and filling this position should be a
collaborative e ortofwithin
Get our free diagram theyou
the 10 steps organization.
need to take for
a successful so ware implementation.

Functional Leads. Don’t underestimate the value of your functional

resources on a so ware implementation project. Choose the wrong
resources for this role and risk not having the business requirements
translated to technical requirements for the so ware.

Recruit people within the organization. Make sure they have at least the

following: leadership, management, strong communication skills,
charisma, knowledge of so ware systems, ability to write clear
documentation, likes to help others and wants to see the project and
company be successful.

Technical Leads. If you can source these individuals within the company,
do so. Otherwise, vet these candidates with the same scrutiny you would
for your functional leads.
FREE Ask for examples of work. Talk to references.
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Allow the functional leads to participate in the interview process since
both teams will be working together closely for months to come.

Change Management. This could either be an individual or a team —

depending on the scope of the project. Having a change manager on the
project is not required but might be depending on organizational culture
and number of users a ected by the implementation.

The role of a change manager for a so ware project is to increase

employee adoption and usage of the so ware by applying a structured
methodology.

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As previously mentioned, utilizing the four phase training and
implementation plan
Get our free diagram I’ve steps
of the 10 developed has
you need to takeproved
for to increase employee
a successful so ware implementation.
adoption and usage through a structured method. Incidentally, the plan
itself acts as a change manager within the organization during the project.

Prior to announcing the project to the organization, the CEO ought to get
the entire project team together to: a) announce who is filling each role on
the project b) allow the team to meet each other c) motivate the team and
d) set expectations of the project team
Announce to Organization. With the project team assembled, It is time to
announce this endeavor to the organization! This kick-o and
announcement to the organization should be held like the opening of the
Super Bowl.

Get as many employees together as you can, set up a common area, serve
food, play music and end it all with a kick-ass motivational speech by the
CEO. Make it special for the
FREE organization.
DOWNLOAD
Do this and both the project team and employees will be energized to
make the project successful.

DON’T simply send out a BORING memo! No one will be excited and
energized by a memo.

(http://lisoblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/2014-
07-24_1556_001.png)

Step 4) Process Refinement

With the project kicked-o , it’s time for the project team to get to work!
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Send out the functional leads to meet with the business process experts
Get our free diagram of the 10 steps you need to take for
and astart identifying all business processes to be included in the so ware.
successful so ware implementation.

Work with these experts and other superusers to analyze the processes to
see if any improvements can be made to them. Can you modify a step in
the process to make it more e icient? Does this process touch other parts
of the business? How critical is this process to generating revenue or
satisfying customers?

Once the processes have been identified and scrubbed/reengineered, it’s

time to document. Again, keeping it simple, just create the process like so:

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(http://lisoblog.com/wp-
content/uploads/2014/07/1st_diagram.png)
Step 3 corresponds to the “Prerequisites” phase in the Training and
Implementation Plan
(http://lisoblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/2014-
07-24_1557.png)

Step 5) First So ware Build Out

A er refining the business processes, it is time for the first so ware
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buildout. This is where the functional leads transfer the business
Get our free diagram of the 10 steps you need to take for
requirements
a successful sotoware
theimplementation.
technical team and the technical team begins the
work of programming and configuring the meet the business needs.

Keep in mind this first build out should be largely representative of what
the company needs to do to keep the business running. Depending on
timelines and/or constraints, the so ware may only be 85-90% built with
the remaining to be completed before User Acceptance Testing (UAT).

Step 4 corresponds to Phase 1: Face to Face Training of the Training and

Implementation Plan
(http://lisoblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/2014-07-
24_1557_001.png)

Step 6) Conference Room Pilot’s

(CRP) and So ware Configuration
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With the first buildout of the so ware completed it is time
 With the first buildout of the so ware completed, it is time
to validate if the team is on track with its configuration of
the so ware.

In a large so ware implementation there will be three CRP’s. For the first
CRP, get all of the Subject Matter Experts (SME) together along with other
business process experts and superusers. Talk about each business
process and how they were transformed to reside within the so ware.

Demonstrate the process in the new so ware then allow the users to
complete the task individually. Be sure to provide a job aid and data sheet
for each process to be tested so each user knows where to click and what
the expected results are.
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Get our free diagram of the 10 steps you need to take for
Notea all of thesopasses
successful and fails of each step and also be sure to note any
ware implementation.

lack of functionality, so ware bugs or key usability issues. Make sure both

the functional team and technical team are facilitating these sessions.

So ware configuration. Based on the issues discovered during CRP1,

make a list of the top 10-15 critical items to be fixed before the next CRP
session. Have the technical team make all of the necessary fixes and bug
squashing.

Rinse and repeat.

Conduct a second CRP session with the users and note the passes and fails
of each step along with any lack of functionality, so ware bugs or key
usability issues. MakeFREE
appropriate
DOWNLOADchanges to the so ware application.
Rinse and repeat.

Conduct a third CRP session with the users and note the passes and fails of
each step along with any lack of functionality, so ware bugs or key
usability issues. Make appropriate changes to the so ware application.

Due to the duration of Step 5, this step corresponds to Phase 2: Mini-CRP

and Web Calls and Phase 3: Monthly Proficiency Tasks of the Training and
Implementation Plan
(http://lisoblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/2014-
07-24_1557_002.png)
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Step 7) User Acceptance Testing
Get our free diagram of the 10 steps you need to take for
a successful so ware implementation.
(UAT)
With three CRP’s completed and multiple configurations made to the
application, it is time to demonstrate the so ware is ready for the users.
With the incorporation of Phase 2: Mini-CRP and Web Calls, iterative
changes can be made without the need of a full blown CRP. Therefore at
this stage in the project the application should be ready for enterprise use.

Conduct a thorough end-to-end testing of the so ware with every

business process from every function of the company.

As with CRP sessions, ensure job aids and data sheets are used during the
testing. Every end user should attend this session in person.
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A er the system has been tested by the users, you may formally or
informally have them “sign-o ” on system readiness.

However, should there be any issues uncovered during the UAT, complete
one final round of so ware configuration before go-live.

Step 6 corresponds to Phase 4: Final User Training and Certification of the

Training and Implementation Plan
(http://lisoblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/2014-
07-24_1557_003.png)

Step 8) Cutover
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Time to begin the process of transitioning from one system to a new one.
Get our free diagram of the 10 steps you need to take for
The aorganization needs to plan, prepare and execute the cutover, by
successful so ware implementation.
creating a cutover plan to describe all cutover tasks to be
completed before go-live. This plan is designed to minimize the ongoing
risk of moving from one system to another.

It also includes the task of migrating code from a development or test

instance to the production instance.

Once these activities have been identified, they become tasks assigned to
key stakeholders of the project. These stakeholders can be anyone from a
project lead to a controller who has to ensure the books are reconciled
prior to moving to the new system.

When developing a cutover plan, identify key activities well in advance so

the project team and stakeholders can agree on the tasks and be aware of
when they need to beFREE
completed.
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Examples of cutovers tasks are:

Prepare production environment

Date for last transaction in old system
Data conversions
Complete final month end close in old system
Preparing the Service Desk for user support
Setting up a command center prior to go-live
Developing a user support plan

Also ensure there is a contingency plan in place should something go

FREE
wrong DOWNLOAD
during the cutover process; no need to shut down business
operations.
Get our free diagram of the 10 steps you need to take for
a successful so ware implementation.

Ensure there are checkpoints along the way and communicate the passing
of each item on the list.

Step 7 corresponds to the “Cutover” section of the Training and

Implementation Plan
(http://lisoblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/2014-
07-24_1557_004.png)

Step 9) Go-live

The big day is here. Time to “turn-on” the new system and allow users to
transact.
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I’ve said this many times but it still bears repeating: every so ware project
needs to deploy the functional resources to key locations to provide on-
site support at go-live. Providing in-person support for the users at go-live
is a morale boost for the organization and is vital to the success of the
launch.

Step 9 corresponds to “Supporting the Organization” section of the

Training and Implementation Plan
(http://lisoblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/2014-
07-24_1558.png)

Step 10) Month-end Support

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As with go-live, deploy the functional resources to key locations to provide
Get our free diagram of the 10 steps you need to take for
on-site support
a successful at go-live.
so ware Providing in-person support for the users
implementation.
provides a huge morale boost. Send key personnel to sites a couple of
days before month-end and have them return just a er the close.

Step 10 corresponds to “Supporting the Organization” section of the

Training and Implementation Plan
Post Mortem: Project Closure and Lessons
Learned
Project Closure. With the so ware fully launched and business returning
to normal operations, the project manager will complete a final checklist
resembling something like this:

All deliverables accepted and signed o by client or sponsor

Final project status reports complete
All financial processes and reports complete
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 Project review complete
Sta performance evaluations and reports completed
Sta employment on project terminated or reassigned
Announcement of completion of project (internal, external and public
relations contacts)
Completion and storage of project file

Lessons Learned. Use Google Forms to create an online questionnaire to

solicit objective responses from the project team.

Categories should include the following:

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Management Sponsorship
Project
Get our freeObjectives & steps
diagram of the 10 critical success
you need to takefactors
for
a successful so ware implementation.
Project Plan and Schedule
Project Team
Client/End User Involvement
Use of Technology
Project Monitoring
Project Communications

Allow space under each topic and create questions to be answered on a
scale like this:

0 = Don’t Know or Not Applicable

Scale from 1 to 5

Where 1 = Strongly Disagree

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 And 5 = Strongly Agree

In conclusion
Friends, I hope this clarifies where the Four Phase Training and
Implementation Plan fits within a so ware project.

What does your so ware project’s structure look like at the moment? Is it
similar?

Leave a comment below as I love learning how others manage their

projects.
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Get our free diagram of the 10 steps you need to take for
a successful so ware implementation.

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kavya joshi • 6 months ago

Great post! Thanks for introducing point 8th and elaborating it. Guess it will help me in the long run with the
software planning I’ve been doing with Merino Services.
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Diego • 2 years ago FREE DOWNLOAD

Great post!
 Great post!

One common problem we encounter when implementing customers is that we implement several features
for customer A, alerts, reports, dashboards, processes, etc and usually everyone in the project team
understands what was implemented - when we move to explaining it to the end users we feel like it is not
always fully understood. I wonder if there are better ways to communicate the business value to this users
that quite simply do not really care about how an alert was built but want to know why and the business
value. Thanks!
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Todd > Diego • 2 years ago

Diego,
We believe we solved this issue through our onboarding tool, BEynd.
We created a way to outline every step of the onboarding process via a template and then embed a
video in the overview for this exact problem.
Check it out at BEynd.com
△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›

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Omer Ahmad • 2 years ago
what is step 8?
△ ▽ •Get our free
Reply diagram
• Share › of the 10 steps you need to take for
a successful so ware implementation.
Carlos > Omer Ahmad • 2 years ago
Good eye, Omer! Fixed it up for you, my friend.
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