In another article, we discussed 7 benefits when fire departments replace an outdated RMS with more innovative vendors. If those reasons make the rewards worth the risk, then now you are in the position of taking the next steps toward identifying the right RMS.
ERP Advisors Group has helped many fire departments over the years, and we would like to share a few of the most important notes from that experience to help you start your RMS journey.
Changing RMS: 5 Tips for Fire Departments
If you are excited to get started, it is important to take a step back, breathe, and appraise your specific needs from an objective viewpoint. Needs vary greatly from one fire organization to the next. For that reason, the tools vary widely as well.
During this first phase of your RMS Selection process, you want to look more specifically at your circumstances to figure out which benefits might apply, as well as the risks of switching. There are countless possibilities that will influence your fire department differently than others. These tips will help you think through some of the most probable influencers.
- Do not call software vendors first. You don’t want to be sold a software product before you really understand your requirements.
- Really understand your specific needs. It will help to articulate how your department is different from other departments.
- Get your current data in a clean format. Knowing how you are going to handle historical records is one of the largest factors in moving to a new system.
- Be willing to look at the future. Fire departments can be so focused on what is happening today, while potentially neglecting the future strategy for their organization. Understand the growth your organization may experience in the coming months and years, and plan for how your department will keep up.
- Look for help. You can always schedule an introductory call with us - we can be a great sounding board.
ERP Advisors Group - Process for RMS Replacement
Here are the high-level steps we walk our clients through to nail down whether they should or shouldn’t purchase new software and once we have a “yes” to purchase software, how to know with absolute certainty they have picked the right application.
1. Needs Analysis
The Needs Analysis essentially is the business case for your organization -- it provides the background, the pain points of why you are considering switching software, the observations of how this is impacting the organization, what the ideal scene and recommendations are as well as cost benefit analysis and change management mitigation.
2. Determine the Right Solution: Survey the Market
There are over 70 different RMS applications on the market, and the process can be confusing if you don’t take the proper steps.
If we establish that an RMS change is the right move, we have a procedure for determining the right RMS solution. We start by creating a document with all your requirements and refer to the document as we find the software packages that meet your requirements specifically with their toolset. We analyze the market for the field of potential vendors and effectively narrow it down to the most viable, commercially available and functional applications for you to preview.
3. Small-Scale Demos
With a short list of vendors in hand, we will coordinate mini demonstrations with the short-listed vendors. We call this the “beauty pageant” stage. Your key users will attend the demos and give their feedback. Do your firefighters understand the solution easily? Does the vendor understand your organization? We go through and take out the ones that don’t show well or couldn’t demonstrate your requirements.
4. Full-Scale Demonstrations
Once we rule out what you do not want, we are left with the finalists. We help them to do full discovery with your organization, saving your enormous time by only allowing the most qualified vendors to have intense time with you and your subject matter experts. The finalists give full demonstrations of their applications to show you (or fail to show you) how their solution can meet your requirements.
5. Choose a Vendor
After final demonstrations, we facilitate every step of the diligence to help you feel 100% comfortable you have found the right application as well as the right implementation partner. We evaluate all of the terms and conditions, estimate forms and statements of work and provide our feedback on how to ensure your financial interests are put first. While we do not guarantee it, it is typical we actually save our clients our fees in the negotiation phase.
Next Steps: RMS Implementation
Identifying a vendor is one critical step in the process, but equally critical is the implementation itself. ERP Advisors Group works with fire departments and RMS vendors during this phase to ensure the solution is put in place in the way you need and with minimal risk to operations. We have a lot of experience with software vendors, as well as with implementing RMS. We know the challenges, and more importantly how to solve them proactively.
Replacing an RMS can be a very daunting task, but it is also doable. And in a field where well over 50% of implementations fail, every one of our implementations are a success. We are here to help you if you need us.
If you have any questions about replacing your RMS, please give us a call — we would be happy to give you our objective opinion free of charge.
