Course Link: GAP Analysis: A Practical Approach
Course Reviews
This follow-up course to Business Process Mapping provides an in depth look at the actual performance of system and process GAP Analysis and how the results of this strategy can provide benefits in addition to assisting in laying out the requirements for a new accounting system.

This course series progressed from the 20,000 foot view of the “best” practice steps one should take prior to and during the course of buying a new accounting, ERP or CRM system, to include War Stories that accented the major risks involved in a new system implementation.

Following the War Stories we delved into Business Process Mapping, the pre-cursor to providing an accurate current state view of the company.  The future state was developed during the development of a company’s Business Strategy and Functional Requirements.

This final course details how to take the current state and compare it to the future state and develop a plan of action.

This course is part of a series of courses:

Before You Buy That Accounting, ERP, or CRM System…
War Stories – Enterprise System Implementation Wars
Business Process Mapping: A Prelude to GAP Analysis

Learning Objectives

• Identify of the key aspects to Business Process Mapping.
• Explore how a simple GAP Analysis can be a useful tool.
• Explore how a more sophisticated GAP Analysis is performed.
• Recognize that actual performance of the GAP Analysis should be done by cross-departmental teams.
• Recognize in the final analysis, the act of performing the GAP Analysis provided a large number of added benefits to the business.

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Course Link: Business Process Mapping: A Prelude to System & Process GAP Analysis
Course Reviews

GAP Analysis requires a comparison between the existing system(s) and/or process(es) and those that an organization aspires to achieve; this course will provide a “best practice” to achieve the goal of mapping current processes.

While mapping your business process sounds simple, it isn’t.  When you start to capture all the exceptions, buts and what-ifs of the policies, procedures, rules and processes you will find a cacophony of issues. Without a complete picture of HOW you do business (from the process side), how can you determine where you want to be in the improved business process 2.0 version?

In this course we provide you with a road map to finding the true process map(s), because many times there are multiple maps, not just if-then-else decision points.

This course is part of a series of courses:

Before You Buy That Accounting, ERP, or CRM System…
War Stories – Enterprise System Implementation Wars
GAP Analysis: A Practical Approach

Learning Objectives

• Identify of the key aspects to acquiring a new [accounting/ERP] system
• Explore examples of what can go wrong when proper planning hasn’t been done.
• Explore some of the key elements that both the accounting department as well as other stakeholders need to focus on and agree to; eliminating as many of the roadblocks as possible.
• Explore how analysis of business process maps can assist in discovering bottlenecks and stovepipes
• Explore how analysis of business process maps can be used as the basis for GAP Analysis for comparison to the ideal version of processes that an organization aspires to achieve.

 Course Link: War Stories – Enterprise System Implementation Wars

Course Reviews

This course provides you with perspectives that help you to successfully select, purchase and implement your next accounting, ERP or CRM system – or, for that matter, any type of major enterprise system.

By describing real life case studies and the lessons derived from them, your chances of successfully selecting, buying and implementing your next system are greatly increased. Each section delivers real-world take-aways that are easily put into action.

Delivered in a “War Stories” format, the course is as engaging as it is instructional. This course is also brand neutral, providing an unbiased look at how to select the right system for you.

This course is part of a series of courses:

Before You Buy That Accounting, ERP, or CRM System…
Business Process Mapping: A Prelude to System & Process GAP Analysis
GAP Analysis: A Practical Approach

Learning Objectives

• Identify time, money and stress-saving top opportunities & pitfalls when selecting, buying and implementing your next system
• Recognize specific causes of selection, purchase and implementation failure and discover how to prevent them
• Identify reasons, methods, areas and benefits for gaining stakeholder buy-in
• Explore pre-defining success metrics for a powerful post-project review

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Course Link:  Before You Buy That Accounting, ERP, or CRM System…
Course Reviews

Many of the questions asked when selecting corporate software (and the focus of this course, buying an accounting system) are asked in this fashion: “What is the best software for [Fill-in type]”.  This is the wrong question; whose answers will invariably yield poor results. There is a reason that most major enterprise system implementations don’t fully meet their primary objectives and come in over budget.

Buying an Accounting System

The right question is: “What is the best software for [fill in the blank] the particular needs or our products/people/processes and our company at this point in time and the reasonably predictable future?” This requires significant self-knowledge, process and introspection.  These answers are needed when buying an accounting system.

This course provides an overview for project-sponsoring-execs (e.g. the CFO, Controller, VP of Finance) and an in-depth discussion for the actual teams involved in the process to provide a best practice approach to the acquisition of new software for the finance, accounting or related enterprise functions.

This course is part of a series of courses:

War Stories – Enterprise System Implementation Wars
Business Process Mapping: A Prelude to System & Process GAP Analysis
GAP Analysis: A Practical Approach

Learning Objectives

Identify the three main phases involved in buying a new accounting system:

• Specification; asking the correct questions internally — GAP Analysis.
• Selecting software and the vendor based on the results of the GAP Analysis.
• Understanding the implementation process.

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I reached out to a certificate authority about buying a secure server certificate for my web/e-mail server. brand

Seems simple enough.  I needed some technical information based on the server’s configuration since I not only hosted my companies e-mail and web presence but I have several non-related domains (i.e., domain.com, example.com, foo.com).  In addition, I really wanted the SSL for the email server, not necessarily the web server, so maybe there was a less expensive alternative.

Therefore, I had some questions of the sales staff.  The young woman who answered quickly determined she was not knowledgeable enough to answer my questions and passed me on to technical support.  Wow, that was a) intelligent of her and b) nice of her.  Her parting words is make sure you tell them (tech support) that my questions are “pre-sales” questions.

When the man answered the phone, I immediately said I had some “pre-sales” technical questions.  The man started to listen to my queries and then asked for my customer number.  My obvious response was that is why I started by saying these are “pre-sales” questions.  “Pre-sales” meaning I am not yet a customer!

His response was he only could talk/provide support for customers.  My response was “so you are telling me you don’t want a new customer.”  This went back and forth several times, as well as the “my supervisor isn’t available” answer.  I hung up.

Most people would have left it at that and moved on.  I am not like most people; I HATE bad customer service.

I used Google to find the CEO and used another web service to find his email address.  Their website gave me the generic sales email.  I sent an email to both these address with the subject “You guys are idiots!!!!”.  Maybe not the most elegant subject line, but it is attention getting!

My email repeated the story I just told you, the reader; in addition, I wrote, “That is not the way you do business.  Shame on you!!!!!!!  Shame shame shame….”

Probably an hour and fifteen minutes later (I’m sure time zone issues caused some of the delay) I got a phone call from a senior Account Manager both apologizing and seeing how he could help.  He had a senior technical person on the phone to answer my questions.  During that same conversation, (approximately five minutes into the conversation) the CEO sent me a note apologizing for my experience.  While on the phone, I promptly answered the CEO (telling them how professional the two men I was talking with were).

Now that CEO and or the rest of management is on the ball.  They took what was a big negative (and nowadays you never really know who you are talking to, who they know or even how deft they are at social media) and turned what could have been a PR nightmare (because I would have included the company’s name here) into a success story; because I’m becoming a client.

Does your company put Customer Service number 1, no matter how small the client?