A significant part of any business transformation project is that of selecting one or more software solutions to be part of the transformed business.
The choice of software solutions, and companies to develop and implement them for you, is very wide; the risk associated with making the wrong solution choice can be very high.
Yet many companies in publishing and media focus on this choice primarily as a ‘check-box’ exercise; simply ensuring that the functional and technical capabilities of the new solution fit into the target operating model, and that the costs fit the budget.
It’s Not a Shopping List
The 3rd Wave offers software selection consulting services that can help you to get much more business value from the process than simply advising on a choice of solution:
Strategic Fit – does a vendor’s product roadmap align with your strategic roadmap for delivering business goals?
Solution Maturity – your current solution may have been in use for up to 10 years, so will a new solution take your business through the next 10 years?
Enabling Innovation – adapting new technologies and solutions to deliver your requirements in publishing and media is a source of competitive advantage. Any new solution must work as part of your business – not putting up barriers to innovation.
Commercial Model – establish clarity around internal and external costs to implement, operate, and evolve the solution.
Change Impact – define the nature, scope, and depth of change required in business teams through implementation and rollout of the new solution.
These are just a few examples of the areas in which the 3rd Wave can help you to make selection choices that enable you to reach your business goals.
The Quick Win
One particular benefit that receives little attention in the public domain is that of ‘Quick Wins’. I have run many selection projects for clients, and during the definition of the as-is and to-be business processes, we inevitably discover areas where a business process can be changed without any alteration to the software solution currently in use. Unless you have already run an in-depth discovery project, this may be the first time that your business leads have had the opportunity to examine processes in detail.
A ‘Quick Win’ can often directly deliver measurable business benefits immediately; for instance, a client I worked with discovered sufficient benefits during our selection project to cover the costs of running the selection project itself.
Whose idea was this?
Some significant benefits can also be gained by identifying activities not to be changed, but to be stopped altogether. It’s often said that management includes deciding not just what to do, but what not to do. Most organisations have some processes whose business contribution is historical only.
Where does 3rd Wave come in?
We provide experienced consultants, with access to diverse business skills (technical, financial, product, domain).
The 3rd Wave offers a practical and efficient way to deliver the best selection process for publishers and media companies. We are continually assessing the solutions available in the marketplace, and their suitability for different businesses and processes.