Five Fundamentals to Successful Implementations

All implementations have challenges whether changing a software platform, service provider or process change. I was recently tasked with implementing our logistics services for a client where the old provider had ended their contract as of August 31, 2015 and we then took over on September 1, 2015.  I had a month to hire and train my team and was confident that we would be ready on our go-live day.  Well, September 1st came and that first day and the weeks that followed, the shipment volume was higher than anyone could have expected, but I was confident in my team. It was challenging and we worked long hours and some weekends those first 90-days and we were faced with many issues but overall, our client told us that they never regretted their decision to bring us onboard and were happy with the implementation.  Looking at those first 90 days, I realized that our success was based on these 5 fundamentals:

1. Team

Make no mistake, the ultimate triumph or failure of your implementation rests on the shoulders of the team handling it.  This is not the time to let another department pass along a problem employee or accept another employee who is counting the days until retirement.  You need people who are dedicated to the process, that aren’t distracted from the goal and represent company values and customer service excellence.  Do not accept anything less than this or you will most likely be doing most of the work yourself and / or be putting your project in jeopardy of failure.

2. Realistic Expectations

Customers always want to hear that integrations will be seamless, software can be implemented within 24 hours with no disruption to service or that no extra costs will be incurred by a switch to a new service provider.  Most of these claims are too good to be true for a reason.  It’s important to set realistic expectations with your client and your team regarding any type of transition so that everyone is aware of what to expect. 

3. A Dynamic Plan

You should always have a plan in place but be careful not to overthink everything.  During a recent integration, I put 2 team leaders in place for the over 20 people that I hired overall.  I wanted to see how the first few weeks went as far as workload to determine how many leaders that I needed overall.  In addition, I wanted to see who from the rest of team had leadership qualities. Don’t be afraid to wing it as long as there is a strong foundation from the start.

4. Daily Feedback

Communication between you, your team and the client is essential during the first days and weeks of the integration.  We had a daily “huddle” at 5:00 p.m. for the first 3 weeks of our integration where we discussed what went right, improvement areas and process gaps.  This meeting was so successful that we continued it on a bi-weekly basis.  If you are in a situation where your client is not actively coming to you with feedback, call them, send them an email or text or hang out at their office – anything – but solicit feedback – do whatever it takes to adequately gauge your performance. 

5.Integrity

All projects, interactions, communications and partnerships should be handled with honesty and integrity.  When integrity is a value in your organization, it is evident by the actions of its employees every day and obvious to your clients.  It is something that doesn’t need to be pointed out or rewarded – it is part of the building blocks that grow partnerships and weather storms.

Implementations can be demanding with long hours, lots of rework and flexibility.  This is also the perfect time to show your clients that you are invested in the process and ultimately their success.  This is the time to ensure that the team shows up on time even if everyone worked into the wee hours last night.  This is the time to show off your company’s professionalism by handling challenging situations by remaining calm and refraining from using curse words.  Also, ensure that you have some type of lessons learned meeting after the integration so you will be prepared for your next one.