WHAT TO LOOK FOR IN A MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE SYSTEM

By Ekoke J. Tambe, AMS, PCAM

There is no shortage of “how-to-dos” in every field, in every industry. In the case of choosing a management software the devil is in the details, and arguably, the clientele serviced. There are key attributes that need to be considered.

First, create a rubric, a roadmap of the course to follow towards efficiency and excellence. This requires careful planning and execution. Consider the size of your organization. A large enterprise has different needs from a small startup. What type of software should you purchase? Scalability is primordial as your management needs evolve. Companies need to know that the chosen software can keep up with business growth; withstand pain points; and be easy to use. A quick Google search on this topic churned out a plethora of things to look for when to varied category usages, for individuals as well as large conglomerates.

In my research, I discovered that regardless of what type of software a company procures, predominant features centered round best use (read efficiency), and optimization of the intended application. Comically, some of the “how-to” guidance was communicated in the same dogmatic, inerrant fashion to render this active adult ADH cross-eyed. My hypothesis for this outcome is that choosing software for any company is a laborious endeavor, which ought to be assigned only to those with the patience of Job to see it through. That is, if you want it done right. Why? Primarily because choosing a management software involves several moving parts, demands aggregation of unquantifiable modules which equally benefit the company (as it is currently situated), present and future potential users.

In a 2017 article, Stephanie Khoury outlines five main, self-ex­planatory touch points to a successful pathway in software choice. Although her article seemed primarily geared towards project management software procurement, factors highlight­ed can be implemented in choosing software for the community association industry.

Khoury’s article centered around five points:

  1. Needs/Requirements: Does the system meet the company’s needs and requirements? Every establishment has an ethos formed by the principals, company leaders, key employees, clients, vendors, and/or a combination of the preceding. So, when a company chooses software, the needs of that company ought to be driven by a combination of said stakeholders for maximum optimization.
  1. Speed: Is the system quick to load? In an age of fast and furious cycles, patience for an application to load disappeared with the fax roll-up paper! Software speed drives productivity.
  1. Security: Is data security important to the vendor? Community associations deal with Protected Personal Information (PPis) dai­ly. Procuring software from a vendor that intrinsically prioritizes security reduces a company’s liability by a zero quotient. Insurance carriers will appreciate the reduction in risk, and Boards will feel confident about companies that value data security.
  1. Licensing: How is the system licensed? Wikipedia defines a soft­ware license as “a legal instrument (usually by way of a contract law, with or without printed material) governing the use or re­distribution of software:’ Management firms must contend with whether the agreements they enter provide for the redistribution of data collected and who owns the rights of distribution of data collected in the software. What may most appeal to their clients, and how they insulate themselves from liability in a data breach situation, especially after termination of services are major factors to be included in the licensing negotiations.

Integrations: Is the solution flexible enough to be integrated with other systems? In all its complexities and destruction, COVID-19 reemphasized that the long overdue transition of the community association industry to electronics and cyber is irreversible. We can now detect a potential water leak with sensors long before they manifest themselves in a unit flood; review balances over several platforms; transfer voicemail to emails to be read with smart hand­held devices; call electronically from anywhere on planet earth with little or no additional cost to association clients, etcetera. Procuring software that can integrate with other systems ought no longer to be considered avant garde in our industry; it should/must be a requirement of business best practices.

Management companies should decide who needs to be involved in the decision-making of software procurement. The processes should be reviewed; needs, prioritized and budget, set. A committee culled from key company employees to research and select the software to demo or try; solicit advice from software industry experts who can train users, comprehend, and communicate about new features and updates will create by-in of company stakeholders.

Boards hiring management firms, for full or financial management services only, should focus attention on the software the manage­ment company uses, and the viability of said software in the future.

Management software procurement is really a combination of all the factors involved in this buying process; price, the system’s ease of use, vendor support, functionalities, data licensing and all. You can’t afford to skip any of these factors when planning your next manage­ment software purchase if you want efficiency and excellence.

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