Implementing the product requires no support from internal IT teams

Description

This requirement implied that the product has a user-friendly interface with intuitive features and clear installation guides. It allows the operational teams handling financial data and monitoring corporate performance to manage their systems without relying heavily on IT support.

Example Use Case

Scenario: A small-to-mid-sized company with a limited internal IT team seeks to adopt CPM software for tracking and improving business performance. However, they fear the implementation process might over-extend their IT resources due to complexity with their source systems.

Solution: The company opts for CPM software that offers independent implementation, curating an easy setup process. The software provides clear manuals and online resources, enabling employees to install, set up, and configure the system without additional IT help. This liberates the small in-house IT team to focus on other critical tasks, while the operational teams become self-reliant when it comes to performance management.

Considerations

Many IT organizations in small and medium sized organizations have a very limited skillset when it comes to managing business software, especially something complex like a CPM tool. This is why an entire industry of consultants for CPM exists and has been very successful. They have the niche knowledge needed to make complex implementations a reality.

IT teams will, in rare cases, want to implement a CPM solution themselves. This rarely, if ever, works out well for the business users. This is why we recommend consulting support from a focused CPM provider when setting up a product.

There are some tools on the market that can be implemented entirely by the user. This paradigm is usually limited to reporting tools which pull over source system metadata and output pre-configured reports. Expecting a full-blown planning and consolidation tool to be totally user driven is not a realistic expectation with the current CPM technology that is on the market. Some products will advertise it, but in our experience those products are so simplified that you may be better off staying in Excel.

That said, it is realistic to have no internal IT support is very realistic. This requires the system in question to have pre-built integrations (or an iPaaS layer) that allows simply and secure connectivity to source systems.

Questions to Ask a Vendor

Internal IT Needs: When we set this product up, what will your team need our internal IT team for? Consider our source systems when answering the question.

Guide and Support: What guides, tutorials, or customer support do you provide to facilitate setup?

Security Documentation: Do you have any certifications or reports that I can provide our IT team to keep them distracted?