Knowing your company needs an asset management system, and actually implementing such a system are two totally different processes. Even the intermediary process of choosing a system is daunting enough to make it a 'back burner' project. The simple fact remains that having an asset management system in place can save your business time and money. Accordingly, E-ISG has put together some tips to help you start shopping for an asset management system.

Step 1 - Identify three systems that suit your company's unique demands, then ask each vendor to provide the following information:

%26gt; Estimated up-front and recurring license and maintenance costs for your implementation or hosted service.

%26gt; Estimated build-out costs to adapt the system to your requirements.

%26gt; Recommended hardware and prerequisite software (for in-house deployments) from which you can estimate acquisition costs.

%26gt; Requirements and estimated effort for in-house IT deployment support.

%26gt; Timeframe for implementation.

%26gt; Training methodology and training costs.

Step 2 - Gather information about the vendor

It is important to get to know your vendor. Make no mistake, purchasing a scheduling system is a long-term investment. Accordignly, you want to make sure the vendor can encourage an incremental return on your investment throughout the life of your asset management porcess. Here are some questions you may want to consider asking:

%26gt; How long has the vendor been in business? 

%26gt; How many employees does the vendor have?

%26gt; How is the company funded? Be wary of start-ups with no track record or customer base; these types of companies may not be around 12 months from now. If you are the decision maker for your organization's scheduling software, the risk you take by going with one of these vendors may extend to your own position.

%26gt; Does the vendor have a customer base that includes organizations of your size? This ensures the company understands the needs of your type of organization.

%26gt; Does the vendor have customer references? 

%26gt; With hosted service vendors, does the vendor partner with an infrastructure company that provides secure and robust infrastructure?

%26gt; What is its vision for the future – for its products and for the company? 

These are just some of the questions about the software vendor you want to bring up when evaluating systems. 

Step 3 - Try before buying

When evaluating commercial software products or hosted solutions, most vendors will allow you to try the product for a limited period of time.  By engaging actual end users in trials of the prospective scheduling solutions, you can ensure that the solution you pick can be easily adopted by your organization.

Why not take a tour of Visual Asset Manager, schedule a demo, or download a trial? You'll get 30 days free to decide if Visual Asset Manager is right for your asset tracking needs.

Step 4 - Evaluate the software platform; is it user friendy?

A key factor in the success of any asset management software is user adoption and the number one factor in user adoption is ease-of-use. So, while one system may provide an extensive array of sophisticated features, if the system is not user-friendly, your company will not be able to maximize the benefits of the system because it will not be adopted by your user base. 

Here are some questions to ask during your evaluation process:

%26gt; Is the software interface laid out in an easy to understand fashion?

%26gt; Is the interface intuitive?

%26gt; How many 'clicks' does it take to perform primary features? Generally, it should take only 1-2 clicks to access a specific feature and no more than 2-4 clicks to complete a task; features that require many clicks often indicate a poorly designed system. 

%26gt; How easy is it to navigate between modules of the software?

%26gt; Can the interface be modified to more closely match the needs of your organization?

%26gt; How easy is it to customize the interface? How much technical knowledge do you need to customize it? Does it require professional services? 

%26gt; What type of software documentation and training will be provided?

%26gt; Can the vendor back up their ease-of-use claims with customer testimonials and references?

Inquire about Customizability

Depending on the size of your organization and your requirements, you may want to customize the interface and features. Ideally, you want the system to be able to adapt to your organization's business procedures.

Ask the vendor: Can you configure the interface? What level of customization does the product provide? How easy are customization tools to use? How much technical knowledge is required to customize the product? Does the product provide the ability to create and modify fields, screens, views, and security settings on the fly? If you are considering a hosted service, make sure to confirm that these customization capabilities are available. Will you need the vendor's professional services to do the customization?

Future Enhancement and Maintenance

Reputable software companies invest in engineering and develop new product features and enhancements regularly. Many vendors provide upgrades as part of their maintenance and support programs, usually once or twice a year. These companies leverage emerging technologies to enhance their products. Lastly, established software vendors provide product upgrades at reasonable prices or as part of a yearly service agreement.

Evaluate Technical Support

While your internal IT support person will be a good resource regarding technical questions or other issues that may arise, it is likely you may still need to turn to the software vendor's technical support team as well.

Here are some questions to ask regarding the vendor's technical support team:

%26gt; How quickly are calls taken from customers?

%26gt; What are the hours of operation?

%26gt; What options are available for after-hours questions or concerns?

%26gt; Does the vendor provide customers with response guidelines on how product issues are handled?

%26gt; What charges or service plans are involved?

Use these questions as a guide to evaluate every option that you come across and we feel confident you will be able to make a more informed and educated decision and choose the asset management system that is right for your company's needs.

Step 5 - Justify your investment by determining the software's ROI  

As you already know, implementing an asset management system is a serious investment. Therefore, one of the major considerations in your system and deployment evaluation must be the software platform's return on investment (ROI). If you are concerned about budget, you may want to consider a hosted service as this offers the benefit of much lower start up costs. Another benefit of the hosted service is that the cost goes from a capital cost to a monthly business expense. 

Be up-front with your vendor about your budget. Ask the questions we've discussed in this blog. Make sure you understand all costs involved –license fees, maintenance and support, deployment fees, training fees, and the like. With this, you should be able to make an informed decision that fits comfortably within your budget.

Justify the Investment

Once you have reached a decision about which product to purchase, it will be highly beneficial to create a document or presentation that clearly outlines your decision. This document should:

Provide information on the features of the system
Highlight direct benefits of these features
Demonstrate the subsequent long-term value of such a system to the organization

Your document should also provide all the details concerning the total cost for the software implementation, including training and ongoing maintenance.

To find out more information about our hosted services, take a look at VAM On Demand.

Please feel free to leave your comments here or join us on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn to discuss your lessons learned from inventory mistakes. Also, take a look at our website to learn more about Asset Manager Workbench and Mobile Inventory solutions from E-ISG and Psion Teklogix.

E-ISG's roots began in a neighboring industry. Originally, we set out to help businesses bring continuity to their operations and provide assistance and structure during disaster recovery. However, we soon discovered that our clients had a poor understanding of the total content, location, and value of their physical assets. This fundamental lack of understanding was detrimental to our clients, causing their businesses to overspend budget allotments, and in some cases, violate federal law.

At E-ISG, we are committed to providing the highest level of customer service. We hope you will come to view us as trusted consultants and guides during your process of understanding and accounting for, each asset in your organization. Over the past seven years, E-ISG has determined the most efficient, user-friendly, and foolproof methods for cataloging, organizing, and analyzing your business' assets.