Tags Growth, Know-how, Strategy, Security

Jumping the software hurdles

Most growing businesses have to jump a few high-tech hurdles, but there are ways to avoid them on the way up. John Lamb helps you get over some unnecessary stumbles.

Start with a strategy: The right software can make a big difference to a company’s potential growth. So why are managers so often seduced by technology that fails to match their business needs, ending up with inappropriate, disconnected systems?

Most stumble right out of the starting blocks – they don’t even know the business objectives that IT needs to support. For example, are you planning to grow by acquisition? Then you’ll need software that can be readily integrated with other systems. Equally, if you’re looking for a new direct sales force, then mobile systems and customer resource management software could be the order of the day.

“Any company that’s moving into a growth period sooner or later is forced to address some serious business and technology issues,” says Martin Smith, Portal & Workplace Sales Leader, IBM Software. “The three key issues in the marketplace are: streamlining and improving/innovating business processes; lack of regulatory compliance, which can stop a company in its tracks – again the right software based solution is essential; and ensuring a secure and resilient environment that’s free from viruses, spyware, trojan horses and email spam.”

It’s critical for management to think through future requirements and find the right IT to meet them. It won’t be straightforward – there will be legacy systems already in place – but then again, an effective software strategy isn’t just for Christmas. It’s a commitment.

Take a selective approach: Finding the best software and suppliers is a thorny problem. Some packages are industry standard, while other areas, such as enterprise resource planning (ERP), offer many choices.

“Companies – especially in the mid-market – want to buy software based solutions,” says Smith. “This would include software, services, support, hardware or the hosting needed to run the solution. They don’t want a vendor or business parent just dumping software and disappearing until the next software renewal.

These companies want trusted partners who have experience of their industry and can guide them through the complexities of realising a real business benefit from the technology.”

There’s still some debate about whether to plump for a suite of software from a single supplier or to pick the program that is best for each application, from a number of suppliers. It’s a trade off between convenience and performance.

Consultants can help by analysing business requirements and recommending systems, and it’s often helpful to talk to other users before making the final decision on a key package.

In-house IT specialists will also have useful input here. A supplier’s technical expertise is important, but reputation, financial stability, market position and track record are also important factors.

Can it grow with you? Growing businesses need systems that can keep pace with their expansion. In IT terms, this means scalability – the ability to cope with additional users, new applications and extra hardware. The extent to which software can be scaled up can affect the cost and performance of enterprise systems.

Software is designed to cope with varying loads, but some products are better than others at handling extra work. A system that can comfortably support 200 employees may slow dramatically and become unreliable if the number doubles.

Similarly, a website may be overwhelmed by a sudden burst of traffic generated by the introduction of a new product. Scalability is essential when buying new software – though no program is infinitely scalable and there’s always a trade-off between scalability and cost.

And how will you upgrade your software once it runs out of steam? Establishing an upgrade path can be a big help in matching your IT to your business needs.

Keep the pace: Keeping up with the demands placed on information systems can be a major challenge. One option is to buy software as a service – also known as “on demand computing” since companies only pay for what they need when they need it.

On demand computing ranges from full outsourcing, with applications installed on a dedicated system managed by a services company, through to online delivery, which involves accessing an application over the Web.

One of the latest options is services oriented architecture (SOA) – where software is delivered as a series of services that can be applied to specific business processes, rather than as separate applications.

Be sure to choose a reliable provider to mitigate the risk.

Security guard: Viruses, hackers, spyware and others kinds of malicious code circulating on the Web – threats are ever present and need to be countered with a robust strategy for blocking different types of “malware”, from firewalls to specialist programs.

But that’s only half the battle.You need to keep your software up-to-date and install new software company security patches as soon as they become available.The cost associated with a virus attack can be heavy, from lost working time to damaged company credibility.

Your systems are also at risk from fraud. Identity theft in particular remains a massive problem in e-commerce, so strict password procedures and access controls are essential. It’s worth investigating alternatives to password protection, such as digital signatures. However,most computer crime involves insiders, which is why prudent companies limit employee access to data they need for their work and ensure a separation of duties in sensitive areas.

Are you legal? Computer users don’t own software: they just have a licence to run it. In recent years, the variety of different types of licence has snowballed. It’s now possible to licence software according to the number of people who use it (individually or at any one time) or processors running it, copies in use and so on. However, two recent trends are significant: a move to annual subscriptions and the emergence of open source software, which is effectively available free of charge.

The subscription model provides regular updates for users and a surer source of income for suppliers. Open source software such as Linux can cut the cost of owning software considerably, although users still have to arrange for support and maintenance.

Whatever type of licences you have – and it is likely to be a mixture – accurate records of their use are essential. More than ever, suppliers are determined to reduce the amount of unlicensed software in circulation and will take action if they find customers using unlicensed software.

Back to class: There’s no point investing in software if the people using it don’t know how it works. Tutorials and online manuals provided with packages are useful, but some form of individual tuition is a good idea. And it’s critical to draw up a detailed training plan, especially for a large scale roll out. Training doesn’t necessarily have to be off-site; trainers can deliver instruction to individuals at their desks. Personal contact can also be blended with e-learning courses that trainees can access at times to suit them. Some companies identify employees who can act as gurus and offer additional training, so co-workers get to grips with new systems without extra expense. Specialist staff also need to keep up-to-date with technology and their training programmes – usually more expensive, time consuming and critical to career development than for typical end users – are often part of their overall employment package.

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