Ensuring you have robust systems, processes and data when looking at continued organisational growth is key. Today, more so than just last year, decisions need to be underpinned and informed using the data you have available from your member interaction. The pandemic has highlighted the importance of digital tools, with 94% of organisations* stating that the present situation has either increased their focus or helped them to see what is possible with the right technology.
We see many organisations at odds with their current systems, maybe due to age, they’re no longer fit for purpose, there’re lots of manual workarounds, there’s a lack of trust in the quality and integrity of the data or they are just not able to capture all the information needed from members.
We are all asking ourselves more and more questions as we strive to drive growth and member engagement. In our experience, there are three key areas to consider before you make future system decisions and we have summarised these below. We have also created a white paper providing a guide to tendering for a new website and/or a CRM, if you are interested in a copy of this please just email us on info@chrysalisdigital.co.uk
1 – Planning the change – Any digital procurement programme should be used to encourage positive change right across the business. Your systems investment will impact the organisation which need to be carefully assessed and planned before starting the technology tendering process. This change will then need to be planned and reviewed throughout its lifecycle, ensuring your teams are on board and understand the benefits is key, both to their roles and the organisation as a whole.
2 – Requirements gathering – When you start your digital transformation and consider tendering for new suppliers it’s advisable to fully understand and document your business requirements, map your current business processes, understand the systems and data you have and are using today. While organisations believe they have a grasp on member data and where the sits we saw that 50% of organisations surveyed* say that they have 6+ data sources that they knew about and >60% of organisations say that systems integration is one of their top challenges. This step will save you significant time and money associated with your project.
3 – The tender process – Ensuring a level playing field is paramount to the success of your project. This means running a fair and agnostic Invitation To Tender (ITT) process based on a panel decision focusing on the quality of response, team and software. Equipped with a high-quality business requirements document, suppliers will have a clear view of your project deliverables, this, in turn, will ensure you get a more though response.
Once you understand the above looking for potential partners becomes more straight forward.
Vendors will promote all the benefits they can offer, all the latest technology and bells and whistles, being swayed by this is all too easy, therefore, having a clear understanding of the points above will help you identify what you need and importantly why.
We’ve written an article outlining our thoughts on the supplier selection process – are you making a fully informed choice, that you may also find of interest. We’ve also written several articles that may be of interest on your digital journey. Never be afraid to ask, we are always happy to offer unbiased advice and recommendations.
Chrysalis Digital provides a digital transformation service designed to help build a more agile, efficient and innovative organisation. With its broad cross-sector experience Chrysalis has helped many organisations map their digital path and through careful planning and assessment, choose the right technology partners. Chrysalis Digital is 100% agnostic when recommending CMS and CRM suppliers to its clients.
(*2020 digital future survey run with 70 membership sector organisation)