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Perhaps your advisory firm needs new technology. Maybe you want to fine-tune your client services or store more data to improve your products. Maybe you’ve outgrown a rudimentary tool, and you need to upgrade as your business expands.
Getting to this point means that you’ve faced inefficiencies, discussed with your team, and allocated resources to make a change. The next phase may seem even more daunting.
No one swaps out tech because they want to. It’s hard, and change can be difficult and frustrating, particularly for core technology like customer relationship management (CRM) systems. However, you can ease the process by identifying exactly what you need and making a detailed, long-term plan for implementation.
When firms go shopping for technology, many look for new tools that resemble their old ones, but with more enhancements or features. They want to improve on what they already have – but avoiding necessary change is counterproductive. Any technological adjustment requires some friction and adaptation.
At the end of an involved process, you’d rather end up with a wholly new system that boosts productivity instead of an analogous one that replicates old inefficiencies. Don’t choose technology for the firm that you were, or even the firm you are now. Choose technology for the firm you want to become in five years.
Key steps
To avoid wasting time, a research stage is key. Find effective ways to gather feedback from your team and ask important questions. How are they using your current technology? What do they struggle with? Do they need to outsource any key tasks to another tool? It’s likely that different people are using the platform in slightly different ways, which will reveal strengths and weaknesses within the current system.
In the meantime, you’ll also want to pursue external research. Do your own reading and speak to a variety of potential vendors. Come prepared to these meetings with insightful questions specific to your team and your workflow. Keep track of your options in a consolidated space, where you can compare specific features against each other and the needs of your business.
Once you find the right tool, it’s time to start planning. Well ahead of implementation, talk to your team about what you’re adopting and why. Create space for everyone to engage with the platform and ask questions. From here, you can set up a timeline with phases of rollout and targeted training. It can be beneficial to set internal goals with your team, planning out what they’d like to learn and accomplish at each stage of the process. Implementation is a daunting task for all, but less so if you maintain transparency and foster ongoing communication.
For efficient change management, you want to reduce your time to value. This requires finding the best ways to harness your new technology. Of course, that’s easier said than done. When you’re looking at a new product, you’ll need to recalibrate to the available tools – and you’ll also need to assess your own workflow. Different tools require different mindsets; remember, it’s easier to change your process to fit your platform than the other way around.
A straightforward example is a financial advisory firm opening an account. Many firms prioritize consistency for their advisors and clients; they want account setup to work the same way as before. By trying to fit a new platform into an old system, they kneecap its efficiency and overlook its full potential. In the long run, it’s better to learn the new technology’s original process for opening an account. To limit friction, firms should provide helpful communication and training, guiding all users through the change.
Adopting new technology is a major decision, but it’s often the right choice as businesses change and expand. By doing their homework, planning ahead, and communicating openly, firms can reduce the time to value and keep things moving forward.
Now is an exciting time to search for your optimal CRM system. As the space evolves and technology progresses, there are more opportunities than ever to find your perfect partner.
Adrian Johnstone is the CEO of Practifi.
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Advisor Perspectives welcomes guest contributions. The views presented here do not necessarily represent those of Advisor Perspectives.
