With finance tech evolving at lightning speed, itâs easy to get caught up in the excitement of new tools and integrations. But before diving headfirst into overhauling your tech stack, itâs worth taking a step back and planning things out carefully. After all, the right tech can transform your operations, but only if itâs implemented thoughtfully.
Step 1: Conduct a systems audit
The first step in any tech overhaul is a good old-fashioned review of whatâs currently in placeâa systems audit. Whether youâre rethinking the entire organisationâs processes or focusing on just one department, itâs essential to understand where you are before deciding where youâre going.
Begin by mapping out your current workflows. This includes all software, tools, and processes. A flowcharting tool can be a game-changer here, helping you visualise inefficiencies and pinpoint where things go wrong.
Specifically, look for areas where:
- Data is being manually transferred between systems.
- Too much time is spent reconciling between different data sources.
- Data is being extracted and taken offline for enquiry and reporting purposes.
- Youâre relying on complex processes managed through spreadsheets, documents, email chains, or complicated file trees.
Step 2: Collaborate across departments
A tech stack overhaul shouldnât only address financial processes. To ensure a holistic solution, involve representatives from sales, procurement, inventory, production, HR, and other relevant departments. Each department has its own pain points and reporting requirements, which must be considered.
Understanding how data is used and reported across the business will help you create a system that improves internal and external reporting, potentially replacing hours of manual work with an efficient coding and analysis structure.
Step 3: Define critical vs. ânice to haveâ
When planning your overhaul, itâs important to have a clear understanding of what you really need versus whatâs just nice to have.
Start by asking yourself a few key questions:
- Whatâs frustrating about your current system?
- What problems are you hoping to solve with new tools?
- Have you explored all the capabilities of your existing software?
- What are the absolute must-haves for the new system, and what could you live without?
By answering these questions, youâll be able to make more informed decisions about where to invest your time and resources.
Start by identifying the frustrations with your existing systems and the problems you believe a new system will solve. But before leaping into a new solution, ask yourself: have you fully explored the potential of your current tech stack? Sometimes, small adjustments or improvements in existing systems can make a significant difference.
Metrics matter
Once you have a sense of what you need, itâs time to evaluate your current tech stack based on key metrics. This will help you see how well your systems are working now and identify areas for improvement.
Some metrics to consider include:
- Efficiency gains: Are your teams spending less time on manual processes?
- Data accuracy: Is your data more reliable and up-to-date with fewer manual interventions?
- Integration: How well do your systems talk to each other? Is data flowing seamlessly between departments?
- Scalability: Will your current setup grow with your business, or will you need to overhaul again soon?
- User adoption: Are your teams actually using the system, or are they finding workarounds because itâs too complicated?
Avoid the pitfalls
You need to objectively evaluate your current systemâs strengths and weaknesses; ask yourself questions, and donât pre-emptively answer them with what you want to hear! Yes, itâs likely that any change will be beneficial â but that doesnât necessarily mean starting again with something completely new.
Remember, with any major system change, you usually only get one shot with full buy-in from (hopefully!) everyone. A poorly planned or rushed implementation will at best undermine confidence and at worst result in serious operational and financial problems.
So take the time, research, plan, implement â and then enjoy the results!
Case study: A not-for-profitâs tech overhaul
To give you a real-world example, we worked with a not-for-profit that was on Sage 200, using manual approval processes, a poorly managed expense and HR solution, and all reporting was delivered through spreadsheets. The period from initial consultation to Xero go-live was 5 months â and we needed all that time!
After a comprehensive review of systems and processes, we implemented the following solution:
- Restructured the chart of accounts to meet complex reporting requirements.
- Set up Xero, mapping opening balances to the new reporting structure and importing data wherever possible.
- Ensured accessibility of historical data, making sure past records were retained in an accessible format.
- Streamlined the purchase-to-pay process using Zahara and Telleroo, with approvals built in at every stageâfrom order, to billing, to supplier paymentsâwhile also tracking budgets and committed spend.
- Set up the sales approval process with ApprovalMax, improving control and accountability.
- Enhanced expense and time management by maximising the capabilities of the existing solution.
- Upgraded reporting through Xeroâs custom reports and Fathom for deeper insights and a more comprehensive view.
The result? A smoother, more efficient system that met all their reporting requirements and eliminated a lot of the manual work that had been bogging them down.
Plan smart, upgrade with confidence
If youâre thinking about overhauling your tech stack, donât rush into it. Start with a thorough review, involve key people from across the business, and make sure youâre clear on your priorities. Keep an eye on those key metrics to evaluate your current system, and rememberâthoughtful planning will save you a lot of headaches down the road. |
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