6 Steps to Having a Successful WMS Implementation
1. Understand where you are currently and where you want to be
Know your current standing and establish a time frame in which you plan to meet your goals. Large scale change to a company’s business model is a very real possibility based on the functionalities offered by the solution. Ensure that your actions are carefully timed in order to meet your objectives. Features that provide quick benefits should be implemented first. As your workers become proficient with their new tools add complementary functionality. Don’t move to fast, this is a marathon not a sprint and patience and perseverance will pay off in the end.
2. Align yourself with the proper partner as well as the proper solution
Finding a system that provides you the functionality you require to meet your long term needs, should be the primary goal. A common mistake is to only take into account in short term benefit and as your business matures and new needs emerge the solution may not be able to handle these. Before settling on a specific solution, be sure if fits your operation as well as your infrastructure. Flexibility is the key in a solution continuing to pay dividends long into your company’s future.
Aside from choosing the right product it is extremely important to find a partner who can help your organization succeed. It is imperative the solution provider you choose has a wealth of product knowledge and is familiar with all aspects of your solution. The right partner will be a good fit with your company’s corporate culture and will share your goal of making your company as successful and efficient as possible.
3. Ensure a strong project team with precise project management processes are in place
Operations personnel are often the best candidates for the project management team. Involve them from the onset so they feel personally invested in the project. Avoid scheduling the implementation during your busy season. Use online tools to ensure coordination and maintenance of scope documents. Begin documenting questions regarding training and testing right from the start. Doing this will guarantee quality training, better documentation and accurate testing.
4. Manage your expectations
Taking into account the complexity of implementing a WMS, providing strong leadership is a must. Expectations and opinions will differ on an individual basis and if poorly managed frustrations and inefficiencies can result. To combat these begin working with the solution as soon as possible. This will force individuals to operate within the solutions outline. Establish a formal procedure for documenting changes. This will ensure that the final impact of any decisions made by the project management team is easy to understand. Nothing is worse than a project that cannot hold to its timeline because of a multitude of changes. The project steering committee must evaluate all proposed changes and make a decision based upon effort and time required to enact that change.
5. Manage Complexity
A good solution will be built around best practices management. Avoid customization whenever possible and do your best to stay within the bounds of the application. Here again illustrated the importance of choosing a flexible solution. If modifications are required ensure they are improvements within the system and not developed specifically for your organization. While a customization specific to your business may sound like a good idea now, take into account the challenges it will present in regard to maintenance down the road.
6. Take ownership
The solution you are implementing is your work tool. Make sure you are involved in the implementation every step of the way so you know it inside and out. The partner’s role is to show you how to do things not to do things for you! If your knowledge is lacking when the implementation is complete weaknesses will be exposed and it’s your company who will suffer. As the implementation comes to a close you should no longer need the help of the partner on site. Remember there is a difference when launching an office application where everyone already uses computerized systems and a WMS where users are not used to modern information technology. Don’t underestimate the human factor and ensure that you can provide assistance to your employee’s when the partner has left the building.
Remember the best system in the world, poorly utilized is nothing more than a poor system.
