The key to fast, cost effective software implementations is excellent training. On Relevant’s side, our Account Managers are prepared to dive into your business processes without your employees having to provide an on-the-job tutorial on the importance of project segregated inventories or government reporting requirements.

For your side, Relevant knows that the quicker we can transfer our knowledge of the application to your employees, the more successful we’ll both be. We enable early self sufficiency in your team via our Accelerated Implementation™ educational services: Administrator Training, Conference Room Pilot, and User Training.

The first steps on your Accelerated Implementation roadmap are installations:

Hardware Installation
Most new ERP system installations are concurrent with some hardware updating. It’s important that all new hardware be installed, remote support capable and fully tested prior to software installation.

Software Installation
Relevant loads the application software. Each module, workstation, printer, and modem is tested to verify that the system is installed and configured properly.

Training Database Installation
Once the software is correctly functioning, Relevant will initialize a training database – one that actually looks like the type of data you see in your business everyday – on the system. This database will be expanded by your staff during training and Pilot testing and, after the “go live” date, it will be used to train new employees and to test new applications and features.

Administrator Training
Your system administrator is your Super User. Relevant promotes your company’s self sufficiency in running the product by fully training your System Administrator on the System Control Module (including the system tables and control records which are used to prepare the system for use), teaching him/her how to establish new users and apply security features. Training is also provided for system backups and restoration, procedures for loading software updates, and database purges.

Conference Room Pilot
This onsite, phased training progresses at your pace – taking as little as a few weeks or up to three to four months. The first phase of the Conference Room Pilot takes your Implementation Team through basic training: instructing them on system navigation, providing a basic understanding of data sources and the flow of the data through the system, and helping them gain an understanding of how one department’s input impacts on other departments.

Relevant’s information flows are specifically designed for project-oriented businesses and facilitate superior project management. The Conference Room Pilot is often when the Implementation Team fully grasps the strategic implications of the capabilities facilitated by the software. A large part of the Conference Room Pilot centers around change management: How will your organization exploit these capabilities to enhance the ways you do business? Your Relevant AM is experienced in project-oriented implementations and can help your team move quickly to maximize the value of your IT investment.

Training covers all modules – every member of the implementation team will develop a rudimentary understanding of his/her non native functional areas. But it’s important that managers from each key area be there to pose the questions that can only be generated from daily familiarity with specific functional operations. Optimally, these Implementation Team managers will themselves train the end users in their areas. Understanding how the entire system works enables them to communicate the benefits to the rest of the organization more effectively than can be accomplished by any outsider.

After training, the Implementation Team will experiment both individually in their specific areas of the system, and as a team. During this time, they will be provided with additional software application instruction and advice and, if necessary, with reengineering consulting. The team meets periodically to discuss and decide how the many facets of the system should be specifically applied in your environment. The team iteratively reviews the results of each step, and makes changes until they’re satisfied with the entire process.

Depending on the overall project timetable, Implementation Team members will spend as little as 8-12 hours per week or can devote themselves full time to the project. Your Relevant AM will be on site an average of 2-3 days every two weeks during the Conference Room Pilot.

Database Conversion and Testing
During the Pilot, Relevant will convert the database, sizing and structuring it to receive the application database and loading and testing the application export files to the database engine.

Documentation
This is the final stage of the Pilot. After all configurations are fully vetted and tested, the implementation Team documents all system associated policies and procedures. Usually, these become an addendum to On Line help. The implementation team’s last task is to determine and establish any unique training requirements, documenting these for use in training the users.

User Training
Your end users ultimately determine the success of your installation. You want them to quickly adopt and reach a high level of competency with new processes. Relevant believes the best way to accomplish this is for your Implementation Team members to train the staff in their functional areas. This process further develop the manager’s capabilities, fosters organizational ownership and minimizes client dependency over the long haul.

Of course, your organization may opt to have Relevant provide the end user training. If so, Relevant will incorporate the specific training materials developed during the Conference Room Pilot into our standard training materials.

In either case, all users should be trained within the two week period just prior to taking the system live. Training takes place on-site in a classroom environment outfitted with at least one terminal for every two end users.

If your organization has opted to expand Relevant’s standard report writing capabilities by purchasing the optional Report Writer module, Relevant can provide training to help your staff leverage its full functionality. Training will cover the Report Writer’s initial installation and configuration, product architecture, file joining for reporting purposes, and administrator and user instruction.

Go Live
During the three-day period when your company will convert to a “live” version, your Relevant AM will be with you every step of the way, providing on-site answers and support.

Throughout your implementation, your company will proceed with the confidence that comes from working with a software provider who speaks your language and is comfortable in your world.