COVID-19 has impacted everyone’s lives quite dramatically and suddenly. For many, working from home, also known as working virtually has become a way of life indefinitely. This new concept of full-time remote working presents unique challenges. Even more, for those of us who have worked at home for years are now dealing with distractions we were not previously exposed to such as sharing workspace with family members all the time. With COVID-19 introducing a plethora of daily hurdles to our once normal lives, here are some ideas to help you stay positive and make the most of this quarantine time.

Create a Workspace

The hardest adjustment people have had to make while sheltering in place or quarantining is keeping to a routine. With COVID-19 and the rapidly changing conditions created by the pandemic, daily routines have been upended overnight. It has been easy for both parents and kids to lose track of days and of time. Therefore, to maintain a disciplined routine, it is very important to create a workspace for yourself and for the others in your household. Whether it be the kids doing schoolwork from the kitchen table or everyone working from the dining room table, choose designated workspaces with designated hours. This will help keep you and your entire family focused on getting your daily work done. 

Improve Your Professional Skills

Believe it or not, working from home during a quarantine can make you more productive. Think about it, you’re not wasting time struggling with traffic and getting kids to sports. So, with this spare time, find free resources to help improve your professional skills. Here at Full Sail Partners, we offer whitepapers, webinars, and blogs like the one you’re reading. Furthermore, Deltek and Entrinsik have similar resources that can be useful to you. Be assured that during this time of uncertainty, Full Sail Partners will continue to create and provide our content for your consumption.

Gain Academic Knowledge

Going beyond your professional skills, there are countless opportunities to increase your academic knowledge. For many, when we finish school and start a career, we quickly leave behind academia not related to our profession. Generally, this is a necessity based on our growing needs that are in line with our priorities, like families. However, there are always those courses we enjoyed as electives and wanted to take a deeper dive into, but we just couldn’t seem to find the time.  

Well, now is a perfect opportunity to revisit this as there are numerous resources available on the internet. Here are links to some example of free online academic resources:

• Khan Academy
• Coursera
• Open Culture
• Alison

Even better, if you’re a parent now having to do at-home schooling on topics with which you’re rusty, most or all these resources have you covered.  

Stay Mindful

COVID-19 has created a health scare, but it is necessary for you and your family to find control in these unprecedented times. Staying mindful of the present is a good way to gain control back. In between work activities, take the time to go outside and reflect on the peacefulness of nature. You can even find short mindfulness videos on the internet to do as a family or on your own when you take a work break. Whatever means you choose, try to stay present and productive in each day and know that this will eventually pass.

Every Cloud Has a Silver Lining

While the current situation is challenging, the reality is that it is our new norm for the near future. In this time of COVID-19 quarantine, we all must focus on the positive rather than the negative. Identify workspaces and be productive, learn something new professionally and otherwise, and above all, establish routine and stay present. Good luck to everyone out there! We will get through this soon!

We’ve heard a lot about the customer experience (CX) and its impact upon professional services firms. However, another experience that is just as significant to firm success is the employee experience (EX). The employee experience involves not only firm culture, but also the means used by firms to encourage employee success. Let’s take a look at what can be used to ensure an exceptional employee experience.

Exceptional Onboarding

It is important to set the stage for a positive new hire experience. Therefore, the onboarding process needs to be effective and efficient in getting employees to the point of being productive as soon as possible. In order to avoid overwhelming orientation paperwork, there should be an online onboarding portal which can capture all relevant new hire information. For example, solutions like Deltek Talent Management offer such a portal. Additionally, there should be a person assigned to each new hire to provide guidance and resources needed for a smooth transition into the workplace.

Performance Management and Career Development

Employees need not only independence to do their jobs, but also room for growth. Another key feature offered by a solution like Deltek Talent Management is continuous performance management. Employee goals should be managed constantly giving them a chance to meet goals in realistic time frames. Both employees and managers can then see when those goals are met and what the next steps to take would be. For the future, employees need to see what upskills or reskills are needed for a transition into a higher or different level position within the firm.

Frequent Internal Communication

Internal communication within a firm not only disseminates significant information, but also helps develop a culture. Employees should feel a sense of community with their firm and be connected to the corporate brand. Providing frequent updates keeps employees in the loop which encourages engagement and productivity. This is particularly true for remote workers. Frequent internal communication will additionally earn employee trust which ensures longevity.

Follow Through on Employee Feedback

Employee feedback can be gleaned in a variety of ways. It could come from a routine feedback survey or even discussions during goal review. No matter where or how employee feedback is obtained, it must be reviewed and acted upon to ensure an exceptional employee experience. Generally, feedback is given because employees want to see changes that will positively impact the firm. Following through on employee feedback thus benefits everyone.

Share Positive Client Feedback

One sure fire way to keep employees motivated is to show how they have positively contributed to their firm. After hours of dedicated work, employees want to see how their projects came to fruition or how the product they sold solved their client’s problems. When employees hear compliments, it boosts confidence and proves that hard work does pay off in the end. Positive client feedback should be shared not only with the employee but across the organization as well.

Employee Experience Affects Employee Engagement

It is a fact that employee engagement directly impacts firm revenue. With an exceptional employee experience, many more employees will stay engaged meaning more success for your firm. Furthermore, those same employees will continue to grow with your firm eventually moving into higher level positions. This will avoid the cost of future top talent recruitment and save your firm money. Start working on improving your employee experience today and let Full Sail Partners know how we can help.

As the life blood of project-based firms, projects must be run efficiently and effectively from start to finish. Fortunately, Deltek Vantagepoint provides the functionality to give project managers more tools to run their projects. Furthermore, Vantagepoint seamlessly integrates your firm’s business processes using an impressive feature suite bringing business development, accounting, resource planning and project management together. By empowering the different roles within firms, projects are better managed and thus more successful. Let’s check out the power of Deltek Vantagepoint.

User Convenience

Deltek Vantagepoint is user-friendly with easy to understand workflows. The browser based Vantagepoint interface offers the ultimate convenience for its users. Additionally, in 2020, there will be an add-on for Outlook. Users will be able to manage Vantagepoint activities within their Outlook calendar. Synchronizing of contact records and smart scheduling will be available to make managing projects even more convenient.

Vantagepoint Project Hub

Project managers can get access to all they need to manage their projects through the project hub in Deltek Vantagepoint. In 2020, the project hub will be expanded to include more functionality. A new interactive Gantt charting tool gives project managers the chance to view their schedules plus change them via a drag and drop option. Also, a scenario planning feature and revenue forecasting tool will be added to the project hub offerings.

Data for Informed Decision Making

In Deltek Vantagepoint, there is a dashboarding framework that ensures project-based firms have proper metrics and information for informed decision making. There will be further expansion of the dashboard to include more visual dashparts in 2020. Currently, the Vantagepoint Intelligence (VI) module is available, but later in the year there will be VI Analysis Cubes which offer pre-calculated data for analysis by anyone in the firm.

Deltek Vantagepoint is Becoming More Powerful in 2020

There will be even more improvements to Deltek Vantagepoint’s functionality throughout 2020 further powering your firm projects. The 3.0 release in late January has already provided some dashboard improvements as well as the Gantt scheduling feature. With the second release, 3.5, the new revenue forecasting tool will be available, as well as the Outlook add-on and Intelligent Character Recognition (ICR) to enhance the mobile time and expense app. Finally, the 4.0 release planned for Q4 will focus on resource planning features like scenario planning and more revenue forecasting. Are you new to Deltek and Vantagepoint? Time to learn more!

As many in the professional services industry know, Deltek is the leading provider of enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems and other software solutions designed exclusively for project-based businesses. There are more than 30,000 organizations and millions of users in over 80 countries that rely on Deltek solutions. Wow! Those are some impressive numbers.

Out of the many ERP solutions Deltek offers, the newest and most innovative ERP system is Deltek Vantagepoint. Deltek listens to its client base and continually evolves its solutions to meet their clients’ growing needs. After receiving client feedback, Deltek created Vantagepoint which is largely based on the Vision ERP system with a lot more functionality. However, many small to mid-sized firms view Deltek solutions as only for large firms. So, let’s see what benefits Vantagepoint has to offer these smaller firms?

Deltek Has a Partner Program to Support Vantagepoint

A common thought is that Deltek only supports larger firms as clients, and there is concern that smaller clients might not receive quality customer care. However, this is not the case. Deltek has an extensive network of trusted partners that can help you identify your firm’s unique needs and successfully implement your new Vantagepoint ERP system. By utilizing a Deltek trusted partner, your firm will get the individual attention that is required to maximize the benefits and value of Vantagepoint.

Trusted partners offer more than implementation services, since they can also provide consulting and advisory services, ongoing training and more. As a result, you are never alone on your journey to bring your entire business operation into one system. Furthermore, you can even select the partner you want to help navigate your successful implementation and continued use of Vantagepoint. 

Deltek Vantagepoint Addresses Your Firm’s Needs

Although each firm has its own unique needs and requirements, Deltek Vantagepoint out-of-the-box is ready to fully support all the roles and functions of your professional services firm. With Vantagepoint’s simple to understand user interface, each employee at your company can quickly learn how to use this solution to help them successfully complete their jobs. Whether it’s accounting, business development and marketing, project management or HR, all employees in your firm will have the right tools at their fingertips to be productive. Even more, with all roles working in one system, upper management and executives have insight into all the business functions to ensure the firm’s success regardless of the size your firm.

Deltek Vantagepoint Fits all Sizes of Project-Based Firms

Deltek Vantagepoint is the perfect project-based ERP system for firms of all sizes. From small growing firms to large firms, the features within Vantagepoint help deliver profitable and successful projects. Additionally, Vantagepoint was designed specifically around both the needs of your firm and employees. Here are some key features that make Vantagepoint the ideal solution for small to mid-sized firms:

• Vantagepoint is simple to configure ensuring it aligns with the unique needs of your business with the Activation Wizard
• Using the Proposal Editor, you can create profitable and winning proposals based on the historical performance of previous projects
• The Engagement Hub allows you to have insight into your business, and Hey Deltek is Vantagepoint’s personal assistant that helps users locate, open or create new records in the Engagement Hub
• A simple to understand user interface helps create an intuitive user experience
• You have access to the information in your Vantagepoint database from anywhere at any time using Cloud technology

Deltek Vantagepoint Can Help Small to Mid-sized Firms Be Successful

Running a successful firm requires it and its employees to have access to the best tools available. With Deltek Vantagepoint, all sizes of professional services firms get what they need from easy to use features to support from trusted partners. Since Vantagepoint is designed specifically to meet the needs of professional services firms like those which are project based, all sizes of firms including small to mid-sized will benefit from using Vantagepoint.

A CRM system, or Customer Relationship Management system, is a technology tool that allows you to track important details about your customers. Firms need to know which product or service the customer currently has and want the ability to monitor the customer’s buying journey and needs. A CRM system also helps support the firm’s overall goals and strategies within each department. Let’s take a better look at what a CRM system can do for your firm.

Create More Revenue with a CRM

Sales teams use a CRM to conduct research as well as find new leads for future opportunities. A CRM system offers an abundance of information that can increase productivity when it comes to generating new sales. The CRM system can be used to track client communications which enables sales representatives to build stronger relationships with their customers and create new streams of revenue that grow firm profits. Furthermore, a CRM system can provide interactive analytical tools that give the sales force an accurate insight into a customer’s interests and needs. Sales representatives can then have more productive conversations with their leads and continue to develop personal relationships.

Along with building stronger relationships, a CRM solution can help a firm figure out the most effective sales practices and use that information to better their sales team. Staying abreast of proven processes will keep your sales team up to date on the fastest and most effective way to move a lead to a sale. 

Work More Efficiently

Similar to sales, marketing can benefit tremendously from the use of a CRM system. First off, the relationship between the marketing team and sales team is crucial to ensure customer needs are being met. With everyone actively using a CRM system for customer information, sales and marketing results can be seen across the board. Communication between sales and marketing will improve since both teams will have access to the most relevant data.

A CRM system can also be used to track marketing campaign success. The marketing team can evaluate how effective different marketing campaigns were including the costs which can help determine the best use of marketing department funds. With this available data, the marketing team can additionally change certain parts of the campaigns and maybe personalize some better for certain customers.

Improve the Customer Experience

Making sure customers are satisfied with their experience with your firm is very important. The customer service team relies on being able to measure things such as customer retention, satisfaction, and what is and is not working. This data can be tracked using a CRM system. If a customer did not have a good experience, the cause of the problem can be determined, and customer service can figure out what needs to be done in the future to prevent that situation from happening again. This information can then be relayed back to the sales and marketing teams so they can fix the issue on their side.

Why a CRM System is Right for Your Firm!

To be successful in any business, working smarter and most efficiently is very important. A CRM system can provide your firm with the metrics and relevant data to see how well your firm is meeting customer needs. Additionally, a CRM system offers the most accurate and up to date information allowing all department teams to work together seamlessly and effectively. Are you ready to take advantage of a CRM system?

 

During the lifecycle of a project in the professional services industry, there is a lot of information being shared among all the members of the project delivery team. Furthermore, history has shown that there is a larger amount of project related documentation being created as the professional services industry continues to become more digitized. As a result, more information is being shared and there are more decisions and final approvals to be made.

With all this information bouncing back and forth, it can become difficult to track what your other team members have reviewed. Therefore, making timely decisions becomes increasingly harder which can jeopardize the successful delivery of a project. However, Deltek has created Deltek PIM to help firms better manage project documentation to allow project delivery team members quick and easy access to important project related information.  

Easily Track Submittals with Automated Workflows

There are all types of various submittals that have to be tracked and documented during the lifecycle of a project. For many firms, this is still done using spreadsheets and other manual methods. Due to this, tracking change orders becomes a heavily manual process which is time consuming and prone to errors.  

What if there was a way to make this process less time consuming and allows for improved tracking of submittals? With Deltek PIM, firms can take advantage of the workflow functionality to create a formal submittal review process. What makes PIM’s workflow functionality so great is that it allows project team members to track the status of each submittal throughout the entire process. Even more, it allows team members to see who has reviewed the submittal and who still needs to review it to help ensure it gets processed and approved before the deadline. PIM also sends reminder alerts to individuals when a deadline is approaching to ensure they review the change order before the deadline.

Emails Here and Emails There

During the project lifecycle, email is a leading communication method amongst project team members. However, have you ever left someone off an email, or have you not been included on one? If this has ever happened, it is likely that a project team member has been left out of the loop about critical project information. Even worse, a project team member may not receive a crucial document that contains important project information.

The problem with emails is that the sender may not include an important recipient, or the recipient may not open the email in time to make an actionable decision on the information being shared. Thus, the decision-making process can be delayed, and the project timeline can be put in jeopardy. However, Deltek PIM provides a solution to improve project communication.

With PIM’s email management functionality, the entire project team has access to all the conversations that have influenced changes to the design and construction process of the project. Furthermore, PIM’s email management solution allows for the storage of project related communications in one centralized area designated to a specific project. Therefore, you never have to worry about obtaining these communications even if a team member is on vacation, out on leave, or has left the firm. All this information is permanently stored and made easily accessible.

Keep Up with Important Project Documents

A large portion of delivering a successful project requires keeping project documents up-to-date and organized. This means having access to the latest version of a document and being confident that the version you are working on is the most current version. With most document control processes, it’s difficult to know if the version you are working on is the correct and most recent version. Even more challenging, what if someone is trying to make changes to the same document at the same time? As most can agree, document management can be truly challenging and can hinder the success of a project.

The good news is that Deltek PIM makes document management simple. When firms adopt PIM’s document management functionality, they are able to implement standard document management processes and make sure project team members are compliant with them. Even more, PIM ensures one single version is available to all project team members which reduces duplication and provides the team access to the latest version.

Improve Project Collaboration with Deltek PIM

Information here and information there, information is everywhere. Well, this can be great for somethings like researching an item before making a big purchase. However, information everywhere is not so great when trying to deliver a project for a client. With Deltek PIM, all project related information is located in one space making access to it quick and easy for all project team members.  

As a Deltek representative, we have heard all kinds of misconceptions about Deltek Vantagepoint. Despite our monthly newsletters, webinar series, and continued communication, we are still speaking to firms that are confused or have been advised incorrect information about transitioning from Vision to Vantagepoint. Most are honest mistakes conveyed by all kinds of people. However, many of these "untruths" are coming from competitors spreading incorrect rumors so they can take advantage of your firm and convince you to leave Deltek.

We need your help! Please send this blog to everyone at your firm. Share it with user groups you are involved with and other firms you know use Deltek Vision. Below are the real facts about upgrading from Deltek Vision to Deltek Vantagepoint. Please help us to dispel the misconceptions.

What is Deltek Vantagepoint?

• Deltek's reimagined flagship project-based solution for architects, engineers, and other professional services businesses.
• Designed to help you manage the entire project lifecycle better than before.
• This new solution is the culmination of the acceleration to iAccess and is based on feedback from our customers over the past 10 years.
• An intuitive, powerful solution that puts your people and projects at the center of your business so you can be more efficient, productive and profitable.

For executives or employees wanting to view the upcoming changes, we recommend checking out this webinar: Deltek Vantagepoint - The Best All In One Package. The webinar reviews the top 10 new features of Deltek Vantagepoint, how to access the Readiness Portal and provides guidance on next steps.

Dispelling the Misconceptions about Deltek Vantagepoint

Q: Is Deltek Vantagepoint a new product?

A: It is a continuation of the Vision product. Think Vision 10!

Q: Will our firm need to repurchase to move to Deltek Vantagepoint?

A: No! As long as you are current on maintenance.

Q: How long will Deltek Vision continue to be supported?

A: Through at least 2022. We want to emphasize the "at least" part.

Q: In order to get Deltek Vantagepoint do I have to move to the cloud?

A: No! However, it might make sense so reach out to your account manager if you are interested.

Q: Will Deltek Vantagepoint be available on-premise?

A: Yes!

Q: Will Deltek Vantagepoint require me to migrate my data?

A: No! Your data will move over. There are some considerations if you have repurposed any info centers.  

Q: Will all of my user defined fields and user defined info centers move over?

A:  Yes!

Q: Will Vantagepoint contain the exact functionality as Vision 7.6?

A: No. The product is being reimagined and improved. There are certain areas that will not move forward. Please see that section below.

Q: Can my firm request to upgrade to Deltek Vantagepoint and move next week?

A: We do not recommend that. There are considerations that need to be made. We highly recommend reviewing the checklist on the Readiness Portal and viewing our webinar series first.

What Are My Options on Getting a Vantagepoint Test Environment?

For firms that are seeking to obtain a Vantagepoint test environment, the answer to this question depends on your current deployment method. Below are the options:

• We are hosted by Deltek Cloud: If your firm is on the Deltek cloud, submit a case to Deltek letting them know you would like to have a test environment set-up for Vantagepoint. This does require further steps that Deltek will convey to you.
• We are hosted by Full Sail Partners: If your firm is hosted by Full Sail Partners, your Primary Contact should have received an email on Wednesday, September 18th outlining when test environment requests can be made and how long those test environments will be made available. If you did not receive the email, email hosting.
• We are hosted by an external hosting provider: If your firm is hosted by an external hosting provider, request that your provider set-up a test environment. If they have not set-up a Vantagepoint environment before, then we recommend you reach out to Full Sail Partners or your partner of record. It might make sense to consider moving to Deltek's cloud, hosting permanently with Full Sail Partners, or utilizing Full Sail Partners' transition hosting service. Contact us if you are interested in any of these options.
• We manage our own environment: If your firm manages your own environment, request that your IT staff provide you a test environment. If they have not set-up an environment before, then we recommend you reach out to Full Sail Partners or your partner of record. It might make sense to consider moving to Deltek's cloud, hosting permanently with Full Sail Partners, or utilizing Full Sail Partners' transition hosting service. Our IT Consultants can also provide consulting services to assist your IT staff. Contact us if you are interested in any of these options.

Keep in mind, the upgrade to Deltek Vantagepoint requires a new install and has new installment requirements. For on-premise clients, please check out our past webinar: Is Your Firm Technically Prepared for Deltek Vantagepoint.

Who Do I Contact?

If your firm is seeking assistance with upgrading to Vantagepoint, our team is here to help. Check out our Vantagepoint Upgrade Review and Recommendation Program. Additionally, here are other resources to know.    

• If you need any help accessing the portal, please e-mail DeltekUniversity (at) Deltek.com.
• If you have any questions about the content in the portal, please e-mail Vantagepoint (at) Deltek.com.
• If you have any questions about your preview or live Deltek software, please contact Deltek Customer Care https://deltek.custhelp.com/.
• If you need assistance with your upgrade, contact us or your partner of record.

Deltek Vantagepoint Resources

Make sure to check out our webinar series about preparing for the upgrade to Deltek Vantagepoint. In this series, our team of consultants cover a variety of topics such as technical requirements, resource planning and project management, new CRM functions, and the improved accounting interface. This webinar series page also includes demonstrations of Deltek Vantagepoint. If you prefer to read about the enhancements, check out all the articles we have posted about the enhancements Vantagepoint offers to firms that upgrade from Vision!