This series has been exploring how change management is viewed by a variety of perspectives: executives and finance to date with marketing, HR and IT yet to come.  We’ve advocated that change must be understood and handled differently from each department’s “normal” day to day activities.  However, for our focus on project management, this series will take a somewhat different turn.  Project Managers already have, in their very work DNA, the ability to see, to scope, and to manage change.  It’s what they do on a daily, weekly, and yearly basis: it’s what project management is all about.  

The specifics

Let’s first take a closer look at our terms – project management and change management – in order to make the clear connection.  Tim Creasey, Director of Research and Development for Prosci Research takes us through this process.  

From these terms, he offers next the vital connecting visual and description.

“As shown in this image, both project management and change management support moving an organization from a current state (how things are done today), through a transition state to a desired future state (the new processes, systems, organization structures or job roles defined by 'the change'). Project management focuses on the tasks to achieve the project requirements. Change management focuses on the people impacted by the change.

Any change to processes, systems, organization structures and/or job roles will have a 'technical' side and a 'people' side that must be managed. Project management and change management have evolved as disciplines to provide both the structure and the tools needed to realize change successfully on [both] the technical and people side[s].” 

But there’s more

In our first piece, we offered a definitions of change management with user adoption as the important second step in the management of change.  Once again, project managers are well positioned to ensure that not only are the processes of change implemented correctly, but that the people involved in the change are empowered to take full advantage.   

As we’ve discussed, both project management and change management have as their leading characteristic, a specific focus on the people involved in the change.  Also we stated in beginning of our series, user adoption requires a clearly defined and financially measured goal with training, clear communication/marketing and leadership buy-in as necessary parts to be successful.  Each of these attributes is an important part of ensuring that the people part of change is not only smooth but wholly embraced:  there is, after all, good reason that the company utilized valuable energy scoping out the change that will take your company from its present state to its future, more desired, state.  And since a company is really the embodiment of the sum of its employees,   

The company will only change

 when the individuals fully and entirely

commit to the change.

Final phase

No project would be complete without this all-important final phase - project review.  We all well know that no project would be complete without really looking at those phases which were well executed and which were not:  it is here in the post-mortem where real learning occurs and where there is a final determination of success and of change. 

Full Sail Partners, a Deltek Premier Partner, is pleased to announce that Kevin Hebblethwaite, FSMPS, CPSM, has joined Full Sail Partners in a full-time capacity as a Senior Consultant. Kevin is familiar with what it takes to help firms improve information sharing and develop reporting capabilities across departments. The recent expansion of the Full Sail Partners’ staff is a reflection of the firm’s dedication to providing clients with the most talented professionals the industry has to offer.

As a Senior Consultant, Kevin will continue to help firms leverage their investments in the Deltek Vision platform to track, manage, and monitor results for their marketing and business development initiatives; streamline the proposal process through automation; and improve their client relationships. He will lead and expand Full Sail Partners’ consulting services for the Client Feedback Tool, which helps professional services firms manage expectations and improve the overall client experience.

“I am thrilled to be a part of the Full Sail Partners’ team," said Kevin. “I’ve spent most of my career developing professional service relationships, helping people improve their systems and processes. I look forward to continuing that tradition with Full Sail’s current and future clients who seek to elevate the value they can extract from good information management.

Kevin Hebblethwaite has been involved in the Deltek community and the professional services industry for more than 15 years. Kevin served as the National President of the Society for Marketing Professional Services (SMPS) in 2012-2013. His previous experience as an engineering firm executive and familiarity with Deltek Vision across departmental functions allow him to effectively assist professional services firms in taking a more comprehensive and integrated approach to managing their marketing and business development information. According to Kevin, “Marketers have a unique opportunity in the professional services environment to become more data-driven contributors to their firms’ strategic direction, and Deltek Vision provides a great platform to do so.”

“Kevin is an important strategic addition to our team as we look to expand our service practice,” said Sarah Gonnella, Full Sail Partners’ Vice President of Marketing and Sales. “We are excited to have him take the lead in bridging together our consulting services for Deltek Vision and the Client Feedback Tool. His unique perspective, knowledge, and persistence make him the perfect fit to deliver the best possible results.”

For more information, please email Full Sail Partners’ Marketing Communications Department or visit the Full Sail Partners’ website at www.FullSailPartners.com.

About Full Sail Partners 
Full Sail Partners provides client-focused technology services and solutions for more than 1,000 professional services firms nationwide. As Premier Partners for Deltek and the Client Feedback Tool, Full Sail Partners helps project-based firms fully integrate their business processes by connecting their front end and backend systems. We seek to help organizations identify the critical resources needed to create a faster, more efficient, and cohesive business infrastructure. 

You are the leader of a company.  People look to you for establishing goals, creating direction and for driving the company’s success.  When looking at managing change, your perspective is from 5,000 feet … but with all the responsibility of the minutiae.   This second installment in our Management of Change series focuses on how you, the executive, must navigate your employees through the rough waters of change to the calm seas of success.  Here are the important steps.

1. Establishing goals

In order to effectively manage change, an important first exercise is a goal setting session with the entire leadership team.  Unfortunately, we hear too often, “I know it’s important, but we don’t have time for goal setting meetings with all the other meetings we already have.”

Without goals, though, here is what you’re doing.  Let’s say you want to take a vacation.  Great, now book your flight(s), reserve a hotel room, and schedule some activities.  But wait – where are you going?  Is your hotel room in the same place as where your flight landed?  How much is this trip going to cost?  Are the activities in the same area as your hotel?   In your personal life, of course you know all the answers to these questions, because you already had your goal, your destination in mind and your family buy-in before making decisions and actually spending money.  But do you lead your company with this same clarity of purpose?  Do you have clear and specific goals and the consensus of the management team before making decisions and sending money?  Too many, regrettably, do not. 

It is time consuming and difficult, but absolutely necessary to establish clear goals that also have the buy-in of every member of your leadership team. 

2. Creating direction

Now that you know where you’re going, how are you going to get there? As we discussed in our first piece, “change management requires a structured approach for lasting benefits”, that structured approach is the direction, the roadmap that the executives of companies need to create in order to reach company goals. 

Of course, you know all this already; you spend hours of your valuable time in seemingly endless business planning sessions.  But this is a bit different.  When looking at change, you are not just trying to reach a goal, like higher profitability or increased revenue, but you’re working to reach a goal of minimizing any negative impacts change might bring.  Change is usually required most often as a result of

• External forces like politics, environment, or technology

     OR

• Internal requirements like a major reorganization or change on offerings

Another thing you are already quite aware of … change is hard.  It effects not only your established company processes but, more importantly, the people in your organization. 

Process Changes

When change impacts your processes, every area in your organization is impacted:  Finance impacts HR which impacts Marketing which impacts IT which impacts … well, you get the picture:  Your company is an interrelated amalgamation of interactive expertise.  Although executives often speak in department silos – “Let’s work with Finance on that new report” – we all know that the report depends on information from every other department in the company which means that “new report” is not just Finance’s responsibility but every department’s responsibility.  And why?  Defined as a series of actions or steps taken in order to achieve a particular end, process is what drives your company’s every day activities which ultimately lead to the achievement of your company goals. 

People Changes

But there’s more.  While change impacts your processes, it’s the people in your organization who are actually running those processes, and it’s the people who struggle with change (yes, even you executives are people who struggle with change too).  Peter Drucker, Wikipedia tells us, “whose writings contributed to the philosophical and practical foundations of the modern business corporation, says that ‘We now accept the fact that learning is a lifelong process of keeping abreast of change.  And the most pressing task is to teach people how to learn.’” Change is indeed a hard and necessary evil but can be abated with training which is the next most important part of company-wide user adoption of change.

3. Drive Company Success through Powerful Tools

So what are the tools to allow you to be an effective, involved leader of the management of change process?  Quite simply, an executive dashboard in a technology solution from a company like Full Sail Partners who can customize software for your change management project.  Dashboards, like the one pictured here, can allow executives to get a snapshot of activities taking place during the change process ensuring that you have a pulse on your project.  

Bottom line

As the executive, you have many roles – not the least of which is company change agent.  A tremendously important role necessary to allow your company to continue to flourish in the wake of ever-changing internal and external environs.  The leadership team must clearly define goals and create a clear plan for reaching those goals keeping in mind:

a) The impact of the changes in process and the people who are required to do them

b) The tools and the allies, like Full Sail Partners, Inc., that you have access to which will help manage your change. 

Now is the time for company executives, like you, to accept the challenge of change! 

Full Sail Partners, a Premier Partner for Deltek and the Client Feedback Tool, is pleased to announce the recent hire of Peter Nuffer who will join the Full Sail team as the Director of Product Development. In this role, Peter will manage the build-out of next generation integrations that provide advanced functionality like the Client Feedback Tool integration with Deltek Vision, and work with Full Sail Partner’s client’s on initiatives that require development of reports, BI, workflows and integration with other platforms. With a proven record of developing innovative custom solutions, Peter has previously been employed with Full Sail Partners for five years, and spent the last two years focusing on software product management.   

“I am extremely excited about rejoining the Full Sail Partners team and taking on this new position," said Peter Nuffer, Director of Product Development. “I look forward to making an immediate impact for Full Sail Partners, as well as the Deltek ecosystem. We have many innovative extensions to the core product’s functionality that will help professional services firms streamline processes, engage clients, and capitalize on opportunities to build their business. Our development team is committed to providing best in class service and product offerings that will help clients get the most out of their Deltek Vision system while leveraging other technologies crucial to their operations.  The focus on extensibility of the already comprehensive Deltek Vision core product will help the Deltek Vision ERP product remain competitive within new market verticals”

Peter Nuffer rejoins Full Sail Partners with over 20 years of experience in the software and technology field. A creative technology professional, Peter has an enthusiastic focus on developing technology solutions and working with business leaders to identify efficiency centric process improvements through technology. His extensive experience developing solutions that automate, simplify, and improve operations makes him a value-added partner to any professional services organization.

“We welcome Peter back to the Full Sail Partners team and are excited about the opportunity to further enhance our clients experience with Deltek Vision through Peter’s development efforts,” said Scott Seal, Full Sail Partners’ Vice President of Consulting. “Peter is a long-time ally of Full Sail Partners, and is one of the leading developers for Deltek Vision customization solutions. We believe that Peter offers our professional services user base the ability to take their ERP system to the next level.”

For more information, please email Full Sail Partners’ Marketing Communications Department or visit the Full Sail Partners’ website at www.FullSailPartners.com.

About Full Sail Partners
Full Sail Partners provides client-focused technology services and solutions for more than 1,000 professional services firms nationwide. As Premier Partners for Deltek and the Client Feedback Tool, Full Sail Partners helps project-based firms fully integrate their business processes by connecting their front end and backend systems. We seek to help organizations identify the critical resources needed to create a faster, more efficient, and cohesive business infrastructure.

Full Sail Partners – Keep Your Business on Course. | For more on Full Sail Partners profile and background on the Full Sail Partners crew, visit us at http://www.fullsailpartners.com.
 

A friend comes to you and asks for your advice regarding a great investment they discovered with a huge money down initial investment but with – and here’s the kicker – no idea of the ROI. 

Your advice?  Never invest unless you know what you’ll get in return, right?

Yet, thousands of companies today are operating their business without knowing if there will be any return on the investments on initiatives or significant purchases each day.   

WHY do companies do this and HOW can they realize the necessary ROI?

They answer is right in front of us - effective management of change.

This article is the first in an exciting and informative series where we focus our attention on this invasive corporate conundrum and how an effectively run Management of Change Program can positively impact your bottom line.  What’s even more engaging about this series is that we will look at the benefits of change management from a variety of perspectives:  Executive, Finance, Project Management, Marketing, and HR. 

In this introduction piece, we will concentrate on two key definitions including change management and user adoption.

Change Management

Change Management is a term often bandied about as the vague yet intended scapegoat for why things don’t go well in an organization.  While many people certainly understand the concept, there is in fact a real definition.  Generally, change management is the process of moving an organization from its current status to a defined desired status.  However, few understand the importance or the specifics as to what makes an effective management of change program. 

According to mindtools.com’s article “Change Management Making Organization Change Happen Effectively,” “Change management is a structured approach for ensuring that changes are thoroughly and smoothly implemented, and that the lasting benefits of change are achieved.  The focus is on the wider impacts of change, particularly on people and how they, as individuals and teams, move from the current situation to the new one.”  I’ve added the boldface font to make two very important points:  1) that change management requires a structured approach for lasting benefits and 2) change management requires not only a change in process but a change in the people involved. 

User Adoption

Which brings us to our next definition regarding the people involved in the change, User Adoption.  Broadly, it means the people in the company using and taking full advantage of the changed environment.  We all know that getting people to change is always a difficult task:  people are naturally resistant to change - even if change means their work lives will be easier - because the initial adjustment to their lives seems too big a barrier.  Now, taking that broad definition into a more specific level, we can clarify it as the following:  successful user adoption requires a clearly defined and financially measured goal requiring training, clear communication/marketing and leadership buy-in in order to be successful. 

Management of Change and ROI

Now, let’s get back to ROI.

For a change to be considered advantageous, there has to be a compelling business case which will look at the cost of the project weighted against the benefits the company will gain. If the benefits outweigh the costs, the ROI is positive.  The formula for calculating Return on Investment (ROI)[2] is:

NATALIE PETOUHOFF, PHD, TAMRA CHANDLER and BETH MONTAG-SCHMALTZ, “The Business Impact of Change Management,” 2006 Volume 9 Issue 3.

In other words, the difficulties of change must be overcome by the positives, i.e. an ROI both financially and personally for those involved. 

Two other important items that many people forget when calculating ROI are a) the amount of resources and time change takes as well as b) the opportunity and efficiency costs of NOT making the change both of which also directly impact ROI

Looking forward …

We have established our key terms, change management and user adoption.  Now let’s look at management of change programs - which reap the benefits to your organization’s bottom line - from the different perspectives mentioned above through focusing on user adoption.  Next week, An Executive’s User Adoption Story. 

Have you ever had a moment in your life that stands out as a teaching moment that has made you who you are today? My moment transformed and prepared me as a Project Manager and Owner to tackle difficult conversations. Let’s face it, whether personal or in the workplace, we are constantly faced with resolving conflict.  At the same time, I have learned (or found) that not everyone is comfortable with expressing what needs to be said. So, it really resonated with me when a couple years ago I discovered a tool that has made conflict resolution easier. More about that in a minute. 

My Story

My teaching moment was when I was in sixth grade.  I had a teacher I felt was not being fair. I expressed to my mother my frustration to see if she could help. She told me that she could go to this teacher and have a conversation, but that the teacher would probably respond better if I addressed the issue head on. She coached me on how to have the conversation so I had the tools to handle the conversation on my own.

I was nervous as I entered her classroom. I asked the teacher if she had a moment that we could step outside of the class and talk. I told her how I felt and wanted to bring it to her attention to see how we could resolve the issue. The teacher was impressed and happy that I brought it to her attention. We came up with a solution and each day after I felt that I was respected and developed a better relationship with that teacher.  Each day I look back at that experience, I realize that was the moment I learned to speak up about concerns and not fear the hard conversation to resolve conflict.

Resolving Conflict

By no means am I an expert at resolving conflict. However, I have learned that avoiding the subject and hoping it goes away rarely works. Additionally, conflict doesn’t have to be looked at as negative. Sometimes opportunities flourish from conflict. The other person might be feeling the same way and because you took the time to say something your relationship improved.  A great resource for learning more about conflict resolution is Mindtools. Below are some tips I have learned throughout the years to help resolve client issues:

1. Perception is Reality - The definition of conflict is to be incompatible. So in order to resolve conflict, the first step is to listen and understand the other person’s or group’s point of view.  We all come from different experiences that influence us and can lead us to make assumptions. So it’s important to understand that someone else’s views may have nothing to do with you, but be based on their past experience.  So with that, we must also realize that perception is the truth no matter if you think it’s true or not. Once you put your mind around that fact you can begin to focus on what can be done to resolve the issue.
    
2. Managing Expectations – Managing expectations with a client requires being proactive vs. reactive. Once a client is frustrated with multiple things that have built up over time, it takes a lot more work to resolve the issue and sometimes is too late. For professional services firms that need to manage clients, a great tool to help with this is the Client Feedback Tool. The only way you can really know what a client is thinking is to ask. This tool allows a firm to check-in with their clients using two minute surveys throughout the project. When you do this, you uncover things your firm has done that your clients love (so you can continue to do more of the same) as well as things that your client would like you to change if only slightly. This doesn’t remove the need for picking up the phone and calling, but it is great for letting you know there is an issue before it gets unmanageable. And, it is very comfortable for clients to let you know things you might not think to ask on the phone and that they might feel were perhaps not worth mentioning on a project call. However, knowing allows you to adjust your service delivery and make you even more valuable to them.
    
3. Take Action – When a person does speak up about an issue, it’s important to follow-up, follow-up, follow-up and take action! Keep in mind that this doesn’t mean that you go against best practices or things you know are not in the best interest of the client or your firm. The feedback just brings out in the open something that matters to your client. It gives everybody a moment to collect their thoughts and then have a discussion. When you do, it’s important to communicate concerns you have and any consequences after fully understanding the client.  At the end of the discussion and meetings, a recap of action items, who is responsible and due dates can help you get back on track.

So the next time you encounter an issue with a client, I hope my story and tips help you think about ways you can deal with conflict resolution. Be sure to share your conflict resolution tips or stories. Should you want to provide your employees a way to manage expectations, we invite you to take a tour of the Client Feedback Tool. 

Project based ERP.  You’re probably wondering to yourself, “what is this anyway?”  We’ve all heard of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems, but now the industry added the words “project based.”  It probably feels like they are just layering more words … and difficulty.  So let me make some sense out of this for you. 

Project Based ERP Straight Talk

Traditionally, ERP’s have primarily been associated with companies manufacturing products: a key factor in ERP is the merging of IT, HR, Finance, and Marketing data with product operations and inventory management. 

In services firms and consulting businesses like yours, however, some alterations must be made for the ERP system to show the data they need to achieve their goal – high profit and high revenue in a skills based environment – hence the addition of “project based” to our discussion about ERP systems.  Your services business deals with a model where intellectual property is what you produce.  You don’t have the evils of shelf life, production lines, or parts departments.  Instead, your lives are geared toward a consistent evaluation of process, of skill, and of running the perfect project.   

Get Down to Business

Project based firms are exceedingly good at running projects.  They can create a GANNT chart that’s a thing of beauty, they can set achievable deliverables, and they meet or exceed every deadline.  But finding an ERP system that’s attuned especially to services and not manufacturing – now that’s tougher.  It takes dedication, knowledge and the focused energy of the right team to get it all together.  

• An ERP Consultant whose job is to master-mind all the necessary pieces to banish redundant, useless old processes and make your project’s business goals a realty.

• A Project Manager focused solely on gathering and maneuvering all the professionals to make achieving your project goals a success.

• Your IT, HR, Marketing/Sales, Finance as the true heroes to making things happen.

So What Are You Going To Get Out Of It?

I know, I know.  “It’s expensive to add new software.”  “It’s a lot of work and we’re already pretty busy.”  I’ve heard this and more.  But let me tell you – you can’t afford NOT to add a project based ERP system!  The table below details those differences:

Brass Tacks

Still need more?  Here’s the slam-dunk.  According to “Managing Your Consulting Firm for Growth,” an IDC Info-doc, ERP systems built from the ground up with projects as a core process give firms the tools to make the most effective decisions in these critical areas:

• Lifecycle process across customers, projects and employees.

• Details on projects that help optimize profitability and lower risks.

• Manage and optimize an integrated portfolio of services – using data to learn how to do more of what “works” and eliminate what isn’t “working” (i.e. what’s not profitable).

• Find the “right” customers and have the data to eliminate unprofitable customers.

• Manage the future by understanding the past and using data to make fast, accurate course corrections.

A project based ERP system will combine the
strengths of Marketing/Sales, IT, HR, Finance together with
project management software to help eliminate project waste.

Bottom Line

Your dedicated employees joined with the support of organizations like Full Sail Partners, Inc.  will make your project based firm as successful as possible by using your greatest resource – a specifically designed project based ERP system.  And while it’s rad here in California to just “ride the waves,” when it comes to running your project based firm, using a project based ERP is your best choice.  Dude. 

It’s not so much that firms don’t already know they aren’t taking advantage of their Deltek Vision system as much as they sometimes just don’t know where to start. I hear it almost every time I’m at a conference talking to clients. “We aren’t utilizing the system to its full potential”. Knowing you aren’t is half the battle. The harder part is figuring out what to focus on and getting the buy-in to do something about it. Below are five tips on how to get the most out of your Deltek Vision system. 

1. Make it a Priority – We see it every day, firms deal with inefficiencies causing them to lose money each day they are not addressed. If you don’t make it a priority, who will?  Make a list of all of the things keeping you from focusing on your job, i.e. inefficiencies, duplication, lack of report, insight on trends, etc.  Then go to each role within the firm and make the same list from them. This is where you start. By applying the 80/20 rule you can reduce that list down to your priority list.
    
2. Take Advantage of New Technology – Is your firm guilty of ignoring technological enhancements? Businesses that stay with the “old way” of doing things fall behind their competition. But change is so hard!  You know what they say, the only thing constant is change. New tools like mobile access to timesheets, expense reports, and CRM are available. Not to mention InDesign integration, expense receipt attachments and so many more enhancements of Deltek Vision. Yet, has your firm taken advantage of these new features? Fear of change, lack of understanding what’s available, inadequate IT support are some of the reasons we tend to hear despite their employees saying they need these new features. To learn about the latest enhancements and take advantage of them. Check out our What’s New in Vision webinar and be sure to read our monthly newsletter. Not receiving it? Contact us.
    
3. Collaborate as a Team – Do you have teammates or are you dealing with the isolation effect? The modern business world is reliant on teams. Ultimately the success of your business is impacted by your teams ability to be productive together.  There is no “I” in team. You have to rely on others while they rely on you and that includes providing accessibility throughout the company. Collaboration can only happen with trust. So identifying where the trust issue sits and resolving it is key. Seek out new and innovative ways to work as team. Contact our collaboration queen for more information. 
    
4. Improve Employee Skills – How can someone learn if you don’t edumacate ‘em? Through Osmosis! Employees typically want to do the right thing, but without the right tools or training, it makes it hard and sometimes impossible. Does your staff have access to the right metrics or information to make quick decisions? Do you know what is included and have you been trained on the latest enhancements? Full Sail Partners can help you train your employees by utilizing the priority list identified in item #1. You don’t know what you don’t know and that sometimes it is a firm’s worst enemy. To learn on demand, view our past archive section or contact us.
    
5. Push the Envelope – Wish there was a feature or way to do something in Vision? You might just find that it’s been tackled before. Your consultant can provide great insight on the possibilities as they have worked with hundreds of firms. It seems every day I run into a client that discovers the awesome power of workflows to accomplish there challenge. Workflows can save time to free you up for more productive activities. They can automate repetitive tasks, alert users of record changes, and enable your firm to streamline process through automation. When something isn’t possible with stored procedures or workflows, there is still an option. In Customer Care, you can also submit a “new idea”. The more people that submit on a topic, the higher up on the priority list is goes.

Put on your walking shoes and “just do it”. Just like you do with a project or a marketing plan, you have to plan out what is needed and the results you expect to see. You don’t have to do it alone. Full Sail Partners is here to help guide you so your firm can get the most out of your Deltek Vision system. 

"The road to hell is paved with good intentions." This saying could never be truer than when talking about collaboration. We as humans have an intrinsic need to work together. Unfortunately it seems that at times as humans we also have a  need to butt heads! More often than not in the business world, this butting of heads is a result of how we communicate. Luckily, Deltek has recognized these faults with collaboration and has introduced a solution that you may or may not of heard of by now – Deltek Kona!

Since the release of Kona there have been many upgrades to the platform. If you are a long time user, you have probably recognized some of these changes. Well, now it is time to identify some of the most important changes made to Kona spaces, and how these changes impact your professional services firm:

Organizing Deltek Kona Spaces

If you’re reading this, chances are you are using Deltek Kona frequently and have been added to a number of Kona spaces. 

The Deltek Kona team has developed some tools that allow you to categorize your spaces.  You can then use the classifications you’ve created just for you to adjust what you see and what content is emailed to you.

Space Categories

After assessing the types of spaces you are involved in, you may find that there are multiple spaces for different objectives such as Billable projects, Internal Work Groups, or Company Initiatives. Create a category for multiple spaces so they can be grouped together and used as filters.  The categories you create are just for you and can be changed any time.   

To create categories, go to Manage under the Spaces pane and then Add Category.  To assign spaces to the new category, simply enter the space and choose edit, then assign it to the desired category.

$5 Tip:  Don’t go make categories now.  Read on to find alternative thought processes on creating categories.

Space Favorites

With or without using Space Categories, you can also use the Favorite tool to mark one or more spaces as a Favorite.  This is helpful for spaces where there is a lot of activity or information that you refer to frequently.  Like categories, the list of Favorites can be used as a filter to narrow what you see in your Deltek Kona session.

To mark a Kona space as a favorite, go to the space in the list of spaces and click the down arrow to the right of the space name and choose Favorite.

$10 Tip:  You can also hide spaces.  The only way to find the hidden spaces is to use the filter drop-down.  (See below.)

Positioning Spaces

Spaces are natively organized first by Network, then Favorites, then everything else alphabetically.  Perhaps there is a space that you don’t want to mark as a favorite, but would like to see in your space view without scrolling or you have spaces that are at the top of the list but don’t need to be seen immediately.  This is often helpful for personal or reference spaces that don’t have a lot of new conversation content but need to be easily accessed

To reposition a space, simply click in the middle of the space name and drag it to its new position

Filtering Space Views

Once you’ve assigned spaces to categories or have marked them as favorites, you can begin to use the Space Filter tool in a more advanced way.  To access the filters, look for the down arrow just below the space search box and above the first space.  The dropdown will reveal the standard categories, favorites, and categories you’ve created. 

$25 Tip:  The filter selection remains even after you log out of Deltek Kona.  If upon logging in again, you cannot find the space you’re looking for, go to the filters and reset to All.

Using Categories and Favorites in Email Settings

Once you’ve organized your Deltek Kona spaces on a more granular level, you might want to revisit the Notifications area in your profile.  One of the most exciting features in Deltek Kona this summer, is the ability to turn on the Conversation Digest for only one category or only for Favorites.  Furthermore, you can choose to mark the conversations as read once they are emailed in the Digest.

$1,000 Tip:  If you are not inclined to choose just one category for your Deltek Kona spaces, considering creating a category for spaces that you just don’t care that much about.  Then, tell Kona that you’d like to receive a periodic Conversation Digest for that category and that you’d like to mark the conversations as read.  This will still let you know what you’ve missed in a compact format, but will also keep your Kona view cleaner for all that you do wish to digest from within the application. 

If the ability to filter your Deltek Kona spaces doesn’t seem useful to you, then you have not been properly introduced to the “Kona Life”, let us help you discover how Kona can make yours and the lives of your group members easier:
 

If you are intrigued by the mention of Billable Projects as a space filter, ask about Kona business and integration with Deltek Vision Projects and Opportunities, and with Project Navigator

Here in the United States, our sports zealots perform crazy antics like going shirtless in freezing weather or painting their faces in support of their teams.  But it’s more than the individual antics; the real difference is in the scale of extremism that soccer fans exhibit – a literal global exuberance all in support of their beloved sport.  But wait, isn’t this an article on ERP Consulting? 

Well, believe it or not, soccer and ERP consulting have quite a lot in common: 

• They both strive to achieve a very specific GOAL.
• They require coordination among the various efforts of serious talent to make it all happen.
• True fans are enthusiastic about the team winning.

Breaking it down: Are Soccer and ERP Consulting that Similar?

ERP

This sharing and communicating of information is all geared toward one, single purpose – achieving business goals. 

Putting them together

Next, let’s get back to one of my favorite subjects, soccer.  Soccer is a game requiring the coordination of individual players, each with their own proficiency; sometimes it involves players from different nationalities, or differences in a position focus like a goalie or halfback or a variations in specific skillsets like juggling or dribbling the ball. The players rely on the communicating and sharing of information during a game to one single, purpose – putting the ball into the net for a GOAL, a win.

So, like the soccer team with different players, ERP consulting requires synchronization of dissimilar needs, processes, and indeed functions of the software of different departments, so that the business can achieve its business GOALS, its win.

It takes the right coach to win

In soccer, while the right players, good equipment, and positive fan support are unquestionably important parts of the team’s success, the keystone to an effective soccer team is, in fact, the coach.  The coach’s job is to balance each player’s strengths against the combined team’s goal of winning.

The coach in ERP is the ERP Consultant.  Having the right individual department software is important, but the keystone to implementing a system, evaluating business processes, and bringing all that information together in a meaningful way is the ERP Consultant.  This person, like the coach, has to balance all the individual parts, i.e. departmental needs, in order to reach the business GOALS of the entire organization. 

How to find the right ERP Consultant

Choosing the right ERP Coach, er, Consultant is your important first step.  This person can help you determine the scope of your ERP project – including costs, size, structure, business process evaluation, and ERP goals as well as help you research and find the right ERP solution for your business.  Full Sail Partners, Inc., for example, specializes in identifying the critical resources to create a faster, more efficient, and cohesive business infrastructure for professional services firms looking at ERP solutions.  Ultimately, you need a consultant who

• listens to you
• knows your industry
• understands needs beyond the tool
• understands your company culture, and
• knows the ERP industry.

Don’t get a red card

Choosing the wrong ERP consultant or software solution can lead to significant issues penalizing you in dollars, time and public relations.  Following are only two examples of many instances of what happens when ERP implementations fail:

… Knight Capital, [a financial services firm,] recently lost over $400 million in a matter of minutes because of a glitch in its trading software — trading software that wasn’t fully tested and properly deployed prior to production. In addition to the immediate impact of lost cash and profits, the software failure also caused the company’s stock to drop 68-percent the day following the glitch. 

SAP and AxonCity of San DiegoThe city of San Diego, CA terminated its software implementation contract with services provider, Axon, citing “systematically deficient project management practices” and a project that was running $11 million over budget.

But be aware, an ERP Consultant cannot entirely save you from these “red card” losses.  Like the soccer coach, their real purpose is more about setting realistic expectations and sound goals, as well as offering their expertise for avoiding potential issues before they occur.   

In the end

Although analogous in many ways, the reality is that soccer is purely a game to most of us while ERP consultants help you achieve your GOAL – a more efficiently run business resulting in greater success for all your employees.  Calling Full Sail Partners as your ERP consulting expert is your first step in achieving your WIN.  

And while going shirtless in below freezing weather or being painted the colors of your favorite ERP vendor is one way to show your support, it’s not necessary.  But then again…a Full Sail Partners logo on my chest would make me stand out in the crowd.