Claromentis Intranet Software Blog

We have always been careful to acknowledge that customisable intranet solutions are an area where terminology can create confusion for the customer.

But as soon as you add e-forms – to enable paper based processes to go online – the possibility misunderstandings and the need for patient listening and careful explanations becomes much more acute.

It just seems that there is so much potential for a natural disconnect. Customers might be under the perception that :

* Forms are documents
* E-forms are just like web forms
* All paper based processes should be automated instead of those that deliver value if they are moved online.

None of these are true.

Fortunately we have the staff to listen, to be advocates, and to explain what we can deliver.

General Intranet Posts, intranet applications eforms, intranet, software

Car

A software solution can cost from virtually free to millions of pounds. How do you find the right product with this immense price-range?

Let’s use an example other than software… say a car. These days you can buy a second hand car from £50 or a Bugatti Veyron for £1million.

A friend of mine asked if I could recommend him a car. Applying a typical IT consultancy to car selling, I asked him if he has budget in mind and what he is going to use it for.

He came up with these two simple requirements:

“Weekly shopping, travel to work, As cheapest possible!”

“Oh well, on that case £50 car will do just fine mate! I can find a good £50 car that does the job”,

After a few days, he said to me, “it’s noisy and uncomfortable”. Bottom line he doesn’t like it at all. Using typical IT consultant defence I said, “Well you didn’t say that before, it wasn’t on the specification.”

He asked me to get him a better car and it has to be quiet and comfortable.

I came up with another second hand car with £800 price-tag which isn’t too bad in my opinion.

A few weeks had gone past with no complain, but then he said to me “it’s ok, but it’s ugly, and it has no AC”.

“I have a new girlfriend and I want a nice looking car”.

“How about this cool looking second hand 4×4 at £5000”

“I take it!”

He is happy for a while now but after a few months he is start complaining “It’s cost a fortune on petrol and I hate taking it for MOT!” can you find me a brand new one?

“OK on that case, How about this, a brand new car for £10,000? It’s quiet, economical, comfortable, stylish and you don’t have to worry about MOT for 3 years!”.

He is thinking for a while and said this to me.

“Every time I am complaining, you always came up with a better car with higher price. Can you just get me the most expensive car I can possibly get? My dad said money is no object and he will buy me any car! I am sick and tired of this process.”

OK here it is a £1million car!

You know what, the car is noisy, uncomfortable and cost a fortune on petrol, but he is never complaining to me. He doesn’t even want to discuss it with anyone knowing he had spent lots of money on it. When people ask how’s the car? He always said “It is the best car in the world!”.

Does it sound familiar?

Software alone cheap or expensive is not going to solve the problem; It never be a simple formula, you need the right software, for the right problem, with the right people behind it.

“It’s not about the car or software, it’s about intricate network of people with talent and skills that matter.”

General Intranet Posts, People and Cultural Issues cartoon, humor, software

With clients now upgrading to Claromentis 5.4, we will have the fist opportunity to gain feedback on a significant new application – Quality Manager.

This application has been sponsored by one of our largest companies and provides important functionality for the management of policies and procedures.

It moves Policies and Procedures onto a truly online world, and away from our previous solution of using Document manager to provide version controlled online files.

The new online Quality Manager means:

• Procedures and Manuals will be automatically updated when included procedures change, radically simplifying the business problem of maintaining a complex information layer
• Compliance will be simpler
• Online Policies and Procedures can be exported to many formats
• Printed copies can be marked automatically as outside the quality management system
• Different business units will automatically see the same content with their own brand – but there is only one Policy to maintain.

We are now working on the extension of this application to provide an enterprise level environment for the management of ISO or other legislative Audits – these two applications working together will provide the complete solution for Quality Managers.

General Intranet Posts, Intranets by Industry Sector or Job Role, intranet applications policies and procedures, quality management software, software