**Read this post before beginning your search for homebuilder management software!**
Homebuilder Management Software is a tool designed to improve productivity, enhance efficiencies, and streamline operations for a residential construction company. Selecting this software is a decision that will impact your business for years to come.
Before reaching out to software vendors, it is important to establish your goals and requirements. The following steps are designed to help home building companies identify which software is best for managing their business and which technology partner can support their goals and company structure.
For the full e-guide, try reading “A Step-By-Step Guide to Selecting HomeBuilder Management Software”.
Step 1: Establish Goals and a timeline
By establishing what your company is currently lacking in terms of process and what your company already does successfully, decide on an overall goal. That goal may include increasing revenue and profitability, improving communication between the office and the construction site, enhancing accessibility during project management, increasing employee productivity or even increasing customer satisfaction. The timeline should be your company’s second step. Highlight key moments in this timeline including the research phase, the software provider review phase, when a final selection is needed, and when the implementation process needs to conclude. This will ultimately guide the software provider in seeing which integrated solution is best for your company, and what is the best possible method to implement the software to fit the structure and goals of your company.
Step 2: Determine Software Requirements
Selecting a Homebuilder Management Software system requires careful thought and consideration. All companies are different, and therefore requirements will be unique. First, document your company’s processes and identify unique systems as well as strengths and weaknesses. Then determine how technology can address these processes. Try to identify these requirements across all your core business functions including land development, purchasing, sales, accounting, construction and warranty departments. Beyond that also think big, how many homes did you produce this year versus how many do you hope to accomplish the next? Does this system function for single or multifamily communities? By determining what the requirements for your business will be, you can effectively mitigate risk and ensure all avenues are considered before proceeding with your software purchase.
Step 3: Explore Software Vendors
Once goals, timelines, and requirements have been established, the next step is to research and evaluate Homebuilder Management Software vendors. When selecting a vendor, there a few checklist items you must consider:
- Ask questions relating to your business’ specific processes to ensure it meets your needs
- Ask for a demo to get accustomed to the feel of the software
- Determine if the software meets your technology needs, such as whether they offer a cloud or hosted solution or requires an on-premise server
- Read software reviews with a focus on usability, functionality, quality, and support
- Keep in mind the five keys to consider during the software purchase process to avoid looking only at features and functionalities
Take the time to truly get to know the vendors available and the market. Look beyond the software to determine what each vendor is about. Consider building relationships with your final options, after all, selecting an integrated home builder management solution is essentially a company partnership.
Step 4: Learn about New Software
To ensure a vendor can help your business succeed, ask to read their case studies, watch product videos, and speak with customers currently using the Homebuilder Management Software. Ask the vendor for as many case studies, videos, and references as possible that relate to your specific business or industry. With the vendor’s references, you need to ask hard-hitting questions. Regardless if you feel the answer may be negative. All aspects of a software system and a technology partner will influence the trajectory of your company. Ask about the overall implementation process, was training provided by the partner? Why did they choose this vendor? And what are the overall benefits to their system in comparison to others? By asking these questions of reference, you should be able to gauge how the vendor performs, as well as the results you should expect by implementing the Homebuilder Management Software.
Step 5: Choose A Solution and Get Started
Once you have selected a vendor and are confident they can meet the needs of your business, you are ready to start the implementation process and begin your partnership with the vendor of choice. The ideal implementation process should begin with a kick-off meeting where the vendor will gain a better understanding of your business needs, determine the launch date and discuss best practices during this phase. Again, a great software provider will look at your current business processes, identify what is currently working then identify areas of deficiencies against the industry standard. Training services are also a must from a software provider, digital literacy skills must not be taken for granted especially for a specialized solution that is specific to home building management. Before launch, see if your software vendor can set up work scenarios to self-train your employees before real-life building tasks occur. With a gradual buildup of the software solution and slowly easing into end-user adoption, you will surely succeed with your software selection.
The Verdict:
The software selection process for homebuilders is a great time to solidify your company’s trajectory. Choose a strategy, establish a timeline that fits all your system requirements for your core business, explore your vendor options and their software, then finally, commit to your system with a trusted partner.
As a full-suite software provider for home builders, contact us for a business review, you can also read the full construction management software selections guide by clicking the button below. If you are unsure if enterprise resource management software is a worthy investment, find out how much other builders are saving in terms of time and resources.