According to a Gartner survey of the CRM landscape, there still isn't one vendor that has created a full suite for customer service needs. This statement holds true when looking at other line-of-business operational systems. This forces employees to improvise, sometimes resorting to performing core business operations in local files, which opens the company up to risk if the employee leaves or the file becomes corrupt. Creating a custom business application that supports core business processes and is managed by trained users and IT staff is cost-effective in the long-run.
With today’s mobile society and the need to keep applications and data current, the Internet has become the answer to software’s high availability and rapid deployment challenges. Enterprises are increasingly embracing arrangements that break from the more traditional workplace. Using the distributed nature of the Internet, web applications can be used to enable your staff to collaborate across organizational hierarchies. It can allow them to update and review information for which they are responsible and remove this burden from a central administrator. Line-of-business applications can be integrated with a web front-end to make them more widely available, or a new web application can be written to interface with existing LOB data. In addition, with the sophistication of current smart-phones and web enabled PDAs you may choose to make some of your website available to mobile devices. We can help customize your web-based solution to meet your particular needs.
B2B can design an engagement that will best satisfy your needs and requirements and work within your budget constraints. Our engagement will be defined in part by answers to several questions.
Ø What is the operational process that needs to be addressed by this application?
Ø Is this application fulfilling a need not met by a larger operational system?
Ø Is this a new system or an enhancement to a legacy system?
Ø Will this application need to integrate with any other systems?
Ø How do you collect and manage your customer data today?
Ø How do you collect and manage your supply chain data today?
Ø Will this application be used company-wide or by a single department?
Ø What are the security requirements for the application?
Your business is unique. Your business applications should be too. Let B2B open up a world of infinite possibilities with a custom developed business application.
Custom Business Application projects are successful when measurable goals are met and ROI is proven. This is where B2B can help. Whether this is a reduction in man-hours needed to perform a task or better customer data management that can be attributed to increased revenue, we’ll help you define your goals and ensure their success.
Our process begins when a prospect asks us to propose services. As with any project, we carefully analyze the overall scope of what the client wants to achieve. We know that for any custom business application there are certain factors unique to these projects which will help to ensure success:
Ø Streamline business processes
Ø Automate tasks as much as possible
Ø Offer an Intuitive and Easy-to-use Interface that fits the users abilities
Ø Create a seamless transition between integrated systems Understanding Your Business
An understanding of your business processes is key to creating a custom system that supports your operations. B2B has a wealth of experience across industries, allowing us to put our knowledge of best practices to use for your company. We’ll also work closely with your business users to ensure we capture the detailed intricacies of your daily operations, involving them in every step of the process. Incorporating business feedback throughout the life-cycle ensures your goals are top of mind.
Phased Approach
B2B prefers a phased approach to projects, with smaller, more frequent releases. This allows the business to meet the most critical needs first without delay, allowing them to more quickly capture a return on investment. It also allows users to learn the system a piece at a time, making it easier to master. With quicker user feedback, it also allows user requests to be incorporated with more agility and at a lower cost.
Balancing Off-the-Shelf with Custom
In some instances, it makes sense to employ an off-the shelf solution. These solutions may meet a majority of your needs and a custom solution is needed to only fill in the gaps. B2B can help with this analysis, to find the right balance of off-the-shelf and custom, and also aid with design to ensure a seamless transition between your off-the-shelf and custom solutions. Consistency is key to usability, thus increasing user adoption and efficiency.