So here you are – after spending months (or weeks, or maybe just a few hours) evaluating your options, you have come to the conclusion that your agency cannot possibly get to the next stage in its growth without addressing the need to acquire a web-based database to facilitate your daily operations.  You have a valuable service to offer to your target demographic, proven methods, and a kickass team (can I say kickass?) – but when it comes time to answer the critical questions your stakeholders and funders are asking - you are at a loss as to how best to compile the data necessary to support your ongoing work.  And even more important - how do you know how to build your project budget?

Enter customizable, off the shelf case management software.

This is not your grandfather’s database solution – today’s software is delivered out of the box with industry standard tools built in, and a host of bells and whistles designed around proven best practices – all presented in a user-friendly interface designed to maximize your staff’s efficiency and productivity without tying them to the computer for hours on end.  Even better – systems like FAMCare® are able to be operated in the field from smart phones, and tablets with a data connection – your case workers never have to set aside time to go into the office and cram to catch up on their case notes again.

Isn’t this too good to be true?  My agency is unique – there is no way that any software can possibly meet 100% of our needs out of the box.  I’m sure we will need to budget for changes to the software – but how do I know what to expect? 

Knowing your budget from the outset of the project is critical. Projects suffer when delays are experienced – and the greatest source of delay is frequently securing additional approval for funding.

Before you begin sit down and work out your priorities – rank the following in order of importance to you and your agency:

• A software platform that has been equipping agencies like mine for more than 10 years
• Access to Subject Matter Experts with hands-on experience in my field
• Ability to adapt existing forms to my agency’s needs with minor, front-end tweaks
• Access to user-friendly front-end tools that will enable my trained staff to make some changes themselves
• Minimum involvement from my team to launch the new product
• Boutique implementation services including guided analysis of our existing processes
• Ability to reproduce the majority of our current processes and forms in FAMCare®
• Chance to adapt our processes to the best practice workflows delivered with FAMCare®
• Reduced long term costs
• Minimum up-front costs

When you know what’s important to you it will help to inform how to set a realistic project budget.  Of course – if you have a finite amount to spend – write that down.

In developing your budget – account for the following components:

• Initial costs of the platform
• Licensing fees over and above licenses included with cost of platform
• Project management through the duration of implementation (bear in mind – a stronger team at your agency could offset the requirement for more hand-holding during the process)
• Training costs – also dramatically impacted by your team. Self-starters do remarkably well with our automated training solutions included with the cost of the platforms. Users who are less comfortable with technology, or juggling a heavy workload frequently benefit from additional instructor led training
• Development costs – is your team going to work with the forms and features they saw during software demos or are there forms that must be reproduced exactly in your new system?

Finally work with our Sales team to develop an agreement that utilizes your maximum available funding.

Trained specialists will show you how money can be allocated to specific project areas in ways that allow that funding to rollover to other areas as needed.  Funds that are not utilized at the end of a period may be used to offset ongoing costs in the future.

The TLDR (too long, didn't read) version:

• You need software
• We sell software
• You can minimize costs by using the software as-is, and making your staff available during the implementation
• If you want to change the software, that is not free
• If you have the money to spend – make it available to your implementation
• Don’t be cheap, you’re investing in software that will be the backbone of your agency for years to come.
• You get what you pay for

If you’re still curious about how other agencies have done it, don’t hesitate to watch a very compelling video (we think it’s compelling ;-) ) by a client of ours as he describes his software adventure with FAMCare.