Choosing the correct partner for your ECM Solution is a very important task. Companies need to understand this is a long term relationship between two companies and their employees. How long a company has been around isn’t always an effective way to guarantee they have the expertise required or will be around for the long term. Many ECM vendors are “diluted”, that is, they try selling and supporting too many products and end up stretching themselves too thin. The effect on the customer is that the vendor is no longer an expert – they carry little clout with the manufacturer and may drop the product line or be dropped by the manufacturer in the future.

We have seen many solutions that were implemented with the “drop and go” technique. That is, the partner will implement a solution, get it working and get out. There is little to no on-going relationship and this leaves you (the customer) alone with the solution and no experience to expand or improve upon it. Choosing a partner that provides comprehensive maintenance can help avoid this. That is, a support contact that goes beyond the ability to call for support. Instead, it should include regular visits (face to face) from the partner, follow up training, system upgrades, health checks and explanations of new features.

Having a smart experienced partner allows you to have the greatest flexibility at a time when it’s needed most. Today’s compliance regulations, risks regarding paper loss, and time needed to process documents or help customers can be greatly affected by the partner you choose. Having an experienced partner, with great references, and appropriate product depth in related solutions, will help your organization roll out the initial solution and ensure it continues to grow with success as time goes on.

by Paul Pitts
Vice President
All Star Software Systems, LLC