Talent Rover Blog How Business Leaders Can Make Better Software Decisions

The reality is, a lot of the business software out there isn't great. (Especially for the staffing and recruitment industries.) It's complicated, it's expensive, and it's time consuming to rip out old systems and implement new ones. Consumers don't need training, support, or thick manuals of documentation to operate their iPhone or use Amazon. Yet all of this is often required for end users to complete the simplest actions inside of the software they use to do their jobs.Making business software easier to use isn't a new concept. Yet software companies and their customers both struggle to find ways to actually make it happen. If you're a business leader, how can you make sure your software purchase is the right one?Talent Rover co-founder and President Brandon Metcalf recently sat down with the B2B Growth Show to talk about it. He outlined five important things to consider:Know how well your vendor understands the unique challenges of your industry. Every industry is nuanced in some way. Having a software partner who not only understands software but the unique demands of your specific industry is critical.Ensure there's an equal amount of value to both stakeholders and end users.Everybody wants that magic platform that will save them money. But if your team isn't on board with it, it's a waste of everyone's time.Know what's configurable and what's not.Understand what actions your end users are currently able to take on their own - will they still be able to make those changes with this new solutions or will they have to submit a support ticket?Hearing "yes" too often is a serious red flag. The entire point of working with an expert is to leverage that expertise. Our development team could theoretically build out any type of environment our customers wanted, but that's not always in the best interest of that customer or their business.Be wary of over-customization.We're seeing more and more examples of this horribly manipulated "Frankenstein" software where customers have configured their software beyond recognition. Instead of correcting inefficiencies, it now perpetuates them. Any partner you work with should be passionate about helping course correct your operations to be better and smarter.Tags: B2B Growth, Brandon Metcalf, Software