Change management support is an essential requirement for IT professionals when evaluating software partners, according to a survey.
Three out of four respondents to the Nitro commissioned survey stated that a vendor’s level of change management support played a role in their decision whether or not to sign an agreement.
The global study of 330 IT managers and CIOs found that 87 per cent ranked customer support resources as an important factor in software vendor evaluations, with 43 per cent saying the offering was ‘critical’.
When it comes to change management resources, 14 per cent of respondents believe vendors don’t provide enough.
Nitro’s vice president of customer solutions, Steve Bower, said CIOs should partner with vendors to “create a comprehensive, custom change management strategy that tailors the software’s benefits to your users’ pain points”.
“You should demand that vendors assume a larger role in this area, ensuring that their product expertise helps your organisation achieve the implementation goals you initially established,” he said.
Change a strain
Some 70 per cent of the 25 Australian CIOs questioned said new implementations were a strain on IT time and resources. Other challenges included user resistance to change and having multiple groups with varying needs, respondents said.
Nearly a quarter of respondents said they struggle with lack of visibility into usage and adoption during a software implementation, even though CIOs ranked usage analytics as the most critical vendor offering (tied with ease of adoption at 62 per cent) to evaluate.
Only 27 per cent of surveyed organisations rely on software vendors to lead change management initiatives, even though the majority (55 per cent) strongly agree that vendors understand their needs in that area.
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