Wednesday, October 7, 2009

Using Tools That Fit the Task and the User

Here's another lesson for building the healthiest companies:

Your software tools need to be both designed for the job AND fit the experience of the user. When a company takes away the tool people are used to and says, “Here, learn this new tool,” people grumble and lose some of their effectiveness.

The answer is to ensure that all your software tools—accounting, project management, financial reporting, spreadsheets, email, web portals, office productivity, and CRM—can be tied together and utilized to perform key tasks. Then people use the tool they are most familiar with to enter or access data.

For instance, executives, project managers, and office workers won’t need to learn a new unfamiliar accounting program to find real-time data, enter it, report on it, or send out updates. Programs like Microsoft Outlook, Excel, Project, and Web Portals can all be used for tasks related to project management and accounting.

The outcome is improved efficiency, productivity, and employee morale.

Learn more how software tools can integrate