The Importance of Efficient Implementation & Onboarding

As a financial professional or executive, you likely recognize the importance of the time value of money. This simple idea lies at the foundation of everything from foundational formulas in finance to capital allocation decisions. In a world that has plenty of distractions and opportunity costs, all businesses need to analyze the opportunity set in front of them and act swiftly upon making a decision.

This focus on speed and efficiency isn’t just related to capital allocation decisions, however. It is critical when implementing business solutions. For as much promise as a specific business solution may provide, the value, like many things, lies in the execution. If your organization is slow to fully implement a software solution (or any other type of solution), you’ll likely see a poorer return on investment.

While this idea may seem self-evident, it’s worth taking the time to further explore why quick solution implementation is so important. Whether you take pride in your company’s quick implementation habits or recognize that you have significant room for improvement, studying the sheer importance of quick solution implementation can help your organization become more efficient and avoid costly delays.

Some Benefits of Quick Solution Implementation

As referenced above, the primary benefit of quick solution implementation comes down to this long-standing concept of the time value of money. Every capital expenditure involves both initial costs and deferred returns. By investing in a certain piece of software or equipment, you expect that the software or equipment will generate a healthy return in the future.

Because of this, whenever you purchase any business solution, a metaphorical clock begins to tick. Every day that you don’t successfully implement your solution means that you’re foregoing one more day of benefits that the solution provides. While you may still get a satisfactory return in the long-run, you’ll be leaving cold, hard cash on the table.

An example is helpful here. Let’s assume that your company’s finance department decided to invest in a new AP payments solution. You and your colleagues recognized that this new AP payments solution would help the company better manage its payables, get a better handle on its working capital, and increase its overall cash flow.

All of this is well and good. However, your organization can go one of two ways. By quickly implementing this new AP payments solution, you and your colleagues can more quickly realize improved cash flow, increased cost savings, and more revenue from switching to electronic payment methods (like virtual card). These benefits can be even starker if you are trying to manage your payables in times of macroeconomic stress (as we are today).

On the other hand, slowly implementing your new AP payments solution is financially painful. This concept of the time value of money is working against you, as valuable days to leverage your initial investment are being lost. You can’t get that time back—no matter how hard you try.

So ultimately, quick solution implementation is critical to obtain all of the financial rewards from your investment. But along with leveraging the time value of money, quick solution implementation is important for other reasons.

For instance, it can help increase company morale. If you and your coworkers are seeing that it takes weeks (or even months) to implement a mission-critical business solution, the lack of urgency will seem demotivating. It sends a signal that the company is slow-moving and sluggish. Even if the solution is thought to totally change the course of the company, slow implementation can make employees extremely skeptical. That sort of skepticism will not only reduce feelings of urgency among your team but may even persuade them to work for more ambitious and exciting organizations. Conversely, quick solution implementation shows that your company is aggressive and ambitious. That attitude filters down to every member of your team, which will make the entire organization more efficient and productive.

Finally, quick solution implementation helps your organization iterate more quickly. In the best-case scenario, the business solution passes with flying colors. It works to perfection and creates an immense amount of value for your organization. In many other instances, however, there may be some bugs or issues that occur(both during and after implementation). While many of these issues can be addressed, some cannot. Quick solution implementation helps you reach these points faster than a more sluggish implementation process. With that real-world data, your organization can quickly iterate and identify solutions that will offer the greatest ROI.

Ensuring Quick Solution Implementation

So, considering why it is so important to adopt quick solution implementation, the natural question is how to go about it. While there are several ways to go about this, one of the most effective comes down to collaboration. Specifically, you’ll want to work with dedicated teams from the partners that you select for your services and programs.

These dedicated teams are vital to quick implementation. They not only have an intimate awareness of how their solution can help you, but they can take their prior experiences with other clients and apply it to your personal needs. By sitting down with the team and discussing your organization’s objectives, you’ll be in a much better position to get the help you need to quickly implement the solution.

For instance, we at Finexio have a stellar team that offers “concierge-level” onboarding, implementation, and support teams that prioritize quick solution implementation. Upon working with Finexio, you’re able to have full confidence that its AP payments solution is implemented as seamlessly as possible. No matter your specific needs, the Finexio team gets the job done.

This is just one example, but the fact remains that dedicated teams are critical to quick solution implementation. Therefore, when you’re searching for your next business solution, make sure that you are partnering with an organization that offers outstanding customer service. Doing so will make the implementation process much quicker and will help you avoid headaches during the entire process.

In the end, quick solution implementation is an essential step to accomplishing your business goals. No matter which solution that you’re looking to implement, make sure that you keep these insights in mind.

And to learn more about our AP payments solutions and the specifics on our efficient implementation and onboarding processes, feel free to reach out and schedule time with a member of the Finexio team here.