Introduction
At Veran Performance we specialise in supporting organisations with their HR, Finance, Payroll and Procurement SaaS transformations. After 10 years of being in the market we are surprised still to see clients selecting and implementing technology without a clear vision for how this will enable their service and user experience overall. Our role is to help guide clients away from this ‘tech-led’ approach and support organisations to be ‘business-led' – getting the most value from the technology they are implementing and help to build the internal capability required to support and continuously improve it.
What does it mean to be ‘business-led’?
SaaS technology in isolation does not ensure a successful transformation. The culture and behaviours of the organisation that accompany the technology do. For example, if you do not have a culture of self-sufficiency, cross-functional working or of using data for business decisions, you are not going to get the most out of your SaaS product. When we engage with our clients, we encourage them to take a step back and really define how their HR and Finance services can support their business strategy and understand culturally what they need to do in order to meet this level of ambition.
Why does it matter?
For a number of reasons! Firstly, SaaS technology is not cheap - companies need to demonstrate return on investment. Lifting and shifting from one piece of technology to another will not deliver the benefits that could be on the table. Secondly, most organisations are looking to significantly enhance the end-user experience, both of the service being provided and the technology being used to enable that service. Providing a great user experience requires more than configuration of technology – it requires a real understanding of your people and what is needed to enable their day jobs. And finally… SaaS technology offers new functionality and service improvement opportunities: without a clear structure and process to assess these opportunities, you will never get the most from your SaaS solution.
How to be business-led
This is done by bringing a combination of experience, expertise and passion! Veran’s tools and methodology have been born out of years of living and breathing transformations with our clients, but more importantly, our team brings a blend of in-house, operational experience, with SaaS transformation expertise. Our 7S™ methodology is more than just a methodology - it is also a service blueprint and a mindset, which we use to encourage our clients to strive for the best outcomes. That’s where the passion comes in… not to mention tenacity, clarity and honesty!
Helen, Director at Veran explains more:
What does it mean to be transformation- and outcome-focused?
Technology can never be the silver bullet to enabling your people or finance strategy. Yet as an enabler, it can deliver truly transformational outcomes when paired with a number of key components, many of which need to be in place long before you select technology. Those include:
A clear business design for your HR and Finance service – focussed on your end user and aligned to good, modern practice.
A shared understanding of the benefits up front, which are both the cornerstone of your technology programme and the bedrock of your continuous improvement and service innovation process.
A plan to upskill internal colleagues to be able to contribute effectively to the transformation, support the implementation of new technology and take on the ownership and continuous improvement process.
In summary, embedding a SaaS Mindset™ will ensure that all the necessary aspects of transformation are embedded into the thinking from the outset. This brings about not only the behavioural change required to enable transformation outcomes, but also the cultural mindset required to ensure that change is seen as a positive constant and that return on investment in technology is truly brought to bear.
To find out more about the above or any of Veran Performance’s services please contact: paul@veranperformance.com