How much money does your company waste on unused software every year? According to a recent survey, the cost of unused software on US businesses alone is a whopping $12.3 billion a year. Shocking, isn’t it?
I believe one of the biggest reasons for this waste stems from one underlying problem: Companies often make short-sighted software purchases. They purchase software for one project/problem, only to put it on the shelf after that project is complete. Then, they move on to the next project and repeat this process. After 5 projects, they own 5 different pieces of software which they will probably never use again.
What needs to happen? The purchasing process must be better thought out. When your company heads into a software purchase, don’t focus solely on one project. What needs do you plan on addressing in the near future? What other projects do you have on the horizon? Look for software that handles as many of those projects/needs as possible. This not only saves money on software, it also saves time on training. Additionally, because your staff is already familiar with one piece of software, this approach lets you complete projects must faster.
Here’s a great example of an IT department who makes forward-thinking decisions. Rather than purchase multiple tools for multiple projects, they purchased one tool and used it for many different projects.
2 comments
Getting it Done and Executive Information Systems (1of2) says:
May 26, 2011 at 1:07 pm (UTC -5)
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Rodney Brim says:
May 26, 2011 at 1:12 pm (UTC -5)
Hi Joe, great post. I commented on the process as well in my recent blog.http://www.performancesolutionstech.com/getting-it-done-and-executive-information-systems-1of2/
I’m finding that part of the reason software falls into the “unused” category is the love-hate relationship people have with the fantasy-work side of any software package. From magical thinking to the tedium of ongoing entry.
Curious about your thoughts.
Rodney Brim