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Key Takeaways
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- Maximize the value of your applications by maintaining strong vendor relationships, investing in training, and staying current with upgrades.
- Partner with experts who can apply deep domain knowledge to help you achieve desired outcomes.
- Foster a culture of continuous learning by making training sessions engaging and rewarding.
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Introduction
Applications and other software-based tools are the backbone of productivity in our modern world. The applications that we use can make a world of difference in our effectiveness and efficiency. Simply owning software is not enough. Like a power tool, value is only realized when software is actually used. To truly benefit from your application investments, you need to know how to maintain them and extract maximum value from them. In this blog, we'll delve into a few key strategies to help you unlock the full potential of your software investments, including ValueOps by Broadcom.
Know the software
Knowing an application's capabilities and limitations is the foundation for maximizing its utility. To harness the full power of your applications, you must first understand them inside and out. This requires taking time to dive deep into its features and capabilities, whether by reading documentation, watching tutorials, listening to online talks, or doing hands-on experimentation with the software.
In addition, having experts at your disposal can make a world of difference. Getting pointers or targeted answers can be invaluable when you’re trying to optimize software usage. Experts can apply deep domain knowledge to help you achieve the desired outcome. Toward that end, ensure that you either have experts within your organization or access to external specialists who can provide guidance, troubleshoot issues, and offer innovative insights. These experts, whether internal or external, can bridge knowledge gaps and help you adapt swiftly to changing circumstances.
This is where a good relationship with application vendors is crucial. Vendor representatives can provide you with access to experts or point you in the right direction.
In addition, it is crucial to establish and maintain clear ownership and responsibility for a given application or piece of software. We've encountered cases where software is underutilized due to a lack of clarity around ownership. This often happens when someone without the requisite motivation or expertise is given responsibility for the software, or when ownership becomes unclear after the previous lead departs. We have seen that it works best to have a committed owner, someone who is responsible for guiding improvements and using the software to achieve specific outcomes.
These owners may have different roles and backgrounds. However, one common trait among successful owners is a passion for the application. These owners don't necessarily need technical expertise, but they should have a clear vision of how the software can contribute to desired outcomes. That said, it is important for teams to have a technical owner who can assist with configuring the application and guiding its ongoing maintenance and evolution. This ownership can reside with an individual or a group, but if multiple owners are involved, it is important they have a shared interest in making organizational improvements and realizing outcomes.
Upgrade
Software should evolve over time. At Broadcom, we invest a significant amount of time and effort in innovating our software, as evidenced in our quarterly roadmap sessions. Updates include bug fixes, performance improvements, and new features.
There is a difference between SaaS and on-premises updates. SaaS solutions are updated continuously, while on-premises software needs to be upgraded by the client. The challenge for SaaS is to ensure administrators and users keep up with new functionality and implement it when needed. Rolling out new functions often involves a change in how the software is used. This may require communicating with or providing training to the user community, which we'll discuss later.
Upgrading an on-premises version can be challenging. This is often due to complex customizations. Often, these customizations require teams to implement further modifications to work with a new version, which makes upgrades time-consuming and costly. This can also result in the organization falling behind on releases. (To learn more about the pitfalls of a short-term customization approach, be sure to review my previous blog about configuration vs. customization.)
Training and learning
No matter how powerful an application is, it's only as effective as the person using it. Invest in training to ensure you and your team have a deep understanding of the tool. Training can be formal, such as workshops or online courses; or informal, like mentorship and ad hoc knowledge sharing.
Learning should be enjoyable, not a chore. Foster a culture of continuous learning by making training sessions engaging and rewarding. Consider techniques like gamification, peer-to-peer sharing, and friendly competitions. In addition, it can be valuable to formally recognize those who excel in using the tool. When training is enjoyable, team members are more likely to become experts.
Once you have experts on your team, it's crucial to help them retain and continuously update their knowledge. Encourage them to pursue additional certifications or attend advanced training sessions and user groups. Experts can become your internal champions, helping others in your organization make the most of your solutions. Very often these internal champions are more than happy to help by sharing their knowledge with other people in the organization. To learn more about the ValueOps resources available, follow these links:
See how others are using the software
Networking with other users of the same solution can be incredibly valuable. Your teams can connect with other users by joining communities, attending user groups and conferences, and participating in industry events. These forums provide opportunities to exchange ideas, share experiences, and gain insights into best practices. Through these forums, users can also connect with domain experts within the vendor organization, such as product managers and solution engineers. Through these connections, you can find out early about new and upcoming features. In addition, you can provide feedback on new features, helping influence the direction of the software's development to better suit your future needs. Here are links to our user communities:
Conclusion
Maximizing the value of your applications is not a one-time effort but an ongoing journey. To be successful, this journey requires commitment, continuous learning, and a strategic approach. By knowing your software inside and out, maintaining strong vendor relationships, investing in training, and staying up-to-date with upgrades, you can ensure that your applications are powerful assets that fuel your success.
At Broadcom, our team of value stream management experts is dedicated to helping companies get the most out of our solutions. We have had the opportunity to work with a variety of customers and this has given us a unique viewpoint into the challenges organizations face today, and how our software can help teams overcome these obstacles. With our solutions and expertise, we can help your organization employ best practices and achieve your key outcomes.
We are more than happy to help. Reach out to us to start a conversation about maximizing your usage of ValueOps. Let’s discuss how we can configure our solutions to best fit your needs.
