Caswellsgroup, a leading supplier of industrial consumables, was due to go live on Kerridge Commercial Systems’ (KCS) K8 solution when lockdown rules were enforced. Still keen to go live with its new 32-user system, Project Manager John Caswell explained that KCS put forward the idea of a remote implementation
“I’ve worked on system implementations as project manager before, but I’ve never done or considered a remote implementation,” explained John. “Having said that, I’ve worked remotely from home for about 30 years so I know that with the right mindset, these things are possible.
“In a very short space of time, I thought ‘well why not, let’s give it a go’.”
Caswellsgroup met members of the KCS team before lockdown, so the team still experienced some of the personal touch a company would expect from installing a new system
A number of tools and technologies were put in place to open lines of communication between KCS and Caswellsgroup and give the project the best possible chance of success. “We used a mixture of Trello, Microsoft Teams, email, text and telephone calls, basically everything apart from face to face. One of the positive outcomes was this meant we had better records of the process than we would have done if everything had been carried out in person.
We decided the implementation would be overseen by two project managers. For us, this was quite a positive because it allowed people to get on with their normal jobs; more people would have got involved if the implementation was carried out on site.
John Caswell, Project Manager, Caswellsgroup
“KCS took a pragmatic view of the project and how we would get it from A to B while not being on site. The important thing we found throughout the process is that you don’t need to be a technical whizz to make the implementation a success - it really is intuitive.”
One of the benefits of a remote implementation for Caswellsgroup was that it could limit the number of people who needed to be involved in the project, resulting in a more focused management approach and quicker decision making.
John elaborated: “We decided the implementation would be overseen by two project managers. For us, this was quite a positive because it allowed people to get on with their normal jobs; more people would have got involved if the implementation was car- ried out on site.”
Aside from the amount of manpower involved, Caswellsgroup has also seen other positive results.
“Potentially, there are some financial savings to having a system installed remotely, as a proportion of our budget would ordinarily have been spent on travel and accommodation. Instead, we’ve been able to spend this money on expertise,” John highlighted.
Caswellsgroup has only been using the K8 for a matter of weeks, it is already looking forward to the benefits its new ERP system will deliver and is making plans to enhance the system with additional modules and functionality including CRM, ePOD and ultimately WMS.
“A remote implementation was very do-able for us a single branch company - we’ve experienced some very positive outcomes as a result. I’d say to any business with an open mind to just run with it; KCS had the structure and expertise to help us deal with any issues that arose.
Moving to K8 will ultimately allow us to have a bit of a sea change and broaden our horizons. We can see the benefits of the system, not only for the business as it is now, but for what we want it to be in the future.
John Caswell, Project Manager, Caswellsgroup
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