SAP does not sell Sanctuary

If you do the Twitter thing, follow me at @HousingITguy
or LinkedIn here https://uk.linkedin.com/in/tonysmiththathousingitguy




It's not often that implementation of a new housing system is cited in reasons for not doing a mega-merger, but that's what I noticed in the following article about Sanctuary and Housing 21



The article mentioned the following snippet:

I have heard the phrase "No one ever got fired for choosing SAP", very few people hang around long enough traditionally to see it go live. Clearly there is some way to go for the Real Estate Management module, to unseat Northgate PS Housing, at Sanctuary. With what might have already been spent on it, plus future spend clearly Housing21 must have considered better uses for that investment. I.E. Lots more supported housing. I have procured many systems for large groups, for way less than a couple of £m.

I see many of my LinkedIn contacts have moved on quite a lot with their SAP skills, over the past three years, from Social Housing clearly into areas that pay much better, since the original award . A skilled ICT team with SAP ABAP and other skills, is an expensive one, and difficult to keep, feed and water. Skilled SAP people who can endure 45 degree heat in the middle east, can earn up to £2,500 per day tax free. The alternative being a potentially expensive contract to completely support the implementation, from a large expert provider. 

Many public sector & government contracts have turned into proverbial poker games in the past. It feels easier chucking more money into the pot, rather than doing maybe the more sensible thing, of walking away from the table before the losses are too apparent.

Back getting on for 4 years ago, I chaired a session at a conference on the subject, "Is the traditional Housing Management System dead?". We explored the staleness and difficulty in implementing traditional systems and the hope that SAP and Dynamics CRM seemed to offer, to two of their users.At the time, SAP was touted as being big in the Netherlands social housing systems arena, after deregulation there. Vestia one of the biggest providers in Holland have had mixed fortunes, more recently.

Well it all seems to look a bit different looking back, hind-sight being a fabulous thing. Many of the old 'favourites' seem to have been improving what they do and still winning new HMS procurement's, particularly in larger RSL groups. There's been some thinking out of the box and a few more alliances & consolidations struck. Reasonable deals are available, if not rock bottom bargains in my experience.

Even in Holland which was held up as a stronghold of SAP in socialhousing, I have heard stories that there, many organisations are turning back to traditional vertical market housing applications. Certainly, now that budget belts are tightening in the UK, perhaps choosing SAP for housing data management was maybe not the best decision in hindsight, particularly if it's affecting mergers now too. 

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Related Post: How smart exactly, is your Gas servicing?? 

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The Cult - She Sells Sanctuary.
(c) Tony Smith, Acutance Consulting www.acutanceconsulting.co.uk 07854-655009


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Interzone

If you do the Twitter thing, follow me at @hotpixUK

or LinkedIn here uk.linkedin.com/pub/tony-smith-bsc-hons-acih/a/979/351/

Last week was one when I picked up on a new litmus test for how well customer services was working. I have heard it said that, "tidy desks generally equate to tidy minds", (although that might have just been some neatniks hanging around me). Well I have got to say, in the realm of the customer service centre, I am sold on tidy = good system integration.

So let me explain. This week I saw some CSC staff with post-its on their desks, cabinets, post-its hanging from screens, with messages, stuff to remember, to check, changes to apply, three deep in one case. Files for looking up stuff, sheets with lists etc. A bit like that red wine stain from June's retirement do, after a few days, it's just part of the patina and you just get used to it.

However from an outsider like me, it's a red rag to a bull. It's also a major obstacle to customer service. The Post-its are just one removed from having to commit those things to memory, instead staff need to commit to memory that they need to scan the right Post-its.

Have a walk down to look at your customer service team, lean on the window cill at the back and take a long good look mid-morning, while enjoying a brew.  If your staff have built an interzone of notes, files or other references, and are spending time checking them on each call, it should be ringing bells with you. Equally, I have seen a slightly more savvy version of the post-its held electronically on a HTML page. Now that's only 15% better in my book. At least you can hit Ctrl-F on that one.

I would guess that your staff may spend about 1/6th of their time checking those Post-It's (and fixing things they missed, dealing with queries generated downstream in Repairs/Rents too). For an average medium CSC of 12+ staff, introduction of an intelligent scripting application, such as Omfax would pay for itself in about a year. One member of staff freed up to create/manage scripts and one to add value elsewhere.

Now, is it worth you checking if your organisation CSC has an interzone now?

You can join me to pick up more Customer Journey Insights, next Tuesday 29th April at InMotion2014 at my Round Table at 11.30am - Best of Breed OR Single Supplier Systems. What’s Best For The Customer Journey? More info at inmotion-forum.com/inmotion-2014/round-table . I will have Owen Barrett from Newport City Homes, who has build his systems around Microsoft Dynamics CRM and Mark Howells from Sanctuary Housing Group, challenging the HMS status Quo by moving to SAP. Its going to be an interesting session. If you are at the event, please stop me, say hello and tell me what you make of the blog!

You can link with me on LinkedIn here - uk.linkedin.com/pub/tony-smith-bsc-hons-acih/a/979/351/ It would be great to connect !

Joy Division - Interzone.

(c) Tony Smith, Acutance Consulting www.acutanceconsulting.co.uk 07854655009

PS As usual, if there are subjects you might like me to tackle on this blog, please get in touch and let me know!

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