“It’s time”
The feeling hits you. Your association has outgrown your AMS. Your business rules don’t fit the AMS. People are complaining about the AMS. Maybe all three of those are happening. You know it’s time for a new AMS. So, how can you prepare your organization for an AMS selection? There are several constituencies that need to be brought on board before moving forward- let’s go through them.
Start with YOU
First – let’s talk about the most important constituent – you! We’ll discuss getting other people on your side, and forming a team, but it’s important that you make sure you are prepared for the investment of your time and effort. A new AMS can be a multi-year project. First, you must prepare the organization, then you have to select the new system, and lastly, you have to implement the system. These are not easy tasks. Arm yourself with as much information as possible from the beginning. Start by identifying your frustrations, and the frustrations you have heard from others about the current system. Write them down and cite examples. Next, educate yourself. Discuss your AMS with your professional network. Don’t be afraid to expand your network- join association professional communities (ASAE has one) and attend networking events. It’s not too early to attend webinars or programs (for example, AMSFest) that can help you prepare for an AMS selection. Don’t worry yet about finding the perfect fit system – just listen in and get acquainted with the options. All this information will give you credibility within your organization and confidence as you move forward.
First Stop: Accounting/Finance
Now it is time to start collecting information to make a case for the new AMS. And, while you’re doing this, you can start to seek out allies? Talk to your accounting/finance team about how the current AMS works for them. Does their system integrate with the AMS? Are they getting the data they need? This is also a good time to ask the budget question- do they know how much you are currently spending on the current system (licenses, support, and maintenance)? Hopefully, after this conversation you will have identified some needs for this group and made some AMS selection champions for the journey ahead.
Got IT? Bring Them On Early
If your organization has an IT department, this is a great time to have a chat with this group. They probably have some great AMS horror stories to tell. IT is unique in that they often work with the AMS, but do not have a vested interest in the system benefits. For the IT group, it is all about reducing friction. IT pain points are about servicing other users and can provide some concrete insights into the current system’s weaknesses. The IT team may control the AMS budget, and you may have to get the AMS expenses from this group. They also might be your greatest AMS selection champion!
Leadership is Key
OK – So now you have some great information about the AMS environment, and some documented issues from the Finance/Accounting to go along with your own. Now it’s time to get Leadership on board. Let’s start with your management chain. If you’re the boss- awesome. However, if you are not, share your experience with the AMS, and what you’ve learned from others with leadership. One of the most important tips we have for you is don’t just complain. Instead explain how the AMS issues affect business- revenue impacts, lost productivity hours, and so on. Ask the question “Is it worth the amount we are paying for this software to still have these issues?” Follow that up with “What do we need to do to get approval for a new AMS?” It is key to get the support of your management chain. Preparing for an AMS selection without their buy-in could make it tough to make any real progress. If you are aligned, though, you should be able to start moving forward by preparing the selection budget.
Power Users
Once you have the budget you’re set, right? Well… no. Just because you may be ready to make the change, doesn’t mean others are. Although your users may complain about your current AMS, it doesn’t mean they are ready for a change. In fact, your power users have a vested interest in keeping the current system: They are experts in the current system and know all the cool tricks. Who wants to start over when you are an expert already? The power users will most likely be members of your selection and implementation team since they know the system best, so bring them into the conversation as you begin to prepare for an AMS selection. They need to be included in the process and assured that they will have the opportunity to be in on the ground floor and receive the necessary training. We always reassure the power users that by being involved in the implementation from the start, they will have a better understanding of the system than those that just attend.
Once you have the AMS selection champions lined up, from Leadership to accounting to power users, you are just about ready to start your selection process. Whether you bring in a team to help with your selection or you are doing it on your own, there is one more thing you can do to prep for a new AMS, and that is start cleaning up the data on the current AMS. Encourage your members to update their information during renewal seasons. Purge old contacts that have never joined nor engaged in the last 5 years. How about those contacts with no emails or invalid emails? Delete them. You will not miss them. This will be an ongoing process- you might as well get started now.
With the support you’ve built, including key stakeholders and Leadership, it’s time to assemble your selection team and move on. By intentionally preparing for what comes next, you’ve begun to build trust among your team, clearing the path ahead and paving the way for a smoother journey toward success.