Implementation Do’s and Dont’s
The Yellow Dog Inventory implementation process consists of many moving parts and, in most cases, will determine the long term success of the solution for any business. It’s critical that the Yellow Dog implementation team and customer work together to formulate a plan at the outset of the project that can be executed by everyone involved.
Over many years of implementing systems for a wide variety of business types, we’ve been able to identify some key factors and behaviors that will makes your project a success. We also know which ones will make the process much harder than it needs to be. Please review our comprehensive list of Do’s and Dont’s to prepare yourself and your team for your implementation project.
Do these things to ensure your project is a success:
Be prepared to allocate time every day while implementing your new inventory system
Take some time to consider data and level setup before starting data collection
Communicate frankly and consistently with your Implementation Guide
Be obsessive about providing the most complete and accurate data that you can
Set aside undistracted time for training
Use Yellow Dog often to become a master quickly
Be attentive of timelines
Communicate with your Implementation Guide if business needs are going to require you to divert your attention for any period of time
Understand that while we pride ourselves on being attentive and available to our clients, our Implementation Guides are also working to provide that same level of service to other clients. Planning ahead and scheduling time will keep the project moving forward.
Have a plan for conducting your Physical Inventory and prepare everyone involved, as well as your stock, in advance.
Understand that their will likely need to be some tweaks to data after your first physical inventory
Plan to have Yellow Dog setup finalized to begin testing at least a week before you plan to be live in your operation.
Don’t do these things:
Don’t provide data from an existing inventory system without extensive review and cleanup
Don’t expect your Implementation Guide to be able to collect your inventory data for you
Don’t add items to your inventory system that you do not currently stock
Don’t rush your data. Clean, complete data means everything to a successful implementation
Don’t take shortcuts and think you will fix it later
Don’t let duplicates infect your data
Don’t Ignore the importance of having someone on your team to lead/own the project
Don’t change project leads during implementation
Don’t expect employee turnover to be inconsequential to the success of your project
Don’t expect your implementation to be a side project
Don’t let training be a one way street. Participate and ask questions
Don’t miss check in calls. Communication and momentum are key to finishing a project on time
Don’t expect Yellow Dog to be able to handle internal IT needs
Don’t conduct Physical Inventories while you are open
Don’t forget there will be a learning curve
Don’t forget that new systems may require new or different processes
Don’t wait until the last minute to prepare for your physical inventory
Don’t wait until Go Live to test barcode scanning
