Careful onboarding is the key to successful adoption

Adopting new software is always challenging. Especially when it plays a crucial part in one of your business’ core processes. New software has to find its place within these processes and seamlessly integrate within the existing ecosystem. Additionally, the future users of the software must first be brought up to speed and taught to master the new software to gain maximum value. If each of these criteria is not met, the new software will not be adopted in the organisation.

The same applies to CloudBilling. CloudBilling plays a vital part in the order-to-cash process. Therefore, new users of CloudBilling have to be onboarded carefully. But how do we do that?

The onboarding process at CloudBilling has three important steps:

1. 1. Creating a tailor-made configuration that seamlessly fits in the order-to-cash process of its users.
   
   2. Involving CloudBilling’s future users in the implementation, so that CloudBilling is optimally configured, meeting all requirements. In addition, the new users get acquainted with CloudBilling during this phase, and they can explore all that the CloudBilling platform has to offer. This results in a deep understanding of the CloudBilling platform.
   
   3. An extensive training and aftercare period, in which we simulate day-to-day activities in CloudBilling. This results in optimal use of CloudBilling by its new users and deepens the understanding of the platform even further.
2.  

A typical CloudBilling implementation project starts with a handover from our Sales team. In this handover, we discuss the scope and goal of the project. We explore what specific use cases need to be worked out. We also work out a preliminary idea of the configuration with CloudBilling. After this, we set up a project with the new users of CloudBilling.

 

We firmly believe that working together with our new users to an ideal configuration of CloudBilling is the key to successful adoption of CloudBilling.

This project consists of three main phases

Kick-off

The kick-off is the first session between CloudBilling’s implementation team and the new customer. The sessions set the stage for the whole project, and the focus is set to create a clear goal, to clarify the scope, and mutually agree on a project plan and deadlines. From this project plan, we plan a series of workshops. The project always has a weekly status meeting, in which the newest project updates are discussed. A series of topic-specific workshops are also planned.

As part of the kick-off, we jointly define a clear governance structure of the project, in which owners are assigned to specific subjects from both parties involved. We found that a clear governance structure greatly contributes to a successful project. The governance structure helps to improve communication and keep relevant stakeholders engaged throughout the implementation. It also clarifies who should be contacted when and how, and who is available at what times.

We conclude the session with the first action items, which truly kickstarts the project.

Implementation

After the kick-off, we move on to the implementation phase. This phase characterizes itself by being a joint effort between CloudBilling and its new users. We firmly believe that this is our key to the successful adoption of CloudBilling. We work together with our new users to create a CloudBilling configuration that is tailor-made for the financial processes of our customers. By doing this together with the new users, they immediately understand the specifics and way of working of CloudBilling.

This phase consists of three main parts

Analysis

The project starts with a thorough analysis of the as-is order-to-cash process. We explore all specific use cases. We do an analysis of the data sources and data structures, which will be the source systems for CloudBilling. We also analyze which output CloudBilling should have, in form of an invoice, but also in form of further data processing for BI or accounting systems. We explore how CloudBilling fits in this process.

Design

The Design phase is next. We design the to-be situation, with CloudBilling in place. This to-be situation is always an improvement of the as-is situation, as CloudBilling automates the billing process, typically greatly reducing the number errors made and time spent on billing. In this design phase, we design the ecosystem by connecting CloudBilling to already existing systems.

Configuration

Once the design is finished, we move on to the configuration of CloudBilling. In this phase we set up CloudBilling by configuring products, customers, and pricing rules. We make sure that CloudBilling delivers the right output in the form of invoices and exports. We also set up emailing so that all invoices can be emailed to the customers. This concludes the implementation phase of CloudBilling, which delivers a fully functioning and powerful billing platform.

Dry-run

The last phase is the testing and dry-run phase. During this phase, we test the configuration of CloudBilling. We work out all the teething problems of the configuration. We do multiple iterations of testing so that the new users have an optimal configuration of CloudBilling. Once testing is done, CloudBilling is taken into production. At this point, we organize a training for all new users, so that they are all brought up to speed.