Choosing the Right Calibration Management Software

I’ve heard the feedback time and time again. So much software, so little time. Searching for the perfect software solution can be frustrating and it might even seem like a drain on your resources. The flip side is that, of course, with all the software that’s available today, there’s a good solution for everybody and investing time upfront in your search will prove highly beneficial in your future.

Hello everybody and welcome to this brief discussion on choosing the right software package where we’ll dive into some important aspects of something many people quite honestly find difficult and challenging selecting a reliable software provider that addresses both their calibration and their compliance needs.

My name is Grant Chastain and I’m a training and development resource with CyberMetrics Corp., a worldwide leader in the technical management of your measurement and test equipment for over thirty five years.

And of course beyond that I’m also a person that regularly learns teaches and supports the organizations that employ software packages. Everything I train on helps support an organizational need of some kind. Sometimes it’s an enterprise level solution that gives visibility to data on tools engages across dozens of worldwide locations. With others, it’s more about industry certification compliance, instantly having access to reports and case studies and certificates that prove that your testing methodology is sound.

What I’m trying to say is I’m not here to sell you anything today. I know what a challenge it can be to have vendors calling you on the phone or lining up in your inbox all vying for your business. What I’d like to do here instead is just talk about some of the factors that can make your decision, when you’re ready to make one, a little bit easier to make.

The first factor I want to talk about today is stability. Look for an established software provider that has a long standing industry reputation and offers calibration management software as their main product offering.

A stable solutions minded provider will be knowledgeable about your industry and also genuinely interested in a good fit and your long term success.

An established provider will also be able to provide you with client references preferably within your industry and a good account manager will always put your needs in the forefront during their conversation with you. This isn’t about technology that you’ll barely use or need, what a colleague of mine used to call faxing at the beach technology back when that actually meant something.

It’s about the fundamental desire to fix something within your organization that’s actively preventing you from handling other work or scaling your business to the next level of growth. A stable organization will help you address your needs that you have right now but it ‘s also going to be there to help with future needs as they might arise.

Next up let’s talk about compliance and other requirements.

When you’re evaluating a software package it’s important to be well versed in your company’s internal and external requirements and processes such as ISO or FDA. As well, you should have a good background on your specific requirements for your industry and your customers requirements as well.

A mid to high range software package will usually be focused on continuous adherence to common industry practices and it’s a worthwhile investment for a company that’s seeking a long term or large scale deployment of a calibration management software package.

Some less expensive software packages can be a good solution for teams that need something simple and compact and they can also offer standards compliance but if that’s the direction you choose to go in be sure that your vendor has the capital resources to keep the software current.

Some vendors of lower end packages are unreliable in how their data is compiled or they can be really hard to reach when you have questions.

Next up, let’s talk ease of use. This one speaks to my solo as a trainer.

Look for software that’s easy to learn, employs industry standard terminology, and operates similarly to mainstream programs and packages that your resources may already use. As a trainer, it’s far easier for me to draw parallels to what I’m teaching if a student already has experience in a similar style of program. Sort of like saying this grid works like it does in Excel or, you know, you can upload attachments like you do in Windows. Look for a product with a familiar interface to provide easy direct access to your options and utilities. Operators then learn to use the product correctly and most efficiently with thorough product documentation and training. And of course it can also help to have different modes of training to offer.

Live in person or webinar style training when your students are all in the same geographic location, and web oriented self paced training for when you have audiences that need at will training across multiple time zones.

Another important consideration is services. Always ask about support and training options because these are areas that are critical to the rollout of any software package. It’s also important to ask about services like the transfer of your existing data to the new software and the ability to integrate the software with any of your existing systems.

Basically, in essence, it helps to get a sense of how much heavy lifting you’ll be doing on your own in order to get your software implemented and how much help will be available to you if you decide that you want or need it. It’s tempting at times to take the approach of handling a new system rollout on your own with the help of your organization’s IT support team because it allows you to be able to roll it out at your or your company’s desired pace. The best software partners are the ones that are able to help at a moment’s notice, complete any requests that you may have of them quickly and accurately, and in the meantime remain on the sidelines for any secondary assistance that you may need down the road.

Choose a vendor that can work with you to determine a roadmap to success and then actively helps remove obstacles towards completion, which can help you implement at the speed that works best for you.

It’s only now that we begin to talk about the features of the product itself. Determine what features are really needed by your company right now and features that you like to look at for the future. And be sure to obtain a trial copy of the software package so you can test it out on your own.

I mentioned faxing at the beach technology a little earlier which is a term that I use to describe any feature that seems cool at first glance, but ultimately doesn’t address any real world scenarios or needs within your organizational structure.

All the bells and whistles are great, sure, but make sure that they won’t hinder your day to day operations and that you’re not paying for features that don’t meet your company’s needs. At the same time, make sure the package offers all the basics that your company needs right now. Don’t let yourself be shortchanged later.

Finally, let’s talk about pricing and scalability. Be sure to check both single and multi user license prices because some companies may offer discounts on multi user licenses even though the single user price may initially seem higher.

Ultimately, it’s important to remember that the value of the software is boiled down to how it helps the company meet both existing and future needs. If your software package is capable of checking off a lot of important boxes or improving your productivity or performance, that’s a lot more valuable to you than a software suite that can only do one thing.

Factoring in what sales professionals refer to as TCO or total cost of ownership can help you weigh any initial or ongoing costs against solving long standing issues that can potentially prevent your organization from scaling to the next level of productivity.

And in terms of being scalable or a software that grows with you as you need it to, make sure the software not only meets your immediate needs but will also offer more to your company as the software evolves and is capable of handling extra volume without excessive slowing.

In summary, it’s true that finding the best calibration management software package for your company does require some legwork. However, if you compare that against the time the company will save by choosing the right package rather than having to switch to something else down the road to meet your newly scaled needs for the future, makes your decision a whole lot easier.

And as you might imagine, if you’d like to discuss some of these requirements with a member of our team here at CyberMetrics Corporation, we’d love to chat with you. You can always call us at our toll free number at one eight hundred -seven seventy seven-seven thousand and twenty or you can drop us an email at sales@cybermetrics.com.

Once again, thank you for spending a few minutes with me today talking about wants and needs from a software perspective. And on behalf of myself, our training team, and everybody here at CyberMetrics Corporation, take care of yourselves and each other, and we hope to see you in a future session sometime.