Advance Practice Management Implementation Case Study

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knp Solutions

Norman Same - Director
Tel: +61 3 9824 8111
Email: ns@knp.com.au

Involvement in selection process
I was the partner in charge of reviewing our IT software and therefore lead the negotiations with APS for the implementation of the APS products.

General

When did your firm implement its APS Advance Practice Management system?
Our firm first implemented Advance in 2003.

How many users do you have?
We currently have 35 users.

Which APS products have you taken out licences to use?
Currently we are using Practice Management, XPA, Advance Tax and Practice IQ.

Who was you previous supplier and how long were you using that supplier’s software for?
We were previously with Solution 6 between 1986 and 2003.

From start to finish, how long did the meeting, testing and decision-making process take that saw you move over to APS?
From start to finish I would say it took about 6 months.

Was your decision to move over to APS made on gut-feel, or was it more scientific than that? Please explain how you went about making your decision…. (e.g. team approach: IT manager, IT Partner, Work Group etc…)
In 2002, our firm made the decision that we needed to change our software supplier, as our current supplier wasn’t and couldn’t meet our needs.
Initially we reviewed several products available on the market to determine what they were offering. We then consulted with the users in our firm to obtain their feedback on what they thought would work best for us.
The consensus was that the APS products would best achieve this.

APS prides itself on its ability to listen to its customers regarding their business needs and business aims and its commitment to then work closely with customers to meet and achieve them. Tell us about the APS approach from your perspective.
Overall, our firm is very happy with the move to APS. So far, the APS product has met our needs and they have successfully achieved the goals we initially established in terms of our relationship.

Installation / Implementation

Conversion of practice data from your old system to your new one was of course going to be one of the major issues in your implementation – can you tell me how the APS consultant performed in this regard?
I do think that change within an organisation rarely goes to plan 100% of the time, but in this instance, APS handled each situation very professionally.
Each time we moved over to a new APS product the process and transition improved.

A new system means that ‘change’ is forced upon team members – how did your team react to the new system and how quickly did they pick up the new system?
It is difficult because most people dislike change, therefore managing their expectations in terms of better IT software was always going to be a challenge. Overall I believe it was managed very well and so do our staff.

Product

Functionality

Looking at APS from a product perspective, what were the most important factors from a functionality point-of-view that were seen as critical to your business
Definitely, the important factors were ease of use, speed and the information it provided.

How does the Advance suite compare to you previous product in terms of functionality?
It is certainly much better, as it provides the information we require to effectively run our practice.

Will you be taking on any further APS products in the future?
We may in the future.

Future Development

What would you like to see APS add to its product set in its next releases of Advance that will assist your business? I We would like to see document scanning, marketing software and Corporate Affairs software.

Summing Up

Do you have any final words that sum up how you feel about APS, its team and its software?
Overall we are very pleased with the APS products and relationship we have developed with APS.

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APS - Advanced Professional Solutions specialises in solutions for professional service firms that include practice management, business intelligence, CRM, business process automation, document and email management. For professional accountants these solutions also include tax and accounts production.