Have You Optimized Your RMIS Today?: The Case For A RMIS Consultant

By: David Tweedy

Nothing bugs me more than seeing businesses underutilize their RMIS. It’s an occupational hazard for someone whose sole job it is to help businesses optimize RMIS systems for over 30 years. 

 What’s the most common cause? Your RMIS vendor giving you exactly what you asked for… but not 100% what you need. This comes from lack of understanding of the total system capabilities and is something that many organizations find it impossible to gain without assistance. 

RMIS systems aren’t self-explanatory after you go live, they don’t come with a manual and unfortunately, they’re not going to send you a notice letting you know what features or aspects you could use but have left untouched because you simply didn’t know they existed. Working together, we can right size your RMIS and to make sure you get the most out of the system you’ve chosen before rushing to upgrade or replace.

While purchasing a RMIS does give you access to your vendor’s implementation team and more, these teams know what they know about their system, and aren’t always able to provide a 30,000 ft. view of your business risk. When getting the most out of our system is critical to your risk management (when is it not?), a RMIS consultant is can help you achieve your goals. 

5 reasons to work with a RMIS consultant? 

Here are the top reasons having an independent RMIS consultant by your side will pay great dividends at the end of the project.

1. RMIS projects are complex, expensive, and lengthy. Many RMIS projects are complex with many moving parts. It’s time- and personnel-intensive. If there are many data sources, departments, and other systems to connect with, that increases the complexity. Risk managers are time-pressed professionals. Managing a process that can take anywhere from 6 to 24 months is hard on the risk management staff. Independent consultants can fill that need and streamline the process. 
2. RMIS vendors are not experts in risk management. The vendors are experts on designing and installing risk and claims management software. However, most of their sales and technical staff are not subject-matter experts (SMEs) in claims, safety, risk management, and business consulting. They have a product/service to sell, and they frequently do not take the time to do a necessary business needs analysis from the perspective of SMEs prior to a sale. That means critical needs may not be identified, and the client will miss an opportunity to deal with it early in the process rather than having to go back and do an expensive retrofit a few years from initial installation.
3. RMIS vendors are biased. Vendors are also not independent and objective. They have a vested interest in selling their product even though there may be a better fit from an available competitor.
4. Mitigating your risk upfront = reduced systems cost. When we get involved with a client who is frustrated with their current system, in many casesthe problem is that the RMIS wasn’t initially implemented correctly. It missed critical needs or business processes. Either no or little business process analysis was conducted during the important initial stages of a system selection. The result is frustration and added expense. If a consultant was involved up front, that risk is significantly mitigated and results in a less expensive system purchase as well as a satisfied client. 
5. You already have a full-time job.  Risk and claims managers are typically extremely busy. Overseeing a RMIS upgrade or replacement is a time-consuming process. Letting the experts oversee and manage the process means more time for you to focus on what is on your plate already.

Wondering if we’ll gel like two peas in a pod, a pair of binoculars or peanut butter and jelly? Schedule a meeting to see how Redhand Advisors can help you optimize your RMIS.