By Patrick O’Neill, Founder and President, Redhand Advisors
It’s easy to be blinded by the cool features of a new RMIS and want to select the shiny object. But you must resist this feeling and remember that your choice must take into consideration a lot more than just a handful of cool features. You’ll want to consider the how the system meets your specific needs, the implementation process, ease of use, and vendor stability just to name a few.
There’s a lot at stake. You don’t want to have to revisit the RMIS drawing board every few years. Instead, the chief goal is to pick a long-term RMIS solution that fits your business processes and unique risk profile. And for that, you’ve got a little homework to do.
5 steps to RMIS selection
For years, RMIS were primarily and solely used for claims management. Our 2022 RMIS Report revealed that RMIS usage and adaption have changed significantly, with big jumps in the following categories: benchmarking, exposure and asset management, enterprise risk management, environmental health and safety, and incident entry. More than ever, it’s critical to take the systems selection process one step at a time.
Here are our 5 Steps to a successful RMIS selection:
1. Develop detailed business requirements for your current and future RMIS
This begins with auditing your business requirements and determining your expectations for the RMIS. By including both needs and wants, this assessment offers an initial direction to start measuring vendor requirements, with both current and future needs.
It’s common for organizations to only think of the here and now but anticipating capabilities that will be important down the road will help you design the most customized, effective system. By thinking globally, organizations can build out a RMIS to solve multiple challenges as the business grows.
By providing this level of direction as you evaluate providers, vendors can create the most accurate proposal and roadmap for your implementation. When vendors can identify what you’re looking for in a detailed manner, implementation will be much more effective.
2. Leverage the right internal resources to select a RMIS
Get the right people on board early on. This includes executive sponsorship and a core team of users. By soliciting and considering input from the key stakeholders throughout the organization you’ll have the best chance of selecting a system best suited for your organization’s unique needs. Remember that a RMIS isn’t a magical solution. If you don’t have the right team in place internally, the system will not be as successful.
Employees from different departments like safety and operations will be utilizing these systems. If these different divisions are properly consulted about systems selection, the resulting RMIS will work most effectively to meet the needs and perspectives of various groups within the organization. (Related to our blog “Are You Using These 5 RMIS Features to be More Strategic?”)
3. Keep your options open.
Once this initial internal work has been done and organizations have a clear picture of what they’re looking for, they can then start the process of investigating vendors.
In evaluating a RMIS platform, find out about the vendor’s support and service. Does the organization have experience in areas that are important to your business? For example, implementing a new claims system or working your industry?
What kind of a budget are you working with? Your budget will be an important part of which system your organization selects. Different tiers of solutions can be implemented as not every organization needs the “Cadillac” of systems.
Did you explore whether your third-party administrator or carrier has a system that could meet your needs? There’s no reason to fix what isn’t broken. Be sure that the RMIS you select contains features to meet needs that aren’t already being met.
4. Prepare for the vendor’s presentation.
Resist the urge to be passive before and during the vendor presentation. Come prepared with your own questions tailored to your organization’s unique needs. And don’t be blinded by the bells and whistles the vendor is showing.
Clearly state your requirements and make sure they are on the agenda for the demo. The vendor should understand the key workflows you are looking to support and what’s important to you. Have them show features to address your specific business needs.
It’s also important to consider how the vendor is planning to implement and support a system to meet your needs. The presentation should not only reveal a list of features available, but make sure to inquire about how the vendor plans to strategically implement the system to meet all your business requirements.
5. Check references. Check references. Check references.
While you might be impressed with how the vendor says they can address your needs, it’s critical to hear about a peer’s experiences with the RMIS provider before you commit.
Do your own research to gather a broader sampling of different organizations’ experiences with each prospective vendor. Don’t rely only on the testimonials or references the vendor provides. Reach out to industry connections and pose your questions on relevant LinkedIn groups. It’s important to reach out to independent sources to get a broad understanding of other people’s experiences.
When checking references, make sure the assessment is performed by someone with the same background. Use peer-to-peer reference checks, such as your risk manager calling another organization’s risk manager to learn about their experiences.
The following questions should be asked:
- How did implementation go?
- Is there anything you’d do differently?
- What key parts of the system do you use?
- Do you participate in active user groups?
- Can you provide another reference? Do you know others who are using the system?
- Did the vendor translate your requirements into solutions?
- How well does the vendor understand your business?
While RMIS vendors can be fully on board with your needs and requirements, they are not specialists in risk. To fully leverage and utilize your new RMIS, expert consultants can be of great assistance.
For more information on optimizing your RMIS, schedule an inquiry call with Redhand Advisors.