Maintenance Management Software for SMB's - Five Key Considerations
By Patrick O'Meara
When considering a maintenance management system for smaller businesses, there are several important aspects to look for.
Key Considerations for SMB's
Here are the five key maintenance management features that small & midsize businesses (SMB's) should consider:
Ease of Use
The maintenance management system should be intuitive and user-friendly, allowing your employees to easily create, assign, and track maintenance management without requiring extensive training. A system with a clean interface and straightforward navigation will ensure efficient adoption and minimize potential errors. For SMB's, this is particularly important since they cannot often fully allocate resources to the implementation and operation of the software. Therefore, it must be sufficiently intuitive for users - both now as well as new users in the future - to get started and to use and grow with the software into the future.
Total Cost of Ownership
The cost of software "ownership" (or, "total cost of use" these days, considering maintenance software-as-a-service), is not merely the listed sticker price. The total cost also includes any related training and set-up costs. Newer web-first options require little to no training when compared to older, legacy CMMS systems and are intuitive enough to be fully set up without any assistance. Further factoring into the total cost of use is any future user training and/or re-training. Again, newer maintenance management software options, such as Maintainly, are the key to reducing the total cost of use over the usage lifetime, since they require little, if any, training or re-training, compared to
Mobile Accessibility
In today's fast-paced business environment, it's crucial to have a maintenance management system that can be accessed and updated on mobile devices. Mobile compatibility enables your employees to manage work orders and track asset history remotely, whether they are in the field or on the go, improving response times and overall productivity.
Communication and Collaboration
A good maintenance management system should facilitate effective communication and collaboration between team members, clients, and vendors. Look for features such as in-app communication, email and push notifications, and the ability to attach documents or images to work orders, to build a comprehensive asset history. This promotes seamless information sharing, reduces delays, and ensures everyone is on the same page.
Reporting and Analytics
An effective maintenance management system should provide robust reporting and analytics capabilities. It should offer insights into key performance indicators (KPIs), such as response times, completion rates, and resource allocation. The ability to generate reports and track trends over time enables you to make data-driven decisions, identify areas for improvement, and optimize your operations.
Other Factors
While these are the five most important aspects, it's also essential to consider factors such as customer support, integration capabilities with other systems, and scalability to ensure that the chosen maintenance management system meets your current and future needs.
