In this digital age, technology has ignited competition among business from different industries. Many companies are inclined to invest in software solutions to take advantage of the edge in terms of efficiency and productivity. A few common perks include computing capabilities and automation tools that are artificial intelligence based.
One of the many software sold today in the market is EHS software but its target niche focuses more on medium to large scale companies where vital areas like environment, health, and safety are often challenged.
What is EHS?
In simple terms, EHS software is a type of program that supports and assists companies in their undertakings to protect the safety and health of their employees and the environment from potential risks and hazards in a workplace. EHS software is oftentimes a vital tool to achieve an efficient and effective Environment, Health, and Safety (EHS) implementation and management.
Choosing the Right EHS Software
As your search for an EHS software that can best help your company, it is important to be always reminded of its role and value for your business’s success. Thus, before you seal the deal, you have to be utterly eager to screen all the available information thoughtfully and weigh all the possible implications. Read on for a better confidence that you are choosing the right EHS software in light of your requirements.
Team Discussion
Most EHS software come with a hefty price. Thus, investing in one is a decision that should have been rigorously thought. Part of this pre assessment is talking with your fellow EHS professionals in the company about the features each EHS software option can offer that can best assist in EHS management. And as EHS is a critical area that can either prevent or cuddle threats to safety if not consistently and efficiently managed, it is vital that your team knows what to expect from the EHS software provider whenever issues on the software arise. As much as possible, choose a provider that guarantees timely support if things do not go according to plan. The safest thing is to consider each option in terms of essential factors including integration, configurability, and accessibility.
No-compromise List
In choosing, it is also vital that you match the EHS software against the company’s own demands and requirements. Compromises to the basic requirements you have set must not be welcomed especially as the EHS software plays a vital role for your business operations. The software company you will choose has to be able to fulfill what is stipulated in the deal.
Options Assessment
The wide market can flood you with many EHS software options and they will vary mostly in terms of price, features, and compatibility. Narrowing down your options may not be easy as the options can get overwhelming. Hence, make sure you do not pick one that is not fit for the requirements you have predetermined. The best way to deal with this is to simply research for alternative options and workaround solutions if a certain EHS software has already caught your attention. Sooner or later, you will find that right one.
Testing
Before you finalize that investment that costs a portion of the company’s resources and sign any deal, completely test the software first using actual EHS data in your company. A lot of available EHS software providers will entitle you to full feature trials or demo versions that can be customized and enhanced to an enterprise version once the program is fully purchased.
The importance of using the software in context is that it helps you assess whether the software truly performs as desired or otherwise.
Also look into how the software handles problems you present and manages any deals with the scope and scale of data you plan to process. A thorough testing overall reveals issues in terms of functionality, adaptability, and user friendliness that are all vital to ensure the software’s efficiency and effectiveness.
User Consultation
Your company’s EHS section is most likely the one to use the new EHS software. And though you are responsible for the purchase process, it is extremely important that you consult them as the primary EHS software users for feedbacks about how the testing went down. The result of the testing can give hints as to whether the software truly promotes efficiency and productivity.
Also, three areas of impact should be looked into: administration, support practices, and everyday support as the three can significantly affect whether the investment is truly worth it or not.
Mutual Goal Setting
Set your company goals together with your team. Temptation to buy the latest EHS software that is packed with many features but with a shiny price tag can challenge you or your fellow team members. Hence, it is important that you decide in light of common goals, priorities, implementation and usage plan, and definition of success. This is the best approach to be sure that the software you are going to purchase can really solve EHS related issues and facilitate a streamlined, better EHS management.
Un-hostaged Data
Your data must not be held hostage. A lot of vendors are marketing the best-est features of their products and while you have been cautious in choosing, things can still go wrong. You may feel the need to shift to another provider as a partner and withdraw your data out from the former one. One sign that you are dealing with the right EHS software provider is if it shares information about the migration without holding your data hostage. A bad vendor will want to lock you in by taking your data as a hostage. If you happened to know one, then your red flag better raise.
Your company’s EHS software is supposed to serve as an all-in-one solution that not only protects the safety of employees but also monitors the company’s regulatory compliance with the state’s laws, reduces time spent on data-encoding, produces accurate reports, and can perform forecasting to reduce every work activity’s environmental impact. Hence, there has to be a certain process in choosing one to ensure that your company is getting the best value of its investment.
