Five questions to ask before you upgrade your EAM platform

Are you prepared for the technology shift ahead of you? 

Having worked for a major enterprise asset management (EAM) vendor and the largest global implementation partner during my 25-year career, I consider myself well-placed to have meaningful conversations with clients about their business, but also about the solution landscape. I see the challenges facing our clients as they manage complex assets, grapple with a changing workforce, and seek to define reliability. But in more recent months, I have been having increasingly more conversations about the very dynamic changes in the vendor space.  

One topic of conversation for many EAM customers is the longevity of the platform they are investing in, and whether the investments they make in a platform are enough to secure their future business objective goals. Simply said; are they getting what they paid for in terms of support, both on the short-term challenges and the long-term objectives? 

When faced with difficult decisions in terms of aligning business objectives to EAM investments, I counsel them to answer five very important questions:

1. What are your key drivers and requirements for an EAM solution?  
2. What are your main business objectives for the immediate and distant future, and how will your EAM help you achieve both? 
3. Are you ready for the technical skills required to deploy the new solution? 
4. Can you support the business case for return on investment, and what is the expected term of value delivery?? 
5. Are you certain that the functionality and integration between the modules will meet your expectations in providing meaningful outcomes? 

The cost implications are substantial. I am seeing cost increases as high as 30 to 60 percent in license fees and maintenance expenses. It is not surprising then, that organizations often go to market to see if it makes sense to switch – when faced with these changes.  

I joined IFS Ultimo in a very deliberate strategic move on my part. After almost two decades of working with industrial businesses navigating their asset management and reliability strategy, I am passionate about helping them to implement the best solution for their business. Right now, the need for robust EAM functionality at a more flexible price point is clear. 

EAM users in the market are facing a choice. They either stay with an EAM platform known for its breadth and depth. Or they look at best-of-breed alternatives in the market that also offer all benefits and features they require but are easier to implement and quicker to adopt.  

The industrial businesses I’m in conversation with are prioritizing a fully integrated broad EAM system, with high usability, supreme flexibility and scalability and a truly customer-centric approach. For those considering alternatives, IFS Ultimo should be at the top of the list.  

• It’s a highly configurable solution that easily scales with organizational needs 

• It comes with an unparalleled time-to-value in the market, which leads to an also unmatched return on investment 

• It is offered through a flexible pricing model 

• It has a configurable mobile application at no extra cost, with additional offline capabilities in Ultimo GO, and  

• Its empowered role-based e-learning propels the use of the software to the next level – all at no extra cost to the customer 

• With over 2,400 customers globally and a customer retention rate of 98 percent, IFS Ultimo puts its customers at the center of all it does. 

IFS Ultimo offers a best-of-breed EAM solution on the industry leading Azure cloud structure. Ultimo can also be found on the Azure marketplace.  

Find out what Ultimo can do for you, and how we can help create value for your organization. Get in touch to book a free demo and find out about the financial incentives we have in place right now.