"But we are unique. This system will not work for us."

Several clients have come to us at the end a new software application implementation complaining that because they implemented a vanilla system, it does not work for them. The vanilla system could not meet their unique requirements and as a consequence they had to rely on either their old, customized stand-alone databases or spreadsheets, or they had to create new ones.

Our approach to these cases was to first work with the impacted user groups to identify the information and communication tools that appeared to be missing from the new system. We then investigated the functional capabilities of the software, working with the client's IT department and, in some cases, with the software vendor, to explore the system's capabilities. Finally, Johnson & Lawrence "translated" the system's capabilities to the users so that together we could define the system reports and communication tools that would meet their needs.