Your ROI Is Going To Increase

Name: Security Services & Technology, a subsidiary of FirstService Corporation
Headquarters: Norristown, PA. Offices in 17 U.S. cities and 3 in Canada
Employees: 2,400
Founded: 1995

In today's crazy world, security is on everyone's mind. That makes for good business for the folks at SST of Norristown, Pennsylvania. SST specializes in the design, installation, and service of integrated security management, closed-circuit television, photo-ID badging, and network communication systems. The company has made a great name for itself among a demanding customer base: its security equipment is installed at sites in chemical and industrial plants, pharmaceutical companies, and other security-sensitive operations across the world. Keeping track of these customers and installations is the primary mission of SST's Khameleon implementation.

Joel Richman, CIO and one of the company founders, reports SST started using Khameleon systems in 1999. To accommodate different reporting, currency, and tax requirements, SST configured two separate entities in Khameleon for U.S. and Canadian operations, but uses standard Khameleon functionality to provide a consolidated view at the corporate level. Today, SST has deployed every Khameleon module, retaining all business data in one enterprise system. That level of flexibility and control is what makes Joel a Khameleon advocate.

Joel believes Khameleon's main advantage "is that it's one database. It's all interconnected to one source of data. Other companies have three or four systems - a CRM system, AP system, and so on." In those cases, putting together performance data requires a hodgepodge of spreadsheets. With Khameleon, Joel said that "any data that we want to get out of the system is in there. Without that data, we couldn't run the business. We wouldn't know if we were spending on the right things."

The bottom line? According to Joel, when you implement Khameleon, "your ROI is going to increase."

As an example, SST uses Khameleon data to analyze productivity and justify staff levels. SST logs the hours each person spends on various activities, including time spent in direct project-related work or performing administrative chores. Using Khameleon data, SST developed labor standards and expected efficiency rates for roles such as sales support, project manager, and installation technician. The statistics are applied to a job or department to determine the number of people needed. "If we didn't have Khameleon, we wouldn't be able to say we need another project manager because we have 2,000 hours more work to do," Joel said.

One of the most important things Khameleon does for SST is to help managers identify margin improvement opportunities. The best way to find any extra margin is to manage the project more efficiently and each week analytics publish efficiency results. "If efficiency slips, it means that we need to react fast to make the necessary corrections," Joel said. "The data helps us figure out why."

When it comes to implementation, Joel said it was tough for SST to implement the system all at once, "but it was worth it." SST implemented modules one at a time starting with financials, and ultimately adopting all of the modules Khameleon has to offer.

The keys to SST's successful implementation? "You need a strong project manager inside your company, that's key to getting it done," Joel said. "If you have a plan and you train your people well, it works well."