“I never imagined it would be this complicated.”

Even if a system is perfect, it's not especially valuable if the people who use it can't trust it.

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Here’s a comment, lightly paraphrased, from a call I had today with a new client:

If we had planned this out from the beginning, with conversations that included the staff, department heads, and volunteers, we wouldn't be in such a mess now. I never imagined it would be this complicated.

They’re in the midst of a data migration from Blackbaud to CiviCRM, and they’re struggling to have confidence that it will be truly ready to go when they turn off Blackbaud in a couple of weeks.

The one or two people who headed up the migration are — of course — very confident.

Other staff, department heads, and volunteers … not so much.

Looking back, it's easy to see how it would've been a good idea to involve more people in the process from the beginning.

Because even if a system is perfect, it's not especially valuable if the people who use it can't trust it.

Here's the thing:

Hindsight is 2020.
And the future is hard to see.

But common patterns do emerge.
And experience allows us to better anticipate common problems.

Fortunately, you don't have to wait until you're the one having all those experiences.

There are plenty of people going through it ahead of you, from whom you can learn.

Like these folks — who now know that it's good to involve major stakeholders early, and throughout the whole process.

All the best,
A.