{"ID":108600,"post_author":"9412100","post_date":"2023-07-26 11:20:34","post_date_gmt":"0000-00-00 00:00:00","post_content":"","post_title":"Justifying LIMS Acquisition and Deployment within Your Organization","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"draft","comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2023-07-26 11:20:34","post_modified_gmt":"2023-07-26 15:20:34","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/www.limsforum.com\/?post_type=ebook&p=108600","menu_order":0,"post_type":"ebook","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"","holland":null,"_ebook_metadata":{"enabled":"on","private":"0","guid":"5F6EAB50-B903-42AC-BDA8-602FDC4DF66E","title":"Justifying LIMS Acquisition and Deployment within Your Organization","subtitle":"First Edition","cover_theme":"nico_3","cover_image":"https:\/\/www.limsforum.com\/wp-content\/plugins\/rdp-ebook-builder\/pl\/cover.php?cover_style=nico_3&subtitle=First+Edition&editor=Joe+Liscouski+and+Shawn+E.+Douglas&title=Justifying+LIMS+Acquisition+and+Deployment+within+Your+Organization&title_image=https%3A%2F%2Fs3.limsforum.com%2Fwww.limsforum.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2FMan_and_Woman_Shaking_Hands-scaled.jpg&publisher=LabLynx+Press","editor":"Joe Liscouski and Shawn E. Douglas","publisher":"LabLynx Press","author_id":"26","image_url":"","items":{"6b134626495c84969c8eac9d5ba972b6_type":"article","6b134626495c84969c8eac9d5ba972b6_title":"A1. LIMS Acquisition and Deployment Justification Workbook","6b134626495c84969c8eac9d5ba972b6_url":"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_Justification_Workbook","6b134626495c84969c8eac9d5ba972b6_plaintext":"\n\nBook:Justifying LIMS Acquisition and Deployment within Your Organization\/LIMS Acquisition and Deployment Justification WorkbookFrom LIMSWikiJump to navigationJump to search-----Return to the beginning of this guide-----\nContents \n\n1 A1. LIMS Acquisition and Deployment Justification Workbook \n\n1.1 On-premises vs. cloud LIMS tab \n1.2 5-year costs tab \n1.3 Barcode use tab \n1.4 Tangible assets tab \n1.5 Intangible assets tab \n\n\n2 Citation information for this chapter \n\n\n\nA1. LIMS Acquisition and Deployment Justification Workbook \nThe LIMS Acquisition and Deployment Justification Workbook draws from the various topics, tables, and figures in this guide to help you put together a proposal to upper management and other stakeholders regarding the acquisition and deployment of a laboratory information management system (LIMS) within your organization. This Excel workbook consists of five sheets, identified by the tabs at the bottom of the workbook:\n\"On-premises vs. cloud LIMS\": Allows for a tabular comparison of on-premises and cloud-based LIMS account costs, drawing from Table 3 in Chapter 2 of this guide.\n\"5-year costs\": Provides a means of rolling up and comparing on-premises vs. cloud implementation costs, charges common to both implementations, and operational costs (manual operations vs. LIMS-based operations).\n\"Barcode use\": Allows for a tabular cost-benefit look at implementing barcodes in the lab, as well as cooperative lab-client use of barcodes, drawing from Tables 5 and 7 in Chapter 2 of this guide.\n\"Tangible benefits\": Provides a tabular listing of the tangible (i.e., measurable) benefits of LIMS acquisition and deployment in Chapter 2, making it easier to enter the savings per shift, number of shifts per day, and working days per year, and then calculate the total savings.\n\"Intangible benefits: Provides a tabular listing of the intangible benefits of LIMS acquisition and deployment in Chapter 2, using five different methods of applying some sort of valuation to them.\nDownload: You can download a copy of the Microsoft Excel version of the LIMS Acquisition and Deployment Justification Workbook from LIMSwiki by going to File:LIMS Acquisition and Deployment Justification Workbook v1.xlsx, right-clicking the URL under the white box, and selecting \"Save link as...\" (Alternatively, you can just click the link, open the file, and then save it.) \n\nOn-premises vs. cloud LIMS tab \nThis table compares the costs of license fees for both on-premises and cloud (also referred to as software as a service or SaaS) LIMS implementations. The table has entries for three cases, each dependent upon the number of seats (simultaneous users), which is distinct from the number of accounts. There are three sets of rows for each case. The first row (5, 8, and 11, respectively) is the number of seats for that case, and the following rows contain the license fees, first showing the initial one-time cost and then the recurring annual costs. The table can be extended via copy-and-paste for as many cases as needed. The text entries need to be edited to avoid confusion.\n\n5-year costs tab \nThis tab contains tables for cost projections over five years for both on-premises and cloud installations, each with its own table since both have different cost structures (for on-premises, there are hardware, installation, maintenance, and other charges). The third table from the top covers expenses common to both implementations, including networking costs (internal, and external from the internet service provider), training, and equipment (e.g., printers and systems terminals). Systems terminals can be desk\/benchtop computers, laptops, tablets, smartphones, and thin-clients (with displays, keyboards, mice) used to access the LIMS.\nTraining is specific to lab personnel. Any training needed for IT support would be rolled into support charges and applied to on-premises installations. \nThe fourth table from the top is a roll-up of operational costs for the lab under its current mode of operation (a manual, paper-based state is assumed) and the lab\u2019s working with a LIMS. The line \u201cCost using manual operations\u201d is essentially your annual operating budget, less equipment and reagent costs since they would affect both paper-based and LIMS equally. The line \u201cCost using LIMS operations\u201d is a projection of your lab budget as it would look if a LIMS were in place and includes the savings\/benefits from items such as barcode use, direct instrument-to-LIMS connections, and tangible and intangible benefits. Because of the inclusion of intangible benefits, you can divide that last item into two parts, one addressing quantifiable values and another as what amounts to guesswork.\n\nBarcode use tab \nThe two tables on this page reflect the barcode discussion in Chapter 2's discussion of common and add-on costs. Hopefully, they will be helpful in estimating the value of the technology.\n\nTangible assets tab \nThe tangible benefits listed in Chapter 2 are presented in a table format, with a column entry for saving per shift, number of shifts per day, and days per year of operations. This makes it easy to total up the saving for these points. The table is easily edited to remove unnecessary items and includes additional entries important to your lab's operations. As with many cost estimates, there is a lot of guesswork in the results. Anything done manually, such as gathering data for reports, will show almost 100% cost savings since the LIMS system can do it with a few mouse clicks and if desired, automatically on a preset schedule.\nThe savings accrued are shown for only one year, and often the summaries have provision for five years of data. The savings should be consistent each year while the cost of manual operations continues to rise. Some of the entries are elements you may not be currently doing but can become part of an \u201cadded capability\u201d feature, such as keeping detailed measurements of test turnaround and equipment utilization.\n\nIntangible assets tab \nValuating intangible assets is an interesting exercise. What is the value of a concept or capability? For example, managing and organizing data has value because it allows you to do things you might not have done before, but that can be hard to put a number on. If it prevents a plant shutdown due to regulatory failures or prevents out-of-spec raw materials from entering the production line, that's easier. It's the cost of several days of plant operations. Those valuations are going to vary from one to another.\nRather than try to assign a number to these assets, we\u2019ve identified five categories that can be applied to each asset: improved operational effectiveness, improved customer relationship and increased business, reduced operating costs, improved regulatory compliance, and an estimate of monetary value. Since this is in an editable spreadsheet, you can alter the categories and add to them as you see fit.\nThis table provides a means of summarizing the intangible benefits of LIMS and presenting them as a way of assessing the impact on the lab\u2019s and organization's business operations.\n\nCitation information for this chapter \nChapter: Appendix 1. LIMS Acquisition and Deployment Justification Workbook\nTitle: Justifying LIMS Acquisition and Deployment within Your Organization\nEdition: First Edition\nAuthor for citation: Joe Liscouski, Shawn E. Douglas\nLicense for content: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International\nPublication date: July 2023\n\r\n\n\n\n\n\n\nSource: <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external\" href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_Justification_Workbook\">https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_Justification_Workbook<\/a>\nNavigation menuPage actionsBookDiscussionView sourceHistoryPage actionsBookDiscussionMoreToolsIn other languagesPersonal toolsLog inNavigationMain pageEncyclopedic articlesRecent changesRandom pageHelp about MediaWikiSearch\u00a0 ToolsWhat links hereRelated changesSpecial pagesPermanent linkPage informationPopular publications\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\nPrint\/exportCreate a bookDownload as PDFDownload as PDFDownload as Plain textPrintable version This page was last edited on 26 July 2023, at 15:04.Content is available under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License unless otherwise noted.This page has been accessed 6 times.Privacy policyAbout LIMSWikiDisclaimers\n\n\n\n","6b134626495c84969c8eac9d5ba972b6_html":"<body class=\"mediawiki ltr sitedir-ltr mw-hide-empty-elt ns-208 ns-subject page-Book_Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_Justification_Workbook rootpage-Book_Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_Justification_Workbook skin-monobook action-view skin--responsive\"><div id=\"rdp-ebb-globalWrapper\"><div id=\"rdp-ebb-column-content\"><div id=\"rdp-ebb-content\" class=\"mw-body\" role=\"main\"><a id=\"rdp-ebb-top\"><\/a>\n<h1 id=\"rdp-ebb-firstHeading\" class=\"firstHeading\" lang=\"en\">Book:Justifying LIMS Acquisition and Deployment within Your Organization\/LIMS Acquisition and Deployment Justification Workbook<\/h1><div id=\"rdp-ebb-bodyContent\" class=\"mw-body-content\"><!-- start content --><div id=\"rdp-ebb-mw-content-text\" lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\" class=\"mw-content-ltr\"><div class=\"mw-parser-output\"><div align=\"center\">-----Return to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Introduction\" title=\"Book:Justifying LIMS Acquisition and Deployment within Your Organization\/Introduction\" class=\"wiki-link\" data-key=\"05b67a0bceac708006b29f16d3336070\">the beginning<\/a> of this guide-----<\/div>\n\n\n<h2><span class=\"mw-headline\" id=\"A1._LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_Justification_Workbook\">A1. LIMS Acquisition and Deployment Justification Workbook<\/span><\/h2>\n<div class=\"floatright\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/File:.xlsx_icon.svg\" class=\"image wiki-link\" data-key=\"9fc3897660021e37e59e613859e0e6df\"><img alt=\".xlsx icon.svg\" src=\"https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/f\/f3\/.xlsx_icon.svg\/140px-.xlsx_icon.svg.png\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"140\" height=\"140\" \/><\/a><\/div><p>The LIMS Acquisition and Deployment Justification Workbook draws from the various topics, tables, and figures in this guide to help you put together a proposal to upper management and other stakeholders regarding the acquisition and deployment of a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Laboratory_information_management_system\" title=\"Laboratory information management system\" class=\"wiki-link\" data-key=\"8ff56a51d34c9b1806fcebdcde634d00\">laboratory information management system<\/a> (LIMS) within your organization. This Excel workbook consists of five sheets, identified by the tabs at the bottom of the workbook:\n<\/p><ol><li>\"On-premises vs. cloud LIMS\": Allows for a tabular comparison of on-premises and cloud-based LIMS account costs, drawing from Table 3 in Chapter 2 of this guide.<\/li>\n<li>\"5-year costs\": Provides a means of rolling up and comparing on-premises vs. cloud implementation costs, charges common to both implementations, and operational costs (manual operations vs. LIMS-based operations).<\/li>\n<li>\"Barcode use\": Allows for a tabular cost-benefit look at implementing barcodes in the lab, as well as cooperative lab-client use of barcodes, drawing from Tables 5 and 7 in Chapter 2 of this guide.<\/li>\n<li>\"Tangible benefits\": Provides a tabular listing of the tangible (i.e., measurable) benefits of LIMS acquisition and deployment in Chapter 2, making it easier to enter the savings per shift, number of shifts per day, and working days per year, and then calculate the total savings.<\/li>\n<li>\"Intangible benefits: Provides a tabular listing of the intangible benefits of LIMS acquisition and deployment in Chapter 2, using five different methods of applying some sort of valuation to them.<\/li><\/ol>\n<p><b>Download<\/b>: You can download a copy of the Microsoft Excel version of the LIMS Acquisition and Deployment Justification Workbook from LIMSwiki by going to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/File:LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_Justification_Workbook_v1.xlsx\" title=\"File:LIMS Acquisition and Deployment Justification Workbook v1.xlsx\" class=\"wiki-link\" data-key=\"a29b7256edda732389854b8bd9a5a112\">File:LIMS Acquisition and Deployment Justification Workbook v1.xlsx<\/a>, right-clicking the URL under the white box, and selecting \"Save link as...\" (Alternatively, you can just click the link, open the file, and then save it.) \n<\/p>\n<h4><span class=\"mw-headline\" id=\"On-premises_vs._cloud_LIMS_tab\">On-premises vs. cloud LIMS tab<\/span><\/h4>\n<p>This table compares the costs of license fees for both on-premises and cloud (also referred to as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Software_as_a_service\" title=\"Software as a service\" class=\"wiki-link\" data-key=\"ae8c8a7cd5ee1a264f4f0bbd4a4caedd\">software as a service<\/a> or SaaS) LIMS implementations. The table has entries for three cases, each dependent upon the number of seats (simultaneous users), which is distinct from the number of accounts. There are three sets of rows for each case. The first row (5, 8, and 11, respectively) is the number of seats for that case, and the following rows contain the license fees, first showing the initial one-time cost and then the recurring annual costs. The table can be extended via copy-and-paste for as many cases as needed. The text entries need to be edited to avoid confusion.\n<\/p>\n<h4><span class=\"mw-headline\" id=\"5-year_costs_tab\">5-year costs tab<\/span><\/h4>\n<p>This tab contains tables for cost projections over five years for both on-premises and cloud installations, each with its own table since both have different cost structures (for on-premises, there are hardware, installation, maintenance, and other charges). The third table from the top covers expenses common to both implementations, including networking costs (internal, and external from the internet service provider), training, and equipment (e.g., printers and systems terminals). Systems terminals can be desk\/benchtop computers, laptops, tablets, smartphones, and thin-clients (with displays, keyboards, mice) used to access the LIMS.\n<\/p><p>Training is specific to lab personnel. Any training needed for IT support would be rolled into support charges and applied to on-premises installations. \n<\/p><p>The fourth table from the top is a roll-up of operational costs for the lab under its current mode of operation (a manual, paper-based state is assumed) and the lab\u2019s working with a LIMS. The line \u201cCost using manual operations\u201d is essentially your annual operating budget, less equipment and reagent costs since they would affect both paper-based and LIMS equally. The line \u201cCost using LIMS operations\u201d is a projection of your lab budget as it would look if a LIMS were in place and includes the savings\/benefits from items such as barcode use, direct instrument-to-LIMS connections, and tangible and intangible benefits. Because of the inclusion of intangible benefits, you can divide that last item into two parts, one addressing quantifiable values and another as what amounts to guesswork.\n<\/p>\n<h4><span class=\"mw-headline\" id=\"Barcode_use_tab\">Barcode use tab<\/span><\/h4>\n<p>The two tables on this page reflect the barcode discussion in Chapter 2's discussion of common and add-on costs. Hopefully, they will be helpful in estimating the value of the technology.\n<\/p>\n<h4><span class=\"mw-headline\" id=\"Tangible_assets_tab\">Tangible assets tab<\/span><\/h4>\n<p>The tangible benefits listed in Chapter 2 are presented in a table format, with a column entry for saving per shift, number of shifts per day, and days per year of operations. This makes it easy to total up the saving for these points. The table is easily edited to remove unnecessary items and includes additional entries important to your lab's operations. As with many cost estimates, there is a lot of guesswork in the results. Anything done manually, such as gathering data for reports, will show almost 100% cost savings since the LIMS system can do it with a few mouse clicks and if desired, automatically on a preset schedule.\n<\/p><p>The savings accrued are shown for only one year, and often the summaries have provision for five years of data. The savings should be consistent each year while the cost of manual operations continues to rise. Some of the entries are elements you may not be currently doing but can become part of an \u201cadded capability\u201d feature, such as keeping detailed measurements of test turnaround and equipment utilization.\n<\/p>\n<h4><span class=\"mw-headline\" id=\"Intangible_assets_tab\">Intangible assets tab<\/span><\/h4>\n<p>Valuating intangible assets is an interesting exercise. What is the value of a concept or capability? For example, managing and organizing data has value because it allows you to do things you might not have done before, but that can be hard to put a number on. If it prevents a plant shutdown due to regulatory failures or prevents out-of-spec raw materials from entering the production line, that's easier. It's the cost of several days of plant operations. Those valuations are going to vary from one to another.\n<\/p><p>Rather than try to assign a number to these assets, we\u2019ve identified five categories that can be applied to each asset: improved operational effectiveness, improved customer relationship and increased business, reduced operating costs, improved regulatory compliance, and an estimate of monetary value. Since this is in an editable spreadsheet, you can alter the categories and add to them as you see fit.\n<\/p><p>This table provides a means of summarizing the intangible benefits of LIMS and presenting them as a way of assessing the impact on the lab\u2019s and organization's business operations.\n<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"mw-headline\" id=\"Citation_information_for_this_chapter\">Citation information for this chapter<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><b>Chapter<\/b>: Appendix 1. LIMS Acquisition and Deployment Justification Workbook\n<\/p><p><b>Title<\/b>: <i>Justifying LIMS Acquisition and Deployment within Your Organization<\/i>\n<\/p><p><b>Edition<\/b>: First Edition\n<\/p><p><b>Author for citation<\/b>: Joe Liscouski, Shawn E. Douglas\n<\/p><p><b>License for content<\/b>: <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external text\" href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/4.0\/\" target=\"_blank\">Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International<\/a>\n<\/p><p><b>Publication date<\/b>: July 2023\n<\/p><p><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<!-- \nNewPP limit report\nCached time: 20230726151906\nCache expiry: 86400\nDynamic content: false\nComplications: []\nCPU time usage: 0.023 seconds\nReal time usage: 0.028 seconds\nPreprocessor visited node count: 15\/1000000\nPost\u2010expand include size: 6919\/2097152 bytes\nTemplate argument size: 0\/2097152 bytes\nHighest expansion depth: 3\/40\nExpensive parser function count: 0\/100\nUnstrip recursion depth: 0\/20\nUnstrip post\u2010expand size: 0\/5000000 bytes\n-->\n<!--\nTransclusion expansion time report (%,ms,calls,template)\n100.00% 4.979 1 Template:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_Justification_Workbook\n100.00% 4.979 1 -total\n-->\n\n<!-- Saved in parser cache with key limswiki:pcache:idhash:14327-0!canonical and timestamp 20230726151906 and revision id 52657. Serialized with JSON.\n -->\n<\/div><\/div><div class=\"printfooter\">Source: <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external\" href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_Justification_Workbook\">https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_Justification_Workbook<\/a><\/div>\n<!-- end content --><div class=\"visualClear\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"visualClear\"><\/div><\/div><!-- end of the left (by default at least) column --><div class=\"visualClear\"><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<\/body>","6b134626495c84969c8eac9d5ba972b6_images":["https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/f\/f3\/.xlsx_icon.svg\/280px-.xlsx_icon.svg.png"],"6b134626495c84969c8eac9d5ba972b6_timestamp":1690384839,"ce573cd440bbb6ad0fdd5d74f44f2854_type":"article","ce573cd440bbb6ad0fdd5d74f44f2854_title":"4. Closing remarks","ce573cd440bbb6ad0fdd5d74f44f2854_url":"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Closing_remarks","ce573cd440bbb6ad0fdd5d74f44f2854_plaintext":"\n\nBook:Justifying LIMS Acquisition and Deployment within Your Organization\/Closing remarksFrom LIMSWikiJump to navigationJump to search-----Return to the beginning of this guide-----\n4. Closing remarks \nThis guide has examined information on and approaches to justifying the acquisition and deployment of a laboratory information management system (LIMS) to upper management and critical stakeholders within your laboratory-based organization. After briefly examining what a LIMS is and what alternatives exist, we looked at LIMS acquisition then and now, as well as why a LIMS should be viewed as important by more laboratories. Of course, it's well and good to say \"a LIMS can benefit a laboratory broadly by helping with X, Y, and Z,\" but in the end you have to put forward a more detailed justification for your organization's potential acquisition and deployment of a LIMS.\nFrom there we looked at the organizational, economic, and practical justifications that must take place as part of your project proposal research. We found that linking organization-specific goals and challenges to LIMS acquisition and deployment is a critical component of any proposal, as it allows upper management and other stakeholders to better understand how the software fits within the organizational structure. We also discussed the cost-based economics of the LIMS, noting how for many this ends up being viewed as the primary impediment to and source of insight for LIMS justification. However, the evaluation of a LIMS based on the economics of laboratory operations can be an arduous process requiring you to chase information that may not be readily available. What you can\u2019t lose sight of is that you are answering a basic question: will my lab run better with a LIMS that it does without it? What you are trying to do is justify what \u201cbetter\u201d means. That requires highlighting more practical tangible and intangible benefits such as lower costs, higher productivity, better access to lab information, more streamlined operations, improved operational management, and improved long-term management, which help set a more solid foundation for LIMS justification. A decision based strictly on the dollars and cents of LIMS acquisition may miss an understanding of key intangible benefits.\nFor example, something as simple as reduced data errors means you have to be able to quantify the current cost of errors to your labs operations and the organization you lab is a part of. A LIMS may allow you to introduce new statistical procedures that will automatically flag questionable results and prevent out-of-spec incoming raw material from entering the production process. The introduction of a LIMS may allow you to add new capabilities that elevate lab operations and provide additional useful information into process monitoring. The end result can be seen as needing less time on administrative work, more time on data management and analysis, and more value gained from the investment in laboratory work.\nWe then examined how all these justifications must be paired with manager and critical stakeholder buy-in, in an organized and succinct way. Without proper buy-in, a LIMS project may be underfunded, misunderstood, and less successful. This means taking the time to not only identify critical stakeholders but also engage with them in an effective way so as to gain their understanding and support for your LIMS project. Also part of the equation is the successful pitch of the LIMS project proposal, which can be made easier by creating a \"cheat sheet\" or packet of readily accessible and succinct facts, statistics, and information to best impart the full intent and potential with your LIMS project.\nWe close this guide with a \u201cLIMS Acquisition and Deployment Justification Workbook\u201d in the appendix. It consists of an Excel workbook that will help guide you through the process of justifying LIMS acquisition and deployment to critical stakeholders. It has the benefit of being in an editable tabular form, such that you can add more insights you have learned from this guide to quickly get your project goals and benefits clearly related during the justification process.\n\r\n\n\n-----Go to the next chapter of this guide-----\nCitation information for this chapter \nChapter: 4. Closing remarks\nTitle: Justifying LIMS Acquisition and Deployment within Your Organization\nEdition: First Edition\nAuthor for citation: Joe Liscouski, Shawn E. Douglas\nLicense for content: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International\nPublication date: July 2023\n\r\n\n\n\n\n\n\nSource: <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external\" href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Closing_remarks\">https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Closing_remarks<\/a>\nNavigation menuPage actionsBookDiscussionView sourceHistoryPage actionsBookDiscussionMoreToolsIn other languagesPersonal toolsLog inNavigationMain pageEncyclopedic articlesRecent changesRandom pageHelp about MediaWikiSearch\u00a0 ToolsWhat links hereRelated changesSpecial pagesPermanent linkPage informationPopular publications\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\nPrint\/exportCreate a bookDownload as PDFDownload as PDFDownload as Plain textPrintable version This page was last edited on 26 July 2023, at 15:02.Content is available under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License unless otherwise noted.This page has been accessed 5 times.Privacy policyAbout LIMSWikiDisclaimers\n\n\n\n","ce573cd440bbb6ad0fdd5d74f44f2854_html":"<body class=\"mediawiki ltr sitedir-ltr mw-hide-empty-elt ns-208 ns-subject page-Book_Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization_Closing_remarks rootpage-Book_Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization_Closing_remarks skin-monobook action-view skin--responsive\"><div id=\"rdp-ebb-globalWrapper\"><div id=\"rdp-ebb-column-content\"><div id=\"rdp-ebb-content\" class=\"mw-body\" role=\"main\"><a id=\"rdp-ebb-top\"><\/a>\n<h1 id=\"rdp-ebb-firstHeading\" class=\"firstHeading\" lang=\"en\">Book:Justifying LIMS Acquisition and Deployment within Your Organization\/Closing remarks<\/h1><div id=\"rdp-ebb-bodyContent\" class=\"mw-body-content\"><!-- start content --><div id=\"rdp-ebb-mw-content-text\" lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\" class=\"mw-content-ltr\"><div class=\"mw-parser-output\"><div align=\"center\">-----Return to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Introduction\" title=\"Book:Justifying LIMS Acquisition and Deployment within Your Organization\/Introduction\" class=\"wiki-link\" data-key=\"05b67a0bceac708006b29f16d3336070\">the beginning<\/a> of this guide-----<\/div>\n<h2><span class=\"mw-headline\" id=\"4._Closing_remarks\">4. Closing remarks<\/span><\/h2>\n<div class=\"floatright\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/File:Brooklyn_Museum_-_Comme_Sisyphe_-_Honor%C3%A9_Daumier.jpg\" class=\"image wiki-link\" data-key=\"24d008f06fa5395c258614ae2330ae3a\"><img alt=\"Brooklyn Museum - Comme Sisyphe - Honor\u00e9 Daumier.jpg\" src=\"https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/f\/f4\/Brooklyn_Museum_-_Comme_Sisyphe_-_Honor%C3%A9_Daumier.jpg\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"250\" height=\"310\" \/><\/a><\/div><p>This guide has examined information on and approaches to justifying the acquisition and deployment of a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Laboratory_information_management_system\" title=\"Laboratory information management system\" class=\"wiki-link\" data-key=\"8ff56a51d34c9b1806fcebdcde634d00\">laboratory information management system<\/a> (LIMS) to upper management and critical stakeholders within your <a href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Laboratory\" title=\"Laboratory\" class=\"wiki-link\" data-key=\"c57fc5aac9e4abf31dccae81df664c33\">laboratory<\/a>-based organization. After briefly examining what a LIMS is and what alternatives exist, we looked at LIMS acquisition then and now, as well as why a LIMS should be viewed as important by more laboratories. Of course, it's well and good to say \"a LIMS can benefit a laboratory broadly by helping with X, Y, and Z,\" but in the end you have to put forward a more detailed justification for your organization's potential acquisition and deployment of a LIMS.\n<\/p><p>From there we looked at the organizational, economic, and practical justifications that must take place as part of your project proposal research. We found that linking organization-specific goals and challenges to LIMS acquisition and deployment is a critical component of any proposal, as it allows upper management and other stakeholders to better understand how the software fits within the organizational structure. We also discussed the cost-based economics of the LIMS, noting how for many this ends up being viewed as the primary impediment to and source of insight for LIMS justification. However, the evaluation of a LIMS based on the economics of laboratory operations can be an arduous process requiring you to chase <a href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Information\" title=\"Information\" class=\"wiki-link\" data-key=\"6300a14d9c2776dcca0999b5ed940e7d\">information<\/a> that may not be readily available. What you can\u2019t lose sight of is that you are answering a basic question: will my lab run better with a LIMS that it does without it? What you are trying to do is justify what \u201cbetter\u201d means. That requires highlighting more practical tangible and intangible benefits such as lower costs, higher productivity, better access to lab information, more streamlined operations, improved operational management, and improved long-term management, which help set a more solid foundation for LIMS justification. A decision based strictly on the dollars and cents of LIMS acquisition may miss an understanding of key intangible benefits.\n<\/p><p>For example, something as simple as reduced data errors means you have to be able to quantify the current cost of errors to your labs operations and the organization you lab is a part of. A LIMS may allow you to introduce new statistical procedures that will automatically flag questionable results and prevent out-of-spec incoming raw material from entering the production process. The introduction of a LIMS may allow you to add new capabilities that elevate lab operations and provide additional useful information into process monitoring. The end result can be seen as needing less time on administrative work, more time on data management and analysis, and more value gained from the investment in laboratory work.\n<\/p><p>We then examined how all these justifications must be paired with manager and critical stakeholder buy-in, in an organized and succinct way. Without proper buy-in, a LIMS project may be underfunded, misunderstood, and less successful. This means taking the time to not only identify critical stakeholders but also engage with them in an effective way so as to gain their understanding and support for your LIMS project. Also part of the equation is the successful pitch of the LIMS project proposal, which can be made easier by creating a \"cheat sheet\" or packet of readily accessible and succinct facts, statistics, and information to best impart the full intent and potential with your LIMS project.\n<\/p><p>We close this guide with a \u201cLIMS Acquisition and Deployment Justification Workbook\u201d in the appendix. It consists of an Excel workbook that will help guide you through the process of justifying LIMS acquisition and deployment to critical stakeholders. It has the benefit of being in an editable tabular form, such that you can add more insights you have learned from this guide to quickly get your project goals and benefits clearly related during the justification process.\n<\/p><p><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div align=\"center\">-----Go to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_Justification_Workbook\" title=\"Book:Justifying LIMS Acquisition and Deployment within Your Organization\/LIMS Acquisition and Deployment Justification Workbook\" class=\"wiki-link\" data-key=\"6b134626495c84969c8eac9d5ba972b6\">the next chapter<\/a> of this guide-----<\/div>\n<h2><span class=\"mw-headline\" id=\"Citation_information_for_this_chapter\">Citation information for this chapter<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><b>Chapter<\/b>: 4. Closing remarks\n<\/p><p><b>Title<\/b>: <i>Justifying LIMS Acquisition and Deployment within Your Organization<\/i>\n<\/p><p><b>Edition<\/b>: First Edition\n<\/p><p><b>Author for citation<\/b>: Joe Liscouski, Shawn E. Douglas\n<\/p><p><b>License for content<\/b>: <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external text\" href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/4.0\/\" target=\"_blank\">Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International<\/a>\n<\/p><p><b>Publication date<\/b>: July 2023\n<\/p><p><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<!-- \nNewPP limit report\nCached time: 20230726151428\nCache expiry: 86400\nDynamic content: false\nComplications: []\nCPU time usage: 0.013 seconds\nReal time usage: 0.024 seconds\nPreprocessor visited node count: 12\/1000000\nPost\u2010expand include size: 4121\/2097152 bytes\nTemplate argument size: 0\/2097152 bytes\nHighest expansion depth: 3\/40\nExpensive parser function count: 0\/100\nUnstrip recursion depth: 0\/20\nUnstrip post\u2010expand size: 0\/5000000 bytes\n-->\n<!--\nTransclusion expansion time report (%,ms,calls,template)\n100.00% 3.145 1 Template:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Closing_remarks\n100.00% 3.145 1 -total\n-->\n\n<!-- Saved in parser cache with key limswiki:pcache:idhash:14326-0!canonical and timestamp 20230726151428 and revision id 52656. Serialized with JSON.\n -->\n<\/div><\/div><div class=\"printfooter\">Source: <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external\" href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Closing_remarks\">https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Closing_remarks<\/a><\/div>\n<!-- end content --><div class=\"visualClear\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"visualClear\"><\/div><\/div><!-- end of the left (by default at least) column --><div class=\"visualClear\"><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<\/body>","ce573cd440bbb6ad0fdd5d74f44f2854_images":["https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/f\/f4\/Brooklyn_Museum_-_Comme_Sisyphe_-_Honor%C3%A9_Daumier.jpg"],"ce573cd440bbb6ad0fdd5d74f44f2854_timestamp":1690384838,"e7bf013fa9d9cff80a5da448521e8bbc_type":"article","e7bf013fa9d9cff80a5da448521e8bbc_title":"3.3 Developing a cheat sheet for management","e7bf013fa9d9cff80a5da448521e8bbc_url":"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Gaining_buy-in_from_management_and_other_stakeholders\/Developing_a_cheat_sheet_for_management","e7bf013fa9d9cff80a5da448521e8bbc_plaintext":"\n\nBook:Justifying LIMS Acquisition and Deployment within Your Organization\/Gaining buy-in from management and other stakeholders\/Developing a cheat sheet for managementFrom LIMSWikiJump to navigationJump to search-----Return to the beginning of this guide-----\n3.3 Developing a cheat sheet for management \nPitching a LIMS acquisition project is no simple task, to be sure, but one can arguably make the proposal process more effective if they provide information and tools that help stakeholders more effectively and rapidly understand the value and costs associated with the proposed LIMS project. As such, you may want to consider making a \"cheat sheet\" of sorts for critical stakeholders who will be the recipients of your proposal. \nThis cheat sheet could take many forms, homogenous or varied, but in the end it should be readily accessible and organized such that it's easy for recipients to make sense of its contents. Those contents will also vary, based upon the level of familiarity stakeholders have with LIMS and laboratory informatics solutions. If management isn't familiar with a LIMS, you'll probably want to include a broader list of bullet points as to how LIMS can benefit labs of all types. That list might look something like this:\nA LIMS can...\n\nIncrease efficiency: LIMS can help laboratories manage data more efficiently by eliminating data silos, managing standard operating procedures (SOPs), generating custom reports, facilitating data interoperability and exchange, tracking reagent inventories, and managing staff training. This in turn can minimize wasted resources.\nImprove process control: LIMS can help laboratories better manage test\/sample status and workload evaluation, resulting in better customer support and smoother workflows. With a LIMS, these and other tasks are automated, so we can spend more time on what really matters: research and testing. As an added benefit, LIMS also reduces errors by automating manual processes and eliminating the potential for human error.\nMore rapidly disseminate business data and analytical results: LIMS can help laboratories communicate test results more quickly and accurately. In research, this means faster project execution and better decision-making. In production, this means faster release of products, quicker evaluation of incoming raw materials, and prevention of wasted products.\nEnable access to data anywhere, anytime: Many LIMS can help laboratories access lab data from anywhere, particularly cloud-based LIMS. With cloud-based LIMS software, we can access lab data from anywhere with an internet connection. That access capability means we can work remotely or collaborate with team members across different locations, all with a high level of security.\nProvide safer, more secure storage for critical lab data: LIMS can help laboratories centralize and secure their various data and information. LIMS software provides a centralized location for all lab data, making it easy to access and share data with other team members. It also ensures that data is secure and protected from unauthorized access, especially when the LIMS is purpose-built to meet data- and information-related regulatory requirements.\nFacilitate better results interpretation and retrieval: LIMS can help laboratories interpret and retrieve results more quickly, increasing customer satisfaction and lab productivity.\nImprove billing processes: LIMS can help laboratories streamline their billing processes, improve record access, and provide greater insights into organizational financials.\nIncrease productivity: LIMS can help laboratories realize 10-20% productivity benefits based on a reduction in clerical work alone. By automating manual processes and providing easy access to lab data, LIMS software frees up time for researchers and analysts to focus on their core work. Using automated reporting, and giving clients controlled access to the system\u2014i.e., through a secure, administrator-controlled client portal\u2014for sample logging, along with having automated instrument connections for worklist downloading and data entry, will greatly increase those productivity gains.\nFacilitate collaboration: LIMS can help laboratories share data and collaborate on tasks and projects, resulting in improved communication and streamlined workflows.\nAs Chapter 2 points out, you'll also want to address how the LIMS acquisition and deployment specifically addresses organization goals and challenges. At this point you've already linked tangible and intangible benefits to organizational goals and challenges as part of your proposal research, and you'll want to make these connections clear to stakeholders. This might be best visualized in an easily digestible table, for example. Table 10 provides a few representative examples of this effort; your table may be larger and more extensive, but remember to keep it succinct and easy-to-understand.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nTable 10. An example of linking tangible and intangible benefits of LIMS acquisition and deployment to organizational goals and challenges.\n\n\nOrganizational goal\n\nTangible\/Intangible benefit\n\n\n\"Provide more timely results to clients...\"\n\nWe can better meet this goal with a LIMS, as we can save up to 22% of the time we currently spend manually processing samples and preparing them for analytical testing. Automated tracking with barcodes and a client portal for accessing results provides greater gains in timeliness, improving client satisfaction and, by extension, improving client retention.\n\n\n\"Further expand into the environmental testing industry...\"\n\nWe can better meet this goal with a LIMS, as our 22% time savings allows us to take on approximately 6% more workload. We estimate that through pre-loaded environmental workloads and LIMS integration with our environmental testing instruments, we could potentially take on up to another 5 to 6% without adding any additional personnel.\n\n\nOrganizational challenge\n\nTangible\/Intangible benefit\n\n\n\"We have a bottleneck in sample entry and test scheduling, losing up to six hours of productivity a week.\"\n\nA LIMS allows for more rapid, automated sample entry, tracking, and scheduling mechanisms, which could demonstrable recover that productivity loss plus an additional two hours. Adding a client portal where samples can be pre-registered before delivery can provide further efficiency to our lab workflow.\n\n\n\"Our clients are complaining about missing reports that we know we mailed.\"\n\nMost LIMS provide an administrator-controlled client portal, as an add-on, that will empower clients to view reports wherever and whenever, improving lab-client relations.\n\n\n\nAs for the economic and practical justifications and considerations mentioned in Chapter 2, you can find help in managing those in a compact way in Appendix 1 of this guide, which provides you with an Excel workbook containing many of the tools referenced in this guide. The LIMS Acquisition and Deployment Justification Workbook has five tabs addressing on-premises vs. cloud LIMS account costing and overall five-year costing, as well as the barcode benefits analysis tables and the tangible and intangible benefits of LIMS acquisition and deployment in tabular form, with value calculation fields. These tools can be readily implemented in any cheat sheet you pass on to upper management and other critical stakeholders as part of streamlining your overall proposal process. That it's already in Excel format makes it easy for you to add additional tabs for the above-mentioned broad LIMS education points and the expected organizational impact of the LIMS, as well as any other information that needs to be conveyed quickly in a tabular form.\n\nReferences \n\n\n\r\n\n\n-----Go to the next chapter of this guide-----\nCitation information for this chapter \nChapter: 3. Gaining buy-in from management and other stakeholders\nTitle: Justifying LIMS Acquisition and Deployment within Your Organization\nEdition: First Edition\nAuthor for citation: Joe Liscouski, Shawn E. Douglas\nLicense for content: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International\nPublication date: July 2023\n\r\n\n\n\n\n\n\nSource: <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external\" href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Gaining_buy-in_from_management_and_other_stakeholders\/Developing_a_cheat_sheet_for_management\">https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Gaining_buy-in_from_management_and_other_stakeholders\/Developing_a_cheat_sheet_for_management<\/a>\nNavigation menuPage actionsBookDiscussionView sourceHistoryPage actionsBookDiscussionMoreToolsIn other languagesPersonal toolsLog inNavigationMain pageEncyclopedic articlesRecent changesRandom pageHelp about MediaWikiSearch\u00a0 ToolsWhat links hereRelated changesSpecial pagesPermanent linkPage informationPopular publications\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\nPrint\/exportCreate a bookDownload as PDFDownload as PDFDownload as Plain textPrintable version This page was last edited on 26 July 2023, at 15:01.Content is available under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License unless otherwise noted.This page has been accessed 5 times.Privacy policyAbout LIMSWikiDisclaimers\n\n\n\n","e7bf013fa9d9cff80a5da448521e8bbc_html":"<body class=\"mediawiki ltr sitedir-ltr mw-hide-empty-elt ns-208 ns-subject page-Book_Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization_Gaining_buy-in_from_management_and_other_stakeholders_Developing_a_cheat_sheet_for_management rootpage-Book_Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization_Gaining_buy-in_from_management_and_other_stakeholders_Developing_a_cheat_sheet_for_management skin-monobook action-view skin--responsive\"><div id=\"rdp-ebb-globalWrapper\"><div id=\"rdp-ebb-column-content\"><div id=\"rdp-ebb-content\" class=\"mw-body\" role=\"main\"><a id=\"rdp-ebb-top\"><\/a>\n<h1 id=\"rdp-ebb-firstHeading\" class=\"firstHeading\" lang=\"en\">Book:Justifying LIMS Acquisition and Deployment within Your Organization\/Gaining buy-in from management and other stakeholders\/Developing a cheat sheet for management<\/h1><div id=\"rdp-ebb-bodyContent\" class=\"mw-body-content\"><!-- start content --><div id=\"rdp-ebb-mw-content-text\" lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\" class=\"mw-content-ltr\"><div class=\"mw-parser-output\"><div align=\"center\">-----Return to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Introduction\" title=\"Book:Justifying LIMS Acquisition and Deployment within Your Organization\/Introduction\" class=\"wiki-link\" data-key=\"05b67a0bceac708006b29f16d3336070\">the beginning<\/a> of this guide-----<\/div>\n<h3><span class=\"mw-headline\" id=\"3.3_Developing_a_cheat_sheet_for_management\">3.3 Developing a cheat sheet for management<\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Pitching a LIMS acquisition project is no simple task, to be sure, but one can arguably make the proposal process more effective if they provide information and tools that help stakeholders more effectively and rapidly understand the value and costs associated with the proposed LIMS project. As such, you may want to consider making a \"cheat sheet\" of sorts for critical stakeholders who will be the recipients of your proposal. \n<\/p><p>This cheat sheet could take many forms, homogenous or varied, but in the end it should be readily accessible and organized such that it's easy for recipients to make sense of its contents. Those contents will also vary, based upon the level of familiarity stakeholders have with LIMS and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Laboratory_informatics\" title=\"Laboratory informatics\" class=\"wiki-link\" data-key=\"00edfa43edcde538a695f6d429280301\">laboratory informatics<\/a> solutions. If management isn't familiar with a LIMS, you'll probably want to include a broader list of bullet points as to how LIMS can benefit labs of all types. That list might look something like this:\n<\/p><p><b>A LIMS can...<\/b>\n<\/p>\n<ul><li><i>Increase efficiency<\/i>: LIMS can help laboratories manage data more efficiently by eliminating data silos, managing standard operating procedures (SOPs), generating custom reports, facilitating data interoperability and exchange, tracking reagent inventories, and managing staff training. This in turn can minimize wasted resources.<\/li>\n<li><i>Improve process control<\/i>: LIMS can help laboratories better manage test\/sample status and workload evaluation, resulting in better customer support and smoother workflows. With a LIMS, these and other tasks are automated, so we can spend more time on what really matters: research and testing. As an added benefit, LIMS also reduces errors by automating manual processes and eliminating the potential for human error.<\/li>\n<li><i>More rapidly disseminate business data and analytical results<\/i>: LIMS can help laboratories communicate test results more quickly and accurately. In research, this means faster project execution and better decision-making. In production, this means faster release of products, quicker evaluation of incoming raw materials, and prevention of wasted products.<\/li>\n<li><i>Enable access to data anywhere, anytime<\/i>: Many LIMS can help laboratories access lab data from anywhere, particularly cloud-based LIMS. With cloud-based LIMS software, we can access lab data from anywhere with an internet connection. That access capability means we can work remotely or collaborate with team members across different locations, all with a high level of security.<\/li>\n<li><i>Provide safer, more secure storage for critical lab data<\/i>: LIMS can help laboratories centralize and secure their various data and information. LIMS software provides a centralized location for all lab data, making it easy to access and share data with other team members. It also ensures that data is secure and protected from unauthorized access, especially when the LIMS is purpose-built to meet data- and information-related regulatory requirements.<\/li>\n<li><i>Facilitate better results interpretation and retrieval<\/i>: LIMS can help laboratories interpret and retrieve results more quickly, increasing customer satisfaction and lab productivity.<\/li>\n<li><i>Improve billing processes<\/i>: LIMS can help laboratories streamline their billing processes, improve record access, and provide greater insights into organizational financials.<\/li>\n<li><i>Increase productivity<\/i>: LIMS can help laboratories realize 10-20% productivity benefits based on a reduction in clerical work alone. By automating manual processes and providing easy access to lab data, LIMS software frees up time for researchers and analysts to focus on their core work. Using automated reporting, and giving clients controlled access to the system\u2014i.e., through a secure, administrator-controlled client portal\u2014for sample logging, along with having automated instrument connections for worklist downloading and data entry, will greatly increase those productivity gains.<\/li>\n<li><i>Facilitate collaboration<\/i>: LIMS can help laboratories share data and collaborate on tasks and projects, resulting in improved communication and streamlined workflows.<\/li><\/ul>\n<p>As Chapter 2 points out, you'll also want to address how the LIMS acquisition and deployment specifically addresses organization goals and challenges. At this point you've already linked tangible and intangible benefits to organizational goals and challenges as part of your proposal research, and you'll want to make these connections clear to stakeholders. This might be best visualized in an easily digestible table, for example. Table 10 provides a few representative examples of this effort; your table may be larger and more extensive, but remember to keep it succinct and easy-to-understand.\n<\/p>\n<table style=\"\">\n<tbody><tr>\n<td style=\"vertical-align:top;\">\n<table class=\"wikitable\" border=\"1\" cellpadding=\"5\" cellspacing=\"0\" style=\"\">\n\n<tbody><tr>\n<td colspan=\"2\" style=\"background-color:white; padding-left:10px; padding-right:10px;\"><b>Table 10.<\/b> An example of linking tangible and intangible benefits of LIMS acquisition and deployment to organizational goals and challenges.\n<\/td><\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th style=\"background-color:#e2e2e2; padding-left:10px; padding-right:10px;\">Organizational goal\n<\/th>\n<th style=\"background-color:#e2e2e2; padding-left:10px; padding-right:10px;\">Tangible\/Intangible benefit\n<\/th><\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"background-color:white; padding-left:10px; padding-right:10px;\">\"Provide more timely results to clients...\"\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"background-color:white; padding-left:10px; padding-right:10px;\">We can better meet this goal with a LIMS, as we can save up to 22% of the time we currently spend manually processing samples and preparing them for analytical testing. Automated tracking with barcodes and a client portal for accessing results provides greater gains in timeliness, improving client satisfaction and, by extension, improving client retention.\n<\/td><\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"background-color:white; padding-left:10px; padding-right:10px;\">\"Further expand into the environmental testing industry...\"\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"background-color:white; padding-left:10px; padding-right:10px;\">We can better meet this goal with a LIMS, as our 22% time savings allows us to take on approximately 6% more workload. We estimate that through pre-loaded environmental workloads and LIMS integration with our environmental testing instruments, we could potentially take on up to another 5 to 6% without adding any additional personnel.\n<\/td><\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th style=\"background-color:#e2e2e2; padding-left:10px; padding-right:10px;\">Organizational challenge\n<\/th>\n<th style=\"background-color:#e2e2e2; padding-left:10px; padding-right:10px;\">Tangible\/Intangible benefit\n<\/th><\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"background-color:white; padding-left:10px; padding-right:10px;\">\"We have a bottleneck in sample entry and test scheduling, losing up to six hours of productivity a week.\"\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"background-color:white; padding-left:10px; padding-right:10px;\">A LIMS allows for more rapid, automated sample entry, tracking, and scheduling mechanisms, which could demonstrable recover that productivity loss plus an additional two hours. Adding a client portal where samples can be pre-registered before delivery can provide further efficiency to our lab workflow.\n<\/td><\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"background-color:white; padding-left:10px; padding-right:10px;\">\"Our clients are complaining about missing reports that we know we mailed.\"\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"background-color:white; padding-left:10px; padding-right:10px;\">Most LIMS provide an administrator-controlled client portal, as an add-on, that will empower clients to view reports wherever and whenever, improving lab-client relations.\n<\/td><\/tr>\n<\/tbody><\/table>\n<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table>\n<p>As for the economic and practical justifications and considerations mentioned in Chapter 2, you can find help in managing those in a compact way in Appendix 1 of this guide, which provides you with an Excel workbook containing many of the tools referenced in this guide. The LIMS Acquisition and Deployment Justification Workbook has five tabs addressing on-premises vs. cloud LIMS account costing and overall five-year costing, as well as the barcode benefits analysis tables and the tangible and intangible benefits of LIMS acquisition and deployment in tabular form, with value calculation fields. These tools can be readily implemented in any cheat sheet you pass on to upper management and other critical stakeholders as part of streamlining your overall proposal process. That it's already in Excel format makes it easy for you to add additional tabs for the above-mentioned broad LIMS education points and the expected organizational impact of the LIMS, as well as any other information that needs to be conveyed quickly in a tabular form.\n<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"mw-headline\" id=\"References\">References<\/span><\/h2>\n<div class=\"reflist references-column-width\" style=\"-moz-column-width: 30em; -webkit-column-width: 30em; column-width: 30em; list-style-type: decimal;\">\n<\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div align=\"center\">-----Go to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Closing_remarks\" title=\"Book:Justifying LIMS Acquisition and Deployment within Your Organization\/Closing remarks\" class=\"wiki-link\" data-key=\"ce573cd440bbb6ad0fdd5d74f44f2854\">the next chapter<\/a> of this guide-----<\/div>\n<h2><span class=\"mw-headline\" id=\"Citation_information_for_this_chapter\">Citation information for this chapter<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><b>Chapter<\/b>: 3. Gaining buy-in from management and other stakeholders\n<\/p><p><b>Title<\/b>: <i>Justifying LIMS Acquisition and Deployment within Your Organization<\/i>\n<\/p><p><b>Edition<\/b>: First Edition\n<\/p><p><b>Author for citation<\/b>: Joe Liscouski, Shawn E. Douglas\n<\/p><p><b>License for content<\/b>: <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external text\" href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/4.0\/\" target=\"_blank\">Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International<\/a>\n<\/p><p><b>Publication date<\/b>: July 2023\n<\/p><p><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<!-- \nNewPP limit report\nCached time: 20230726151428\nCache expiry: 86400\nDynamic content: false\nComplications: []\nCPU time usage: 0.019 seconds\nReal time usage: 0.025 seconds\nPreprocessor visited node count: 57\/1000000\nPost\u2010expand include size: 9172\/2097152 bytes\nTemplate argument size: 24\/2097152 bytes\nHighest expansion depth: 7\/40\nExpensive parser function count: 0\/100\nUnstrip recursion depth: 0\/20\nUnstrip post\u2010expand size: 0\/5000000 bytes\n-->\n<!--\nTransclusion expansion time report (%,ms,calls,template)\n100.00% 10.834 1 -total\n 65.99% 7.149 1 Template:Reflist\n 32.57% 3.529 1 Template:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Gaining_buy-in_from_management_and_other_stakeholders\/Developing_a_cheat_sheet_for_management\n 28.91% 3.132 1 Template:Column-width\n-->\n\n<!-- Saved in parser cache with key limswiki:pcache:idhash:14325-0!canonical and timestamp 20230726151428 and revision id 52655. Serialized with JSON.\n -->\n<\/div><\/div><div class=\"printfooter\">Source: <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external\" href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Gaining_buy-in_from_management_and_other_stakeholders\/Developing_a_cheat_sheet_for_management\">https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Gaining_buy-in_from_management_and_other_stakeholders\/Developing_a_cheat_sheet_for_management<\/a><\/div>\n<!-- end content --><div class=\"visualClear\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"visualClear\"><\/div><\/div><!-- end of the left (by default at least) column --><div class=\"visualClear\"><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<\/body>","e7bf013fa9d9cff80a5da448521e8bbc_images":[],"e7bf013fa9d9cff80a5da448521e8bbc_timestamp":1690384838,"c7a7580bb119421f473aa06193fab00a_type":"article","c7a7580bb119421f473aa06193fab00a_title":"3.2 Pitching the LIMS project","c7a7580bb119421f473aa06193fab00a_url":"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Gaining_buy-in_from_management_and_other_stakeholders\/Pitching_the_LIMS_project","c7a7580bb119421f473aa06193fab00a_plaintext":"\n\nBook:Justifying LIMS Acquisition and Deployment within Your Organization\/Gaining buy-in from management and other stakeholders\/Pitching the LIMS projectFrom LIMSWikiJump to navigationJump to search-----Return to the beginning of this guide-----\n3.2 Pitching the LIMS project \nWe now better understand that engagement with stakeholders is important to any LIMS acquisition and deployment plans. But what of the proposal itself? What are some optimal approaches to proposing a LIMS project to upper management and other relevant stakeholders? \nThe most common approach to pitching a LIMS project is developing a formal project proposal document. You or someone in your lab may have experience with creating such a document, but it's just as likely that you and your peers haven't needed to pitch a formal proposal to management before. This guide assumes you have limited experience at best in such an endeavor and offers some suggestions.\nA project proposal is a document (and an initial phase of project management) that condenses critical project aspects such as goals, challenges, timeline, and budget into a form that is succinct and more able to persuade stakeholders to buy into your project emotionally, fiscally, and intellectually. The presentation of this proposal happens early on in the overall project pathway. Note that the project proposal, however, differs slightly from project charters and business cases. A project charter comes after the proposal has gained approval, acting as a reference document that drives the project objectives, scope, and stakeholder requirements stated before and further developed after project approval. Business cases often come after the project proposal has been made, usually requested as an extension to any basic explanation of budget and return on investment (ROI) made in the project proposal. The business case further explains any financial requirements in greater detail for stakeholders, and it can even be integrated into a project proposal to make a more highly detailed initial proposal.[1][2][3][4][5]\nIn the case of pitching a LIMS proposal to upper management and other stakeholders, the project proposal will largely be unsolicited unless those stakeholders specifically came to you and other staff with a request for a proposal concerning quality and efficiency improvement in the lab. In either case, your research and writing still needs to be persuasive and compelling, as it likely won't be clear if the stakeholders have the necessary knowledge and understanding of what a LIMS could bring to your lab.[1] Chapter 2 has already addressed the organizational, economic, and practical justifications you may use to make your proposal more persuasive and compelling; these will serve you well. However, organizing these justifications, revelations, and other information in a succinct and clear fashion is another skill worth practicing (we'll talk about that organization shortly). Like other types of writing, knowing your audience well is also critical to making your proposal more compelling. For example, will the stakeholders respond better to a formal tone or a more casually written tone?[3] Finally, be willing to play the part of expert, even if you're feeling a bit like a fish out of water. Your proposal should clearly indicate why you think the LIMS option is the best option for your lab, followed by a ranking of any alternative options proposed. If you've done the necessary research, your proposal will demonstrate sufficient expertise and give further confidence to stakeholders.[4]\nWhile there is some room for flexibility in how you organize your proposal, the most common way includes[1][3][4][5]:\n\nAn executive summary of the proposal;\nA project background, including the organizational goals, challenges, and risks being addressed;\nA project solution, including how your solution(s) complement the stated goals and address the stated challenges and risks;\nA set of defined deliverables and goals, including projected timelines, expected ROI, and other metrics for measuring success;\nA declaration of resources, including any projected budgetary and operational requirements and allocations; and\nA conclusion, which confidently and clearly restates your case.\nThe executive summary should be brief and succinctly address the goals, challenges, and risk the LIMS project plans to address; how the LIMS will address those goals, challenges, and risks; and the impact the LIMS will demonstrably have upon implementation and use. As these topics will be addressed later in more detail in the project proposal, remember that this introduction serves as the \"hook\" that will help keep stakeholders engaged with your proposal from the beginning.[1] The project background will then tap into the organizational justifications we talked about in Chapter 2.1, including organizational goals and how the current organizational challenges and risks undercut those goals. You also have an opportunity to discuss prior attempts to address those same challenges and risks and how those attempts were inadequate.[1] Your project solution\u2014the LIMS\u2014is then discussed. Here you'll be examining how organizational goals intersect with how a LIMS would positively address organizational challenges and risks. In presenting your solution here, you'll include a vision statement of how the LIMS will positively impact and improve the laboratory environment, as well as the organization overall. You'll also discuss the timeline for the project, who will be involved and what role they'll play, how risk will be mitigated through LIMS implementation and use, what will be delivered, and how progress will be communicated and reported.[1] You'll then address your deliverables and goals, helping to give stakeholders a clearer view into what their approval and resources will gain them. Here the stakeholder should discover the final actionable goals of LIMS acquisition and deployment (they should be specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and time-bound [SMART]), a clearer timeline of the project, and any other deliverable-based metrics of project success.[1][6] The project's declaration of resources will more clearly describe how resources will be allocated to costs and other operational requirements. You may have already mentioned ROI previously in the other sections, but you'll likely want to get into more details at this point to make clearer the projected costs, budget, and resource allocations requirements needed to finally convince stakeholders to approve your LIMS project. Finally, your conclusion should briefly state how the points in the executive summary were addressed, while emphasizing the impact the LIMS will have on the lab and organization in a relevant and clear fashion.[1]\nThe order of the items may be negotiable if a strong case can be made. While your executive summary and conclusion should necessarily remain as the bookends to your proposal, the items in the middle may have some room to move. However, the above order still has advantages. As Purdue University notes[3]:\n\nAs you organize the rest of your proposal, consider what makes the most logical sense. Is it a good idea to present success metrics before your plan? Perhaps, if you believe these metrics will be very compelling and viewing them first will appeal to your client. Always consider your audience when creating a proposal.\r\n \r\nAdditionally, it\u2019s smart to keep resource requests toward the end. Use the earlier sections to sell your idea as best you can. Proving your value early can get stakeholders excited about your ideas and increase the likelihood that they will accommodate your requests.\n3.2.1 A note about focusing too much on ROI \nUndoubtedly, discussing topics like ROI and budgetary requirements are a vital part of any project proposal, and a cost-benefit analysis of most any potential project is a natural and expected part of effectively running an organization. In particular, account and purchase managers traditionally turn to ROI as an accounting tool for making decisions about proposed investments and purchases. However, it turns out that ROI may not be the most important topic of a LIMS project proposal. We already mentioned in the previous chapter how there are intangible benefits to acquiring and deploying a LIMS in your lab, and those intangible benefits can be difficult to translate into any ROI calculations, potentially painting an incomplete picture based on economics. Now consider another reason why ROI may not paint a complete picture to stakeholders participating in your proposal: a LIMS is also a \"survival system.\" \nLet's consider why stakeholders may have a strong bias towards using ROI to evaluate your proposal. The further removed a stakeholder is from your laboratory in the corporate organizational chart, the less familiar they will be with what your lab does, its operational workflow, and how it contributes to the organization's operations and success. They may not be aware that the progress of research programs depends upon the results your lab generates, or, in the case of QC labs, that the lab is tasked with ensuring that incoming raw materials are suitable for production and avoiding off-spec products from being produced and shipped, catching problems before they become serious. They may not be able to see the bigger picture of lab operations for lack of understanding and knowledge, but they may very well understand and have knowledge about budgets, accounting terms, and the ROI concept. As such, they may not fully appreciate the impact that a LIMS can have on your lab and how it can improve corporate information flow. In short, you have an education problem to resolve if you want their understanding and support. Instinctively, you may want to turn to ROI discussions in your proposal in an attempt to meet them halfway. But there's more to consider with this approach. \nLet's look at a comparison, using laboratory equipment add-ons vs. base laboratory instrumentation as an example. Within the laboratory space, discussions about ROI are appropriate if you\u2019re discussing upgrading the capabilities of an instrument with additional equipment. For example, suppose you have an instrument, and you want to add equipment to it, such as a chromatograph or an atomic absorption spectrophotometer. Back in the day, they were sold without computers and used a strip chart recorder to record their output. The analyst's work included sample preparation, introducing the sample into the instrument (manually), and taking the strip chart output and converting it to usable results when all the samples were processed. All the work was performed manually. \nIf we wanted to add a computerized tool to capture the instrument data and perform the analysis, we could build a case that the computer system would cost a certain amount, and we'd then determine how much time it would save the analyst, as well as any other benefits, and finally justify the purchase. Adding an auto-injector could be done the same way, and adding both would create a synergist improvement that far outweighs the equipment cost. Here ROI is a perfectly useful basis for justification of the equipment add-on. But that doesn't extend to the basic instrument.\nThe lab's role is to carry out testing to meet its goals. The instrument is needed to make it possible to do the required testing. The justification for the instrument isn't based on ROI but rather on the need to accomplish the lab's goals so the overall organization benefits. The justification for having and maintaining the instrument is a survival issue. The lab can't fulfill its role without the instrument, as the data needed to support research and production hinges upon having that reliable, accurate, well-maintained instrument. Without the data, the research program is hindered, and production won't know if its products will meet specifications. \nSimilarly, a LIMS can be argued as a survival system during project proposal, without which the lab could not effectively meet its goals. (Again, this is where tying LIMS acquisition to organizational goals, as discussed at the beginning of Chapter 2, is vital to your proposal.) The LIMS, as detailed throughout this guide, can be seen as a transformational system for most any lab. Sure, small labs can manage to function with paper-based or spreadsheet systems. Still, they will soon become overwhelmed with data management, reporting, and inefficient\/ineffective operations management issues. Properly implementing a LIMS will increase the operational effectiveness of a lab and help it meet organizational goals and regulatory requirements. It is not just an incremental addition to a lab product set but rather the basis for reorganizing how the lab works to meet its goals, supports its clients with electronic communications, and prepares it for its future development. In short, you will be moving from completely manual (paper) or near-manual (spreadsheet) operations to an electronic system that permits both local and remote operations simultaneously, an improved working environment with reduced administrative overhead.\nIf upper management and other critical stakeholders have trouble understanding the LIMS from the standpoint of being a survival system, you can take several approaches. First, if stakeholders tend to think in terms of dollars more than \"laboratory workflows\" and \"computerized audit trails,\" help them understand LIMS as a survival system in terms of dollars. That may looks something like this: \n\nWell, Stakeholder A, I'm not sure we can survive this competitive market in the long term without a LIMS. Can we afford any fines ($) from lack of compliance with Regulation B, which the lab must firmly adhere to? Can we afford a potential decrease in clientele ($) and business income ($) by not streamlining our laboratory workflow and freeing up full-time equivalent (FTE) hours ($) to take on more paying work ($)? A LIMS also helps us meet Organization Goals C, D, and E, which are critical to the organization's overall survival ($) and success going forward.\nHere, you are weaving something they understand into something you're trying to educate them on: your laboratory's operations and how its survival may very well depend on the LIMS. If they need something more they can identify with, you can also compare the laboratory and a LIMS to their departments and its systems. How vital is the company accounting information system to the accounting department, and how would it operate in a paper-only environment? What would the production environment look like if it were relegated from using its enterprise reporting program (ERP), manufacturing execution system (MES), or product lifecycle management (PLM) solutions to using manual operations? Then compare their responses about regulatory concerns, lost contracts, and production delays to similar concerns related to your lab's operations, highlighting that their systems are no different a \"survival\" concern than the LIMS. As such, acquiring and deploying a LIMS isn't primarily an ROI concern; it's a matter of the organization surviving in an increasingly competitive and regulated environment. Yes, ROI discussions are important, but be sure to impress upon stakeholders in your proposal that there's more to it than that.\n\nReferences \n\n\n\u2191 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 Team Asana (8 November 2022). \"6 steps for writing a persuasive project proposal\". asana - Resources. https:\/\/asana.com\/resources\/project-proposal . Retrieved 19 July 2023 .   \n \n\n\u2191 Martins, J. (5 October 2022). \"The beginner\u2019s guide to writing an effective business case\". asana - Resources. https:\/\/asana.com\/resources\/business-case . Retrieved 19 July 2023 .   \n \n\n\u2191 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 \"3 Quick Tips for Creating a Successful Project Proposal\". Purdue University. 16 September 2022. https:\/\/www.purdue.edu\/projectmanagementcertification\/news\/3-quick-tips-for-creating-a-successful-project-proposal\/ . Retrieved 19 July 2023 .   \n \n\n\u2191 4.0 4.1 4.2 Guthrie, G. (28 March 2021). \"Everything you need to know to create a winning business case\". nulab - Learn. https:\/\/nulab.com\/learn\/project-management\/everything-you-need-to-know-to-create-a-winning-business-case\/ . Retrieved 19 July 2023 .   \n \n\n\u2191 5.0 5.1 McDowall, R.D. (1995). \"The Management of Laboratory Information\". In Christy, Alfred A.; Einax, J\u00fcrgen; Hutzinger, Otto. Chemometrics in environmental chemistry - applications. The handbook of environmental chemistry \/ ed. by O. Hutzinger Vol. 2, Reactions and processes. Berlin: Springer. pp. 281\u20132. ISBN 978-3-540-49150-7. https:\/\/books.google.com\/books?id=YeyjBwAAQBAJ&pg=PA281 .   \n \n\n\u2191 Martins, J. (19 July 2022). \"How to write SMART goals (and why they matter)\". asana - Resources. https:\/\/asana.com\/resources\/smart-goals . Retrieved 19 July 2023 .   \n \n\n\n\n\n\n\nSource: <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external\" href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Gaining_buy-in_from_management_and_other_stakeholders\/Pitching_the_LIMS_project\">https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Gaining_buy-in_from_management_and_other_stakeholders\/Pitching_the_LIMS_project<\/a>\nNavigation menuPage actionsBookDiscussionView sourceHistoryPage actionsBookDiscussionMoreToolsIn other languagesPersonal toolsLog inNavigationMain pageEncyclopedic articlesRecent changesRandom pageHelp about MediaWikiSearch\u00a0 ToolsWhat links hereRelated changesSpecial pagesPermanent linkPage informationPopular publications\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\nPrint\/exportCreate a bookDownload as PDFDownload as PDFDownload as Plain textPrintable version This page was last edited on 26 July 2023, at 14:59.Content is available under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License unless otherwise noted.This page has been accessed 5 times.Privacy policyAbout LIMSWikiDisclaimers\n\n\n\n","c7a7580bb119421f473aa06193fab00a_html":"<body class=\"mediawiki ltr sitedir-ltr mw-hide-empty-elt ns-208 ns-subject page-Book_Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization_Gaining_buy-in_from_management_and_other_stakeholders_Pitching_the_LIMS_project rootpage-Book_Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization_Gaining_buy-in_from_management_and_other_stakeholders_Pitching_the_LIMS_project skin-monobook action-view skin--responsive\"><div id=\"rdp-ebb-globalWrapper\"><div id=\"rdp-ebb-column-content\"><div id=\"rdp-ebb-content\" class=\"mw-body\" role=\"main\"><a id=\"rdp-ebb-top\"><\/a>\n<h1 id=\"rdp-ebb-firstHeading\" class=\"firstHeading\" lang=\"en\">Book:Justifying LIMS Acquisition and Deployment within Your Organization\/Gaining buy-in from management and other stakeholders\/Pitching the LIMS project<\/h1><div id=\"rdp-ebb-bodyContent\" class=\"mw-body-content\"><!-- start content --><div id=\"rdp-ebb-mw-content-text\" lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\" class=\"mw-content-ltr\"><div class=\"mw-parser-output\"><div align=\"center\">-----Return to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Introduction\" title=\"Book:Justifying LIMS Acquisition and Deployment within Your Organization\/Introduction\" class=\"wiki-link\" data-key=\"05b67a0bceac708006b29f16d3336070\">the beginning<\/a> of this guide-----<\/div>\n<h3><span class=\"mw-headline\" id=\"3.2_Pitching_the_LIMS_project\">3.2 Pitching the LIMS project<\/span><\/h3>\n<div class=\"floatright\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/File:Project_Management_(phases).png\" class=\"image wiki-link\" data-key=\"9c9c696ddd560f4ebe4516d224edf38e\"><img alt=\"Project Management (phases).png\" src=\"https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/b\/bb\/Project_Management_%28phases%29.png\" decoding=\"async\" style=\"width: 100%;max-width: 400px;height: auto;\" \/><\/a><\/div><p>We now better understand that engagement with stakeholders is important to any LIMS acquisition and deployment plans. But what of the proposal itself? What are some optimal approaches to proposing a LIMS project to upper management and other relevant stakeholders? \n<\/p><p>The most common approach to pitching a LIMS project is developing a formal project proposal document. You or someone in your lab may have experience with creating such a document, but it's just as likely that you and your peers haven't needed to pitch a formal proposal to management before. This guide assumes you have limited experience at best in such an endeavor and offers some suggestions.\n<\/p><p>A project proposal is a document (and an initial phase of project management) that condenses critical project aspects such as goals, challenges, timeline, and budget into a form that is succinct and more able to persuade stakeholders to buy into your project emotionally, fiscally, and intellectually. The presentation of this proposal happens early on in the overall project pathway. Note that the project proposal, however, differs slightly from project charters and business cases. A project charter comes after the proposal has gained approval, acting as a reference document that drives the project objectives, scope, and stakeholder requirements stated before and further developed after project approval. Business cases often come after the project proposal has been made, usually requested as an extension to any basic explanation of budget and return on investment (ROI) made in the project proposal. The business case further explains any financial requirements in greater detail for stakeholders, and it can even be integrated into a project proposal to make a more highly detailed initial proposal.<sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-TA6Steps22_1-0\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-TA6Steps22-1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup><sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-MartinsTheBeg22_2-0\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-MartinsTheBeg22-2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup><sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-PU3Quick22_3-0\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-PU3Quick22-3\">[3]<\/a><\/sup><sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-GuthrieEvery21_4-0\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-GuthrieEvery21-4\">[4]<\/a><\/sup><sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-:1_5-0\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-:1-5\">[5]<\/a><\/sup>\n<\/p><p>In the case of pitching a LIMS proposal to upper management and other stakeholders, the project proposal will largely be unsolicited unless those stakeholders specifically came to you and other staff with a request for a proposal concerning quality and efficiency improvement in the lab. In either case, your research and writing still needs to be persuasive and compelling, as it likely won't be clear if the stakeholders have the necessary knowledge and understanding of what a LIMS could bring to your lab.<sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-TA6Steps22_1-1\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-TA6Steps22-1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup> Chapter 2 has already addressed the organizational, economic, and practical justifications you may use to make your proposal more persuasive and compelling; these will serve you well. However, organizing these justifications, revelations, and other information in a succinct and clear fashion is another skill worth practicing (we'll talk about that organization shortly). Like other types of writing, knowing your audience well is also critical to making your proposal more compelling. For example, will the stakeholders respond better to a formal tone or a more casually written tone?<sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-PU3Quick22_3-1\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-PU3Quick22-3\">[3]<\/a><\/sup> Finally, be willing to play the part of expert, even if you're feeling a bit like a fish out of water. Your proposal should clearly indicate why you think the LIMS option is the best option for your lab, followed by a ranking of any alternative options proposed. If you've done the necessary research, your proposal will demonstrate sufficient expertise and give further confidence to stakeholders.<sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-GuthrieEvery21_4-1\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-GuthrieEvery21-4\">[4]<\/a><\/sup>\n<\/p><p>While there is some room for flexibility in how you organize your proposal, the most common way includes<sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-TA6Steps22_1-2\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-TA6Steps22-1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup><sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-PU3Quick22_3-2\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-PU3Quick22-3\">[3]<\/a><\/sup><sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-GuthrieEvery21_4-2\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-GuthrieEvery21-4\">[4]<\/a><\/sup><sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-:1_5-1\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-:1-5\">[5]<\/a><\/sup>:\n<\/p>\n<ol><li>An executive summary of the proposal;<\/li>\n<li>A project background, including the organizational goals, challenges, and risks being addressed;<\/li>\n<li>A project solution, including how your solution(s) complement the stated goals and address the stated challenges and risks;<\/li>\n<li>A set of defined deliverables and goals, including projected timelines, expected ROI, and other metrics for measuring success;<\/li>\n<li>A declaration of resources, including any projected budgetary and operational requirements and allocations; and<\/li>\n<li>A conclusion, which confidently and clearly restates your case.<\/li><\/ol>\n<p>The executive summary should be brief and succinctly address the goals, challenges, and risk the LIMS project plans to address; how the LIMS will address those goals, challenges, and risks; and the impact the LIMS will demonstrably have upon implementation and use. As these topics will be addressed later in more detail in the project proposal, remember that this introduction serves as the \"hook\" that will help keep stakeholders engaged with your proposal from the beginning.<sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-TA6Steps22_1-3\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-TA6Steps22-1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup> The project background will then tap into the organizational justifications we talked about in Chapter 2.1, including organizational goals and how the current organizational challenges and risks undercut those goals. You also have an opportunity to discuss prior attempts to address those same challenges and risks and how those attempts were inadequate.<sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-TA6Steps22_1-4\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-TA6Steps22-1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup> Your project solution\u2014the LIMS\u2014is then discussed. Here you'll be examining how organizational goals intersect with how a LIMS would positively address organizational challenges and risks. In presenting your solution here, you'll include a vision statement of how the LIMS will positively impact and improve the laboratory environment, as well as the organization overall. You'll also discuss the timeline for the project, who will be involved and what role they'll play, how risk will be mitigated through LIMS implementation and use, what will be delivered, and how progress will be communicated and reported.<sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-TA6Steps22_1-5\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-TA6Steps22-1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup> You'll then address your deliverables and goals, helping to give stakeholders a clearer view into what their approval and resources will gain them. Here the stakeholder should discover the final actionable goals of LIMS acquisition and deployment (they should be specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and time-bound [SMART]), a clearer timeline of the project, and any other deliverable-based metrics of project success.<sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-TA6Steps22_1-6\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-TA6Steps22-1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup><sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-MartinsHowToWrite22_6-0\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-MartinsHowToWrite22-6\">[6]<\/a><\/sup> The project's declaration of resources will more clearly describe how resources will be allocated to costs and other operational requirements. You may have already mentioned ROI previously in the other sections, but you'll likely want to get into more details at this point to make clearer the projected costs, budget, and resource allocations requirements needed to finally convince stakeholders to approve your LIMS project. Finally, your conclusion should briefly state how the points in the executive summary were addressed, while emphasizing the impact the LIMS will have on the lab and organization in a relevant and clear fashion.<sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-TA6Steps22_1-7\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-TA6Steps22-1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup>\n<\/p><p>The order of the items may be negotiable if a strong case can be made. While your executive summary and conclusion should necessarily remain as the bookends to your proposal, the items in the middle may have some room to move. However, the above order still has advantages. As Purdue University notes<sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-PU3Quick22_3-3\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-PU3Quick22-3\">[3]<\/a><\/sup>:\n<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>As you organize the rest of your proposal, consider what makes the most logical sense. Is it a good idea to present success metrics before your plan? Perhaps, if you believe these metrics will be very compelling and viewing them first will appeal to your client. Always consider your audience when creating a proposal.<br \/> <br \/>Additionally, it\u2019s smart to keep resource requests toward the end. Use the earlier sections to sell your idea as best you can. Proving your value early can get stakeholders excited about your ideas and increase the likelihood that they will accommodate your requests.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<h4><span class=\"mw-headline\" id=\"3.2.1_A_note_about_focusing_too_much_on_ROI\">3.2.1 A note about focusing too much on ROI<\/span><\/h4>\n<div class=\"floatright\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/File:Cost_Risk_Return_vv.svg\" class=\"image wiki-link\" data-key=\"871fd2ddb4b9f7ecf948469ee638ac3c\"><img alt=\"Cost Risk Return vv.svg\" src=\"https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/1\/10\/Cost_Risk_Return_vv.svg\/400px-Cost_Risk_Return_vv.svg.png\" decoding=\"async\" style=\"width: 100%;max-width: 400px;height: auto;\" \/><\/a><\/div><p>Undoubtedly, discussing topics like ROI and budgetary requirements are a vital part of any project proposal, and a cost-benefit analysis of most any potential project is a natural and expected part of effectively running an organization. In particular, account and purchase managers traditionally turn to ROI as an accounting tool for making decisions about proposed investments and purchases. However, it turns out that ROI may not be the most important topic of a LIMS project proposal. We already mentioned in the previous chapter how there are intangible benefits to acquiring and deploying a LIMS in your lab, and those intangible benefits can be difficult to translate into any ROI calculations, potentially painting an incomplete picture based on economics. Now consider another reason why ROI may not paint a complete picture to stakeholders participating in your proposal: a LIMS is also a \"survival system.\" \n<\/p><p>Let's consider why stakeholders may have a strong bias towards using ROI to evaluate your proposal. The further removed a stakeholder is from your laboratory in the corporate organizational chart, the less familiar they will be with what your lab does, its operational workflow, and how it contributes to the organization's operations and success. They may not be aware that the progress of research programs depends upon the results your lab generates, or, in the case of QC labs, that the lab is tasked with ensuring that incoming raw materials are suitable for production and avoiding off-spec products from being produced and shipped, catching problems before they become serious. They may not be able to see the bigger picture of lab operations for lack of understanding and knowledge, but they may very well understand and have knowledge about budgets, accounting terms, and the ROI concept. As such, they may not fully appreciate the impact that a LIMS can have on your lab and how it can improve corporate information flow. In short, you have an education problem to resolve if you want their understanding and support. Instinctively, you may want to turn to ROI discussions in your proposal in an attempt to meet them halfway. But there's more to consider with this approach. \n<\/p><p>Let's look at a comparison, using laboratory equipment add-ons vs. base laboratory instrumentation as an example. Within the laboratory space, discussions about ROI are appropriate if you\u2019re discussing upgrading the capabilities of an instrument with additional equipment. For example, suppose you have an instrument, and you want to add equipment to it, such as a chromatograph or an atomic absorption spectrophotometer. Back in the day, they were sold without computers and used a strip chart recorder to record their output. The analyst's work included sample preparation, introducing the sample into the instrument (manually), and taking the strip chart output and converting it to usable results when all the samples were processed. All the work was performed manually. \n<\/p><p>If we wanted to add a computerized tool to capture the instrument data and perform the analysis, we could build a case that the computer system would cost a certain amount, and we'd then determine how much time it would save the analyst, as well as any other benefits, and finally justify the purchase. Adding an auto-injector could be done the same way, and adding both would create a synergist improvement that far outweighs the equipment cost. Here ROI is a perfectly useful basis for justification of the equipment add-on. But that doesn't extend to the basic instrument.\n<\/p><p>The lab's role is to carry out testing to meet its goals. The instrument is needed to make it possible to do the required testing. The justification for the instrument isn't based on ROI but rather on the need to accomplish the lab's goals so the overall organization benefits. The justification for having and maintaining the instrument is a survival issue. The lab can't fulfill its role without the instrument, as the data needed to support research and production hinges upon having that reliable, accurate, well-maintained instrument. Without the data, the research program is hindered, and production won't know if its products will meet specifications. \n<\/p><p>Similarly, a LIMS can be argued as a survival system during project proposal, without which the lab could not effectively meet its goals. (Again, this is where tying LIMS acquisition to organizational goals, as discussed at the beginning of Chapter 2, is vital to your proposal.) The LIMS, as detailed throughout this guide, can be seen as a transformational system for most any lab. Sure, small labs can manage to function with paper-based or spreadsheet systems. Still, they will soon become overwhelmed with data management, reporting, and inefficient\/ineffective operations management issues. Properly implementing a LIMS will increase the operational effectiveness of a lab and help it meet organizational goals and regulatory requirements. It is not just an incremental addition to a lab product set but rather the basis for reorganizing how the lab works to meet its goals, supports its clients with electronic communications, and prepares it for its future development. In short, you will be moving from completely manual (paper) or near-manual (spreadsheet) operations to an electronic system that permits both local and remote operations simultaneously, an improved working environment with reduced administrative overhead.\n<\/p><p>If upper management and other critical stakeholders have trouble understanding the LIMS from the standpoint of being a survival system, you can take several approaches. First, if stakeholders tend to think in terms of dollars more than \"laboratory workflows\" and \"computerized audit trails,\" help them understand LIMS as a survival system in terms of dollars. That may looks something like this: \n<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>Well, Stakeholder A, I'm not sure we can survive this competitive market in the long term without a LIMS. Can we afford any fines ($) from lack of compliance with Regulation B, which the lab must firmly adhere to? Can we afford a potential decrease in clientele ($) and business income ($) by not streamlining our laboratory workflow and freeing up full-time equivalent (FTE) hours ($) to take on more paying work ($)? A LIMS also helps us meet Organization Goals C, D, and E, which are critical to the organization's overall survival ($) and success going forward.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Here, you are weaving something they understand into something you're trying to educate them on: your laboratory's operations and how its survival may very well depend on the LIMS. If they need something more they can identify with, you can also compare the laboratory and a LIMS to their departments and its systems. How vital is the company accounting information system to the accounting department, and how would it operate in a paper-only environment? What would the production environment look like if it were relegated from using its enterprise reporting program (ERP), <a href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Manufacturing_execution_system\" title=\"Manufacturing execution system\" class=\"wiki-link\" data-key=\"02e93282eda3e4708b1789cb47519917\">manufacturing execution system<\/a> (MES), or product lifecycle management (PLM) solutions to using manual operations? Then compare their responses about regulatory concerns, lost contracts, and production delays to similar concerns related to your lab's operations, highlighting that their systems are no different a \"survival\" concern than the LIMS. As such, acquiring and deploying a LIMS isn't primarily an ROI concern; it's a matter of the organization surviving in an increasingly competitive and regulated environment. Yes, ROI discussions are important, but be sure to impress upon stakeholders in your proposal that there's more to it than that.\n<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"mw-headline\" id=\"References\">References<\/span><\/h2>\n<div class=\"reflist references-column-width\" style=\"-moz-column-width: 30em; -webkit-column-width: 30em; column-width: 30em; list-style-type: decimal;\">\n<div class=\"mw-references-wrap\"><ol class=\"references\">\n<li id=\"cite_note-TA6Steps22-1\"><span class=\"mw-cite-backlink\">\u2191 <sup><a href=\"#cite_ref-TA6Steps22_1-0\">1.0<\/a><\/sup> <sup><a href=\"#cite_ref-TA6Steps22_1-1\">1.1<\/a><\/sup> <sup><a href=\"#cite_ref-TA6Steps22_1-2\">1.2<\/a><\/sup> <sup><a href=\"#cite_ref-TA6Steps22_1-3\">1.3<\/a><\/sup> <sup><a href=\"#cite_ref-TA6Steps22_1-4\">1.4<\/a><\/sup> <sup><a href=\"#cite_ref-TA6Steps22_1-5\">1.5<\/a><\/sup> <sup><a href=\"#cite_ref-TA6Steps22_1-6\">1.6<\/a><\/sup> <sup><a href=\"#cite_ref-TA6Steps22_1-7\">1.7<\/a><\/sup><\/span> <span class=\"reference-text\"><span class=\"citation web\">Team Asana (8 November 2022). <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external text\" href=\"https:\/\/asana.com\/resources\/project-proposal\" target=\"_blank\">\"6 steps for writing a persuasive project proposal\"<\/a>. <i>asana - Resources<\/i><span class=\"printonly\">. <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external free\" href=\"https:\/\/asana.com\/resources\/project-proposal\" target=\"_blank\">https:\/\/asana.com\/resources\/project-proposal<\/a><\/span><span class=\"reference-accessdate\">. Retrieved 19 July 2023<\/span>.<\/span><span class=\"Z3988\" title=\"ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.btitle=6+steps+for+writing+a+persuasive+project+proposal&rft.atitle=asana+-+Resources&rft.aulast=Team+Asana&rft.au=Team+Asana&rft.date=8+November+2022&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fasana.com%2Fresources%2Fproject-proposal&rfr_id=info:sid\/en.wikipedia.org:Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Gaining_buy-in_from_management_and_other_stakeholders\/Pitching_the_LIMS_project\"><span style=\"display: none;\"> <\/span><\/span>\n<\/span>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"cite_note-MartinsTheBeg22-2\"><span class=\"mw-cite-backlink\"><a href=\"#cite_ref-MartinsTheBeg22_2-0\">\u2191<\/a><\/span> <span class=\"reference-text\"><span class=\"citation web\">Martins, J. (5 October 2022). <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external text\" href=\"https:\/\/asana.com\/resources\/business-case\" target=\"_blank\">\"The beginner\u2019s guide to writing an effective business case\"<\/a>. <i>asana - Resources<\/i><span class=\"printonly\">. <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external free\" href=\"https:\/\/asana.com\/resources\/business-case\" target=\"_blank\">https:\/\/asana.com\/resources\/business-case<\/a><\/span><span class=\"reference-accessdate\">. Retrieved 19 July 2023<\/span>.<\/span><span class=\"Z3988\" title=\"ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.btitle=The+beginner%E2%80%99s+guide+to+writing+an+effective+business+case&rft.atitle=asana+-+Resources&rft.aulast=Martins%2C+J.&rft.au=Martins%2C+J.&rft.date=5+October+2022&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fasana.com%2Fresources%2Fbusiness-case&rfr_id=info:sid\/en.wikipedia.org:Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Gaining_buy-in_from_management_and_other_stakeholders\/Pitching_the_LIMS_project\"><span style=\"display: none;\"> <\/span><\/span>\n<\/span>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"cite_note-PU3Quick22-3\"><span class=\"mw-cite-backlink\">\u2191 <sup><a href=\"#cite_ref-PU3Quick22_3-0\">3.0<\/a><\/sup> <sup><a href=\"#cite_ref-PU3Quick22_3-1\">3.1<\/a><\/sup> <sup><a href=\"#cite_ref-PU3Quick22_3-2\">3.2<\/a><\/sup> <sup><a href=\"#cite_ref-PU3Quick22_3-3\">3.3<\/a><\/sup><\/span> <span class=\"reference-text\"><span class=\"citation web\"><a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external text\" href=\"https:\/\/www.purdue.edu\/projectmanagementcertification\/news\/3-quick-tips-for-creating-a-successful-project-proposal\/\" target=\"_blank\">\"3 Quick Tips for Creating a Successful Project Proposal\"<\/a>. Purdue University. 16 September 2022<span class=\"printonly\">. <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external free\" href=\"https:\/\/www.purdue.edu\/projectmanagementcertification\/news\/3-quick-tips-for-creating-a-successful-project-proposal\/\" target=\"_blank\">https:\/\/www.purdue.edu\/projectmanagementcertification\/news\/3-quick-tips-for-creating-a-successful-project-proposal\/<\/a><\/span><span class=\"reference-accessdate\">. Retrieved 19 July 2023<\/span>.<\/span><span class=\"Z3988\" title=\"ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.btitle=3+Quick+Tips+for+Creating+a+Successful+Project+Proposal&rft.atitle=&rft.date=16+September+2022&rft.pub=Purdue+University&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.purdue.edu%2Fprojectmanagementcertification%2Fnews%2F3-quick-tips-for-creating-a-successful-project-proposal%2F&rfr_id=info:sid\/en.wikipedia.org:Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Gaining_buy-in_from_management_and_other_stakeholders\/Pitching_the_LIMS_project\"><span style=\"display: none;\"> <\/span><\/span>\n<\/span>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"cite_note-GuthrieEvery21-4\"><span class=\"mw-cite-backlink\">\u2191 <sup><a href=\"#cite_ref-GuthrieEvery21_4-0\">4.0<\/a><\/sup> <sup><a href=\"#cite_ref-GuthrieEvery21_4-1\">4.1<\/a><\/sup> <sup><a href=\"#cite_ref-GuthrieEvery21_4-2\">4.2<\/a><\/sup><\/span> <span class=\"reference-text\"><span class=\"citation web\">Guthrie, G. (28 March 2021). <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external text\" href=\"https:\/\/nulab.com\/learn\/project-management\/everything-you-need-to-know-to-create-a-winning-business-case\/\" target=\"_blank\">\"Everything you need to know to create a winning business case\"<\/a>. <i>nulab - Learn<\/i><span class=\"printonly\">. <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external free\" href=\"https:\/\/nulab.com\/learn\/project-management\/everything-you-need-to-know-to-create-a-winning-business-case\/\" target=\"_blank\">https:\/\/nulab.com\/learn\/project-management\/everything-you-need-to-know-to-create-a-winning-business-case\/<\/a><\/span><span class=\"reference-accessdate\">. 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(1995). <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external text\" href=\"https:\/\/books.google.com\/books?id=YeyjBwAAQBAJ&pg=PA281\" target=\"_blank\">\"The Management of Laboratory Information\"<\/a>. In Christy, Alfred A.; Einax, J\u00fcrgen; Hutzinger, Otto. <i>Chemometrics in environmental chemistry - applications<\/i>. The handbook of environmental chemistry \/ ed. by O. Hutzinger Vol. 2, Reactions and processes. Berlin: Springer. pp. 281\u20132. <a rel=\"nofollow\" class=\"external text wiki-link\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/International_Standard_Book_Number\" data-key=\"f64947ba21e884434bd70e8d9e60bae6\">ISBN<\/a> 978-3-540-49150-7<span class=\"printonly\">. <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external free\" href=\"https:\/\/books.google.com\/books?id=YeyjBwAAQBAJ&pg=PA281\" target=\"_blank\">https:\/\/books.google.com\/books?id=YeyjBwAAQBAJ&pg=PA281<\/a><\/span>.<\/span><span class=\"Z3988\" title=\"ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.btitle=The+Management+of+Laboratory+Information&rft.atitle=Chemometrics+in+environmental+chemistry+-+applications&rft.aulast=McDowall%2C+R.D.&rft.au=McDowall%2C+R.D.&rft.date=1995&rft.series=The+handbook+of+environmental+chemistry+%2F+ed.+by+O.+Hutzinger+Vol.+2%2C+Reactions+and+processes&rft.pages=pp.%26nbsp%3B281%E2%80%932&rft.place=Berlin&rft.pub=Springer&rft.isbn=978-3-540-49150-7&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fbooks.google.com%2Fbooks%3Fid%3DYeyjBwAAQBAJ%26pg%3DPA281&rfr_id=info:sid\/en.wikipedia.org:Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Gaining_buy-in_from_management_and_other_stakeholders\/Pitching_the_LIMS_project\"><span style=\"display: none;\"> <\/span><\/span>\n<\/span>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"cite_note-MartinsHowToWrite22-6\"><span class=\"mw-cite-backlink\"><a href=\"#cite_ref-MartinsHowToWrite22_6-0\">\u2191<\/a><\/span> <span class=\"reference-text\"><span class=\"citation web\">Martins, J. (19 July 2022). <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external text\" href=\"https:\/\/asana.com\/resources\/smart-goals\" target=\"_blank\">\"How to write SMART goals (and why they matter)\"<\/a>. <i>asana - Resources<\/i><span class=\"printonly\">. <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external free\" href=\"https:\/\/asana.com\/resources\/smart-goals\" target=\"_blank\">https:\/\/asana.com\/resources\/smart-goals<\/a><\/span><span class=\"reference-accessdate\">. Retrieved 19 July 2023<\/span>.<\/span><span class=\"Z3988\" title=\"ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.btitle=How+to+write+SMART+goals+%28and+why+they+matter%29&rft.atitle=asana+-+Resources&rft.aulast=Martins%2C+J.&rft.au=Martins%2C+J.&rft.date=19+July+2022&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fasana.com%2Fresources%2Fsmart-goals&rfr_id=info:sid\/en.wikipedia.org:Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Gaining_buy-in_from_management_and_other_stakeholders\/Pitching_the_LIMS_project\"><span style=\"display: none;\"> <\/span><\/span>\n<\/span>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol><\/div><\/div>\n<!-- \nNewPP limit report\nCached time: 20230726151428\nCache expiry: 86400\nDynamic content: false\nComplications: []\nCPU time usage: 0.130 seconds\nReal time usage: 0.149 seconds\nPreprocessor visited node count: 4574\/1000000\nPost\u2010expand include size: 47147\/2097152 bytes\nTemplate argument size: 11509\/2097152 bytes\nHighest expansion depth: 18\/40\nExpensive parser function count: 0\/100\nUnstrip recursion depth: 0\/20\nUnstrip post\u2010expand size: 12086\/5000000 bytes\n-->\n<!--\nTransclusion expansion time report (%,ms,calls,template)\n100.00% 125.910 1 -total\n 83.99% 105.748 1 Template:Reflist\n 61.50% 77.439 6 Template:Citation\/core\n 46.55% 58.609 5 Template:Cite_web\n 25.14% 31.658 1 Template:Cite_book\n 15.94% 20.076 1 Template:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Gaining_buy-in_from_management_and_other_stakeholders\/Pitching_the_LIMS_project\n 11.97% 15.065 6 Template:Date\n 8.43% 10.610 1 Template:Citation\/identifier\n 4.28% 5.386 11 Template:Citation\/make_link\n 2.54% 3.195 1 Template:Only_in_print\n-->\n\n<!-- Saved in parser cache with key limswiki:pcache:idhash:14324-0!canonical and timestamp 20230726151428 and revision id 52654. Serialized with JSON.\n -->\n<\/div><\/div><div class=\"printfooter\">Source: <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external\" href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Gaining_buy-in_from_management_and_other_stakeholders\/Pitching_the_LIMS_project\">https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Gaining_buy-in_from_management_and_other_stakeholders\/Pitching_the_LIMS_project<\/a><\/div>\n<!-- end content --><div class=\"visualClear\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"visualClear\"><\/div><\/div><!-- end of the left (by default at least) column --><div class=\"visualClear\"><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<\/body>","c7a7580bb119421f473aa06193fab00a_images":["https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/b\/bb\/Project_Management_%28phases%29.png","https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/1\/10\/Cost_Risk_Return_vv.svg\/800px-Cost_Risk_Return_vv.svg.png"],"c7a7580bb119421f473aa06193fab00a_timestamp":1690384838,"ca4122eec3c0c2bdf8f694de8e637384_type":"article","ca4122eec3c0c2bdf8f694de8e637384_title":"3.1 The importance of manager (and stakeholder) buy-in","ca4122eec3c0c2bdf8f694de8e637384_url":"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Gaining_buy-in_from_management_and_other_stakeholders\/The_importance_of_manager_(and_stakeholder)_buy-in","ca4122eec3c0c2bdf8f694de8e637384_plaintext":"\n\nBook:Justifying LIMS Acquisition and Deployment within Your Organization\/Gaining buy-in from management and other stakeholders\/The importance of manager (and stakeholder) buy-inFrom LIMSWikiJump to navigationJump to search-----Return to the beginning of this guide-----\n3. Gaining buy-in from management and other stakeholders \nLaboratory-based organizations have projects, which ideally align with organizational goals. These projects may be small and simple (e.g., acquire new hot plates and stirrers as ours are currently failing) or large and complex (e.g., combine our data lakes, reduce IT requirements, and acquire software tools to better manage the data). In all cases, these projects inevitably have some impact on organizational stakeholders, and they often require some sort of approval before they begin. This means gaining buy-in from upper management or some other set of stakeholders.\nThe key to gaining buy-in for a project lies in \"understanding\"; if organizational leadership and other critical stakeholders understand why a proposed project is important to the organization, they are more likely to do what they can to support your project and ensure the project goals are met.[1] Is there still a possibility a proposed laboratory information management system (LIMS) acquisition and deployment may get rejected by management despite understanding the potential benefits to the organization? Of course there is, particularly if the organizational budget is tight or some other external factor is influencing the decision. But those factors are largely out of your control; you can only focus on prompting greater understanding of the organizational and personnel benefits that can be realized and taking the time to better understand any resistance made to the proposed changes. That's what the previous two chapters of this guide have helped you prepare for. \nThis third chapter will, ideally, help you put what you've learned from the prior two chapters together to pitch a LIMS acquisition and deployment proposal to not only upper management but also any other critical stakeholders that should be involved with the decision. It will also help you better understand stakeholder engagement and address resistance to the proposal.\n\r\n\n\n 3.1 The importance of manager (and stakeholder) buy-in \nUpper management is usually who we think of when considering who has an important stake in a proposed LIMS acquisition and deployment project. There may be other stakeholders who have a say in the project, especially whether or not it is approved financially, but upper management buy-in is critical for your project. Depending on who those people are and what experiences they have with laboratory automation, this process may vary in difficulty. Upper management who are educated in the various details of the laboratory business and the value of automation will likely be easier to pitch to versus those who know little about optimizing laboratory workflows. This is where all the work from the previous two chapters comes in; it's time to help them understand how the organization and its people can flourish with the LIMS.\nIf you're dealing with knowledgeable management, you may see this justification process as a straightforward task. However, regardless of the level of laboratory knowledge management has, these stakeholders may raise one or more concerns about LIMS acquisition. Some of their perceptions and concerns might be rooted in past experiences or comments about computerized systems from the late twentieth century, or the failures of similar software projects by other organizations. Among those management concerns could be the following:\n\nThey may ask why the LIMS is important now versus six months ago, wanting to know what has changed.\nThey may ask what happens if the organization waits six to twelve months to decide whether a LIMS makes sense.\nThey may have investigated the subject of LIMS, seen it as another software project, and been concerned about opening a financial black hole.\nThey may be concerned about adding more stress to an already overloaded IT organization.\nThey may ask if the implementation can be done in a reasonable amount of time, and if the organization has the financial resources and expertise needed to get the job done.\nThey may ask if there are alternatives to LIMS that might be less costly and easier to implement.\nDon't be put off by these concerns, or most any other rejection or resistance; trying to change people or an organization naturally leads to resistance, as people typically don't care much for change itself. This fact is vital to understand in the scope of acquiring buy-in for your LIMS project, which will require involving the right stakeholders from the very beginning. In her book Leading Business Change: A Practical Guide to Transforming Your Organization, author Karin Stumpf highlights this fact as such[2]:\n\nWhen you try to change people or an organization, you will encounter a multitude of rejections. If you do not deliberately and successfully extend your circle of influence to include the right people and stakeholder groups, you will undoubtedly encounter major resistance\u2014from critical gatekeepers, from peers, from subordinates, and from all those affected by the changes. Some issues might just be individual ones, linked to power, social hierarchy, or self-interest. However, some resistance might be well-founded and, if addressed adequately, can help you avoid major pitfalls.\r\n \r\nI have seen change leaders wait until the populating phase of a project before reaching out to an affected stakeholder group for the first time. By then, the rumors had spread and resistance had taken a foothold.\nEven if the attempt to gain upper management's buy-in is made early on, resistance is natural, whether it's emotionally based or a rational response to the proposal. This is where the \"understanding\" mentioned in the introduction comes into play; in both emotional and rational rejection, a lack of understanding from the stakeholders, and even the project proposer, is often the root cause. In some cases, an actual need may not be met from the proposal, requiring further dialogue. Stumpf further highlights these issues[2]:\n\nSometimes resistance is emotionally based. Perhaps a person fears getting out of their comfort zone or resents being given more work. Often, though, resistance is a rational response. If someone does not see the need for change or disagrees with the solution, they may try to block the project. Also, if an employee does not know how to effectively interact with a new tool or how to be productive in the process, the employee may resist. Last but not least, people may resist because there is a real problem\u2014your plan may have not addressed a real need, the tools may be substantially flawed, or the structure may leave a serious gap in operations. It could be that some people see that you do not have the requisite budget or buy-in from upper management. Because they believe your project will ultimately fail, why should they invest their time and energy?\nStumpf's statements emphasize the importance of upper management and critical stakeholder buy-in, as without it, an under-funded, under-supported LIMS project hindered by lack of understanding and lack of stakeholder engagement has cascading effects. This means taking your LIMS acquisition proposal seriously, involving upper management and other stakeholders, helping them understand the implications of the project, addressing their concerns and resistance, and conducting the necessary research to make the most relevant and convincing proposal as possible.\nSo far we've talked about primarily winning over upper management for a proposed LIMS acquisition and deployment project, but it's not always that simple, especially within larger organizations. While management is often a stakeholder in an organizational project, there often are other stakeholders inside and outside the organization. A \"stakeholder,\" as defined by ISO 26000 Social responsibility, is defined as an \"individual or group that has an interest in any decision or activity of an organization.\"[3] As such, identified stakeholders of the decision to acquire and deploy a LIMS could be anyone from IT personnel to the laboratory's clients, and anything in between. In some cases the number of apparent stakeholders, at first glance, may become daunting, requiring a formal stakeholder identification process that asks questions such as \"who can help the organization address specific impacts?\" or \"who would be disadvantaged if excluded from stakeholder engagement?\" Once identified, those stakeholders may be further separated into those most directly impacted by the LIMS decision vs. those who are only indirectly impacted.[3] From there, more refined decisions can be made as to who will be included in the LIMS justification process.\nConducting relations (i.e., interacting) with these stakeholders\u2014management and otherwise\u2014can be seen as stakeholder engagement. Involving management and other stakeholders demonstrates a commitment to the engagement process, as well to its importance. Kujala et al. define \"stakeholder engagement\" as \"the aims, activities, and impacts of stakeholder relations in a moral, strategic, and\/or pragmatic manner.\"[4] Their definition, based on a literature review and descriptive analysis of academic literature, provides a wide level of applicability to organizations of many types, and it highlights the benefits of engagement, as well as why it's valuable in particular to gaining buy-in of LIMS acquisition. \nTable 9 shows an adapted version of the work of Kujala et al., highlighting how the different components of stakeholder engagement can benefit the organization. From this chart, we can see how a stakeholder may be more likely to buy into LIMS acquisition (or any other organizational decision) through a stakeholder engagement process that takes into account multiple aspects. If, for example, a stakeholder is involved with determining the potential strategic impacts (from Table 9, find the Strategic row and move right to the Impacts column) of a LIMS, the potential end result of that stakeholder engagement could yield improved efficiency, a greater competitive advantage, greater innovation, and an enhanced reputation for the organization overall.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nTable 9. A tabular view of the benefits of stakeholder engagement, based on the definition by Kujala et al. and adapted from their research.[4]\n\n\nComponent\n\nAims\n\nActivities\n\nImpacts\n\n\nMoral\n\n\n\u2022 Legitimacy, trust, and fairness\r\n\n\u2022 Corporate responsibility and sustainability\r\n\n\u2022 Stakeholder inclusion and accountability\n\n\n\n\u2022 Stakeholder empowerment\r\n\n\u2022 Democratic activities\n\n\n\n\u2022 Enhanced social and ecological well-being\r\n\n\u2022 Giving voice to stakeholders\r\n\n\u2022 Stakeholder value\n\n\n\nStrategic\n\n\n\u2022 Financial performance, risk management, and value creation\r\n\n\u2022 Knowledge creation and learning\r\n\n\u2022 Reputation building\n\n\n\n\u2022 One-way and two-way communication activities\r\n\n\u2022 Co-creation\r\n\n\u2022 Supportive organizational structures\n\n\n\n\u2022 Improved efficiency and competitive advantage\r\n\n\u2022 Innovation\r\n\n\u2022 Enhanced reputation\n\n\n\nPragmatic\n\n\n\u2022 Context-dependent problem-solving and decision-making\r\n\n\u2022 Organizational and societal development\n\n\n\n\u2022 Collaborative and dialogic activities\r\n\n\u2022 Relationship cultivation\n\n\n\n\u2022 Broad stakeholder involvement\r\n\n\u2022 Inclusive accountability and disclosure activities\r\n\n\u2022 Achieved resolutions\n\n\n\n\nOutside of upper-level organizational management, LIMS consultancy Third Wave Analytics breaks down a laboratory-based organization's LIMS stakeholders into five groups, while adding what value a LIMS adds for each group. When you seek buy-in from any of these stakeholder groups, it will be useful to keep these potential benefits in mind during justification processes[5]:\n\nLaboratory technicians and sample testing personnel: These stakeholders realize improvements from knowing sample status and location, using sample processing protocols, having automated data capture and analysis, and managing training activities.\nLaboratory managers and supervisors: These stakeholders realize improvements from having more granular sample management tools, tracking inventory, managing analytical test scheduling, and verifying regulatory training requirements are met.\nLaboratory directors and clinical lab scientists: These stakeholders realize improvement from having the tools to manage sample review and sign-out, identifying documents that require review and approval, and tracking quality control procedures for reagents and instruments.\nQuality assurance and quality management services personnel: These stakeholders realize improvement from ensuring the appropriate review and storage of all testing and quality control (QC) data, managing controlled documents, and auditing lab data and records.\nResearch personnel: These stakeholders realize improvement from ensuring the difference between clinical and research samples, seeing which samples and data are associate with which studies\/projects, and querying data from a single location.\nNow that we've discussed why gaining buy-in from upper management and other critical stakeholders is important, let's take a closer look at the actual LIMS proposal process.\n\nReferences \n\n\n\u2191 Mills, R. (20 December 2021). \"Getting stakeholder buy-in across a siloed organization\". GatherContent. https:\/\/gathercontent.com\/blog\/getting-stakeholder-buy-in-across-a-siloed-organisation . Retrieved 19 July 2023 .   \n \n\n\u2191 2.0 2.1 Stumpf, K. (2015). Leading Business Change: A Practical Guide to Transforming Your Organization. CRC Press. pp. 80\u201382. ISBN 978-1-4987-2662-7. https:\/\/books.google.com\/books?id=Lu35CQAAQBAJ&pg=PA80 .   \n \n\n\u2191 3.0 3.1 \"Stakeholders\". Quality Resources. American Society for Quality. https:\/\/asq.org\/quality-resources\/stakeholders . Retrieved 19 July 2023 .   \n \n\n\u2191 4.0 4.1 Kujala, Johanna; Sachs, Sybille; Leinonen, Heta; Heikkinen, Anna; Laude, Daniel (1 May 2022). \"Stakeholder Engagement: Past, Present, and Future\" (in en). Business & Society 61 (5): 1136\u20131196. doi:10.1177\/00076503211066595. ISSN 0007-6503. http:\/\/journals.sagepub.com\/doi\/10.1177\/00076503211066595 .   \n \n\n\u2191 Third Wave Analytics (14 September 2022). \"How Each Lab Stakeholder Can Benefit from a Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS)\". Third Wave Analytics, Inc. https:\/\/thirdwaveanalytics.com\/blog\/how-each-lab-stakeholder-can-benefit-from-a-laboratory-information-management-system-lims\/ . Retrieved 19 July 2023 .   \n \n\n\n\n\n\n\nSource: <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external\" href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Gaining_buy-in_from_management_and_other_stakeholders\/The_importance_of_manager_(and_stakeholder)_buy-in\">https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Gaining_buy-in_from_management_and_other_stakeholders\/The_importance_of_manager_(and_stakeholder)_buy-in<\/a>\nNavigation menuPage actionsBookDiscussionView sourceHistoryPage actionsBookDiscussionMoreToolsIn other languagesPersonal toolsLog inNavigationMain pageEncyclopedic articlesRecent changesRandom pageHelp about MediaWikiSearch\u00a0 ToolsWhat links hereRelated changesSpecial pagesPermanent linkPage informationPopular publications\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\nPrint\/exportCreate a bookDownload as PDFDownload as PDFDownload as Plain textPrintable version This page was last edited on 26 July 2023, at 14:58.Content is available under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License unless otherwise noted.This page has been accessed 6 times.Privacy policyAbout LIMSWikiDisclaimers\n\n\n\n","ca4122eec3c0c2bdf8f694de8e637384_html":"<body class=\"mediawiki ltr sitedir-ltr mw-hide-empty-elt ns-208 ns-subject page-Book_Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization_Gaining_buy-in_from_management_and_other_stakeholders_The_importance_of_manager_and_stakeholder_buy-in rootpage-Book_Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization_Gaining_buy-in_from_management_and_other_stakeholders_The_importance_of_manager_and_stakeholder_buy-in skin-monobook action-view skin--responsive\"><div id=\"rdp-ebb-globalWrapper\"><div id=\"rdp-ebb-column-content\"><div id=\"rdp-ebb-content\" class=\"mw-body\" role=\"main\"><a id=\"rdp-ebb-top\"><\/a>\n<h1 id=\"rdp-ebb-firstHeading\" class=\"firstHeading\" lang=\"en\">Book:Justifying LIMS Acquisition and Deployment within Your Organization\/Gaining buy-in from management and other stakeholders\/The importance of manager (and stakeholder) buy-in<\/h1><div id=\"rdp-ebb-bodyContent\" class=\"mw-body-content\"><!-- start content --><div id=\"rdp-ebb-mw-content-text\" lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\" class=\"mw-content-ltr\"><div class=\"mw-parser-output\"><div align=\"center\">-----Return to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Introduction\" title=\"Book:Justifying LIMS Acquisition and Deployment within Your Organization\/Introduction\" class=\"wiki-link\" data-key=\"05b67a0bceac708006b29f16d3336070\">the beginning<\/a> of this guide-----<\/div>\n<h2><span class=\"mw-headline\" id=\"3._Gaining_buy-in_from_management_and_other_stakeholders\">3. Gaining buy-in from management and other stakeholders<\/span><\/h2>\n<div class=\"floatright\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/File:Noun_project_organization_icon.svg\" class=\"image wiki-link\" data-key=\"b393b45fbf64b8bf9d2b9714952611f8\"><img alt=\"Noun project organization icon.svg\" src=\"https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/e\/e6\/Noun_project_organization_icon.svg\/250px-Noun_project_organization_icon.svg.png\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"250\" height=\"249\" \/><\/a><\/div><p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Laboratory\" title=\"Laboratory\" class=\"wiki-link\" data-key=\"c57fc5aac9e4abf31dccae81df664c33\">Laboratory<\/a>-based organizations have projects, which ideally align with organizational goals. These projects may be small and simple (e.g., acquire new hot plates and stirrers as ours are currently failing) or large and complex (e.g., combine our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Data_lake\" title=\"Data lake\" class=\"wiki-link\" data-key=\"cbe28db47d4d3ce56b947c2959cc9eea\">data lakes<\/a>, reduce IT requirements, and acquire software tools to better manage the data). In all cases, these projects inevitably have some impact on organizational stakeholders, and they often require some sort of approval before they begin. This means gaining buy-in from upper management or some other set of stakeholders.\n<\/p><p>The key to gaining buy-in for a project lies in \"understanding\"; if organizational leadership and other critical stakeholders understand why a proposed project is important to the organization, they are more likely to do what they can to support your project and ensure the project goals are met.<sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-MillsGetting21_1-0\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-MillsGetting21-1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup> Is there still a possibility a proposed <a href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Laboratory_information_management_system\" title=\"Laboratory information management system\" class=\"wiki-link\" data-key=\"8ff56a51d34c9b1806fcebdcde634d00\">laboratory information management system<\/a> (LIMS) acquisition and deployment may get rejected by management despite understanding the potential benefits to the organization? Of course there is, particularly if the organizational budget is tight or some other external factor is influencing the decision. But those factors are largely out of your control; you can only focus on prompting greater understanding of the organizational and personnel benefits that can be realized and taking the time to better understand any resistance made to the proposed changes. That's what the previous two chapters of this guide have helped you prepare for. \n<\/p><p>This third chapter will, ideally, help you put what you've learned from the prior two chapters together to pitch a LIMS acquisition and deployment proposal to not only upper management but also any other critical stakeholders that should be involved with the decision. It will also help you better understand stakeholder engagement and address resistance to the proposal.\n<\/p><p><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<h3><span id=\"rdp-ebb-3.1_The_importance_of_manager_(and_stakeholder)_buy-in\"><\/span><span class=\"mw-headline\" id=\"3.1_The_importance_of_manager_.28and_stakeholder.29_buy-in\">3.1 The importance of manager (and stakeholder) buy-in<\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Upper management is usually who we think of when considering who has an important stake in a proposed LIMS acquisition and deployment project. There may be other stakeholders who have a say in the project, especially whether or not it is approved financially, but upper management buy-in is critical for your project. Depending on who those people are and what experiences they have with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Laboratory_automation\" title=\"Laboratory automation\" class=\"wiki-link\" data-key=\"0061880849aeaca05f8aa27ae171f331\">laboratory automation<\/a>, this process may vary in difficulty. Upper management who are educated in the various details of the laboratory business and the value of automation will likely be easier to pitch to versus those who know little about optimizing laboratory workflows. This is where all the work from the previous two chapters comes in; it's time to help them understand how the organization and its people can flourish with the LIMS.\n<\/p><p>If you're dealing with knowledgeable management, you may see this justification process as a straightforward task. However, regardless of the level of laboratory knowledge management has, these stakeholders may raise one or more concerns about LIMS acquisition. Some of their perceptions and concerns might be rooted in past experiences or comments about computerized systems from the late twentieth century, or the failures of similar software projects by other organizations. Among those management concerns could be the following:\n<\/p>\n<ul><li>They may ask why the LIMS is important now versus six months ago, wanting to know what has changed.<\/li>\n<li>They may ask what happens if the organization waits six to twelve months to decide whether a LIMS makes sense.<\/li>\n<li>They may have investigated the subject of LIMS, seen it as another software project, and been concerned about opening a financial black hole.<\/li>\n<li>They may be concerned about adding more stress to an already overloaded IT organization.<\/li>\n<li>They may ask if the implementation can be done in a reasonable amount of time, and if the organization has the financial resources and expertise needed to get the job done.<\/li>\n<li>They may ask if there are alternatives to LIMS that might be less costly and easier to implement.<\/li><\/ul>\n<p>Don't be put off by these concerns, or most any other rejection or resistance; trying to change people or an organization naturally leads to resistance, as people typically don't care much for change itself. This fact is vital to understand in the scope of acquiring buy-in for your LIMS project, which will require involving the right stakeholders from the very beginning. In her book <i>Leading Business Change: A Practical Guide to Transforming Your Organization<\/i>, author Karin Stumpf highlights this fact as such<sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-:0_2-0\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-:0-2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup>:\n<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>When you try to change people or an organization, you will encounter a multitude of rejections. If you do not deliberately and successfully extend your circle of influence to include the right people and stakeholder groups, you will undoubtedly encounter major resistance\u2014from critical gatekeepers, from peers, from subordinates, and from all those affected by the changes. Some issues might just be individual ones, linked to power, social hierarchy, or self-interest. However, some resistance might be well-founded and, if addressed adequately, can help you avoid major pitfalls.<br \/> <br \/>I have seen change leaders wait until the populating phase of a project before reaching out to an affected stakeholder group for the first time. By then, the rumors had spread and resistance had taken a foothold.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Even if the attempt to gain upper management's buy-in is made early on, resistance is natural, whether it's emotionally based or a rational response to the proposal. This is where the \"understanding\" mentioned in the introduction comes into play; in both emotional and rational rejection, a lack of understanding from the stakeholders, and even the project proposer, is often the root cause. In some cases, an actual need may not be met from the proposal, requiring further dialogue. Stumpf further highlights these issues<sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-:0_2-1\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-:0-2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup>:\n<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>Sometimes resistance is emotionally based. Perhaps a person fears getting out of their comfort zone or resents being given more work. Often, though, resistance is a rational response. If someone does not see the need for change or disagrees with the solution, they may try to block the project. Also, if an employee does not know how to effectively interact with a new tool or how to be productive in the process, the employee may resist. Last but not least, people may resist because there is a real problem\u2014your plan may have not addressed a real need, the tools may be substantially flawed, or the structure may leave a serious gap in operations. It could be that some people see that you do not have the requisite budget or buy-in from upper management. Because they believe your project will ultimately fail, why should they invest their time and energy?<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Stumpf's statements emphasize the importance of upper management and critical stakeholder buy-in, as without it, an under-funded, under-supported LIMS project hindered by lack of understanding and lack of stakeholder engagement has cascading effects. This means taking your LIMS acquisition proposal seriously, involving upper management and other stakeholders, helping them understand the implications of the project, addressing their concerns and resistance, and conducting the necessary research to make the most relevant and convincing proposal as possible.\n<\/p><p>So far we've talked about primarily winning over upper management for a proposed LIMS acquisition and deployment project, but it's not always that simple, especially within larger organizations. While management is often a stakeholder in an organizational project, there often are other stakeholders inside and outside the organization. A \"stakeholder,\" as defined by ISO 26000 <i>Social responsibility<\/i>, is defined as an \"individual or group that has an interest in any decision or activity of an organization.\"<sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-ASQStake_3-0\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-ASQStake-3\">[3]<\/a><\/sup> As such, identified stakeholders of the decision to acquire and deploy a LIMS could be anyone from IT personnel to the laboratory's clients, and anything in between. In some cases the number of apparent stakeholders, at first glance, may become daunting, requiring a formal stakeholder identification process that asks questions such as \"who can help the organization address specific impacts?\" or \"who would be disadvantaged if excluded from stakeholder engagement?\" Once identified, those stakeholders may be further separated into those most directly impacted by the LIMS decision vs. those who are only indirectly impacted.<sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-ASQStake_3-1\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-ASQStake-3\">[3]<\/a><\/sup> From there, more refined decisions can be made as to who will be included in the LIMS justification process.\n<\/p><p>Conducting relations (i.e., interacting) with these stakeholders\u2014management and otherwise\u2014can be seen as stakeholder engagement. Involving management and other stakeholders demonstrates a commitment to the engagement process, as well to its importance. Kujala <i>et al.<\/i> define \"stakeholder engagement\" as \"the aims, activities, and impacts of stakeholder relations in a moral, strategic, and\/or pragmatic manner.\"<sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-KujalaStake22_4-0\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-KujalaStake22-4\">[4]<\/a><\/sup> Their definition, based on a literature review and descriptive analysis of academic literature, provides a wide level of applicability to organizations of many types, and it highlights the benefits of engagement, as well as why it's valuable in particular to gaining buy-in of LIMS acquisition. \n<\/p><p>Table 9 shows an adapted version of the work of Kujala <i>et al.<\/i>, highlighting how the different components of stakeholder engagement can benefit the organization. From this chart, we can see how a stakeholder may be more likely to buy into LIMS acquisition (or any other organizational decision) through a stakeholder engagement process that takes into account multiple aspects. If, for example, a stakeholder is involved with determining the potential strategic impacts (from Table 9, find the Strategic row and move right to the Impacts column) of a LIMS, the potential end result of that stakeholder engagement could yield improved efficiency, a greater competitive advantage, greater innovation, and an enhanced reputation for the organization overall.\n<\/p>\n<table style=\"\">\n<tbody><tr>\n<td style=\"vertical-align:top;\">\n<dl><dd><table class=\"wikitable\" border=\"1\" cellpadding=\"5\" cellspacing=\"0\" style=\"\">\n\n<tbody><tr>\n<td colspan=\"4\" style=\"background-color:white; padding-left:10px; padding-right:10px;\"><b>Table 9.<\/b> A tabular view of the benefits of stakeholder engagement, based on the definition by Kujala <i>et al.<\/i> and adapted from their research.<sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-KujalaStake22_4-1\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-KujalaStake22-4\">[4]<\/a><\/sup>\n<\/td><\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th style=\"background-color:#e2e2e2; padding-left:10px; padding-right:10px;\"><i>Component<\/i>\n<\/th>\n<th style=\"background-color:#e2e2e2; padding-left:10px; padding-right:10px;\">Aims\n<\/th>\n<th style=\"background-color:#e2e2e2; padding-left:10px; padding-right:10px;\">Activities\n<\/th>\n<th style=\"background-color:#e2e2e2; padding-left:10px; padding-right:10px;\">Impacts\n<\/th><\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"background-color:white; padding-left:10px; padding-right:10px;\"><b>Moral<\/b>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"background-color:white; padding-left:10px; padding-right:10px;\">\n<p>\u2022 Legitimacy, trust, and fairness<br \/>\n\u2022 Corporate responsibility and sustainability<br \/>\n\u2022 Stakeholder inclusion and accountability\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"background-color:white; padding-left:10px; padding-right:10px;\">\n<p>\u2022 Stakeholder empowerment<br \/>\n\u2022 Democratic activities\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"background-color:white; padding-left:10px; padding-right:10px;\">\n<p>\u2022 Enhanced social and ecological well-being<br \/>\n\u2022 Giving voice to stakeholders<br \/>\n\u2022 Stakeholder value\n<\/p>\n<\/td><\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"background-color:#e2e2e2; padding-left:10px; padding-right:10px;\"><b>Strategic<\/b>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"background-color:#e2e2e2; padding-left:10px; padding-right:10px;\">\n<p>\u2022 Financial performance, risk management, and value creation<br \/>\n\u2022 Knowledge creation and learning<br \/>\n\u2022 Reputation building\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"background-color:#e2e2e2; padding-left:10px; padding-right:10px;\">\n<p>\u2022 One-way and two-way communication activities<br \/>\n\u2022 Co-creation<br \/>\n\u2022 Supportive organizational structures\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"background-color:#e2e2e2; padding-left:10px; padding-right:10px;\">\n<p>\u2022 Improved efficiency and competitive advantage<br \/>\n\u2022 Innovation<br \/>\n\u2022 Enhanced reputation\n<\/p>\n<\/td><\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"background-color:white; padding-left:10px; padding-right:10px;\"><b>Pragmatic<\/b>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"background-color:white; padding-left:10px; padding-right:10px;\">\n<p>\u2022 Context-dependent problem-solving and decision-making<br \/>\n\u2022 Organizational and societal development\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"background-color:white; padding-left:10px; padding-right:10px;\">\n<p>\u2022 Collaborative and dialogic activities<br \/>\n\u2022 Relationship cultivation\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"background-color:white; padding-left:10px; padding-right:10px;\">\n<p>\u2022 Broad stakeholder involvement<br \/>\n\u2022 Inclusive accountability and disclosure activities<br \/>\n\u2022 Achieved resolutions\n<\/p>\n<\/td><\/tr>\n<\/tbody><\/table><\/dd><\/dl>\n<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table>\n<p>Outside of upper-level organizational management, LIMS consultancy Third Wave Analytics breaks down a laboratory-based organization's LIMS stakeholders into five groups, while adding what value a LIMS adds for each group. When you seek buy-in from any of these stakeholder groups, it will be useful to keep these potential benefits in mind during justification processes<sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-TWAHowEach22_5-0\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-TWAHowEach22-5\">[5]<\/a><\/sup>:\n<\/p>\n<ul><li><i>Laboratory technicians and sample testing personnel<\/i>: These stakeholders realize improvements from knowing sample status and location, using sample processing protocols, having automated data capture and analysis, and managing training activities.<\/li>\n<li><i>Laboratory managers and supervisors<\/i>: These stakeholders realize improvements from having more granular sample management tools, tracking inventory, managing analytical test scheduling, and verifying regulatory training requirements are met.<\/li>\n<li><i>Laboratory directors and clinical lab scientists<\/i>: These stakeholders realize improvement from having the tools to manage sample review and sign-out, identifying documents that require review and approval, and tracking quality control procedures for reagents and instruments.<\/li>\n<li><i>Quality assurance and quality management services personnel<\/i>: These stakeholders realize improvement from ensuring the appropriate review and storage of all testing and quality control (QC) data, managing controlled documents, and auditing lab data and records.<\/li>\n<li><i>Research personnel<\/i>: These stakeholders realize improvement from ensuring the difference between clinical and research samples, seeing which samples and data are associate with which studies\/projects, and querying data from a single location.<\/li><\/ul>\n<p>Now that we've discussed why gaining buy-in from upper management and other critical stakeholders is important, let's take a closer look at the actual LIMS proposal process.\n<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"mw-headline\" id=\"References\">References<\/span><\/h2>\n<div class=\"reflist references-column-width\" style=\"-moz-column-width: 30em; -webkit-column-width: 30em; column-width: 30em; list-style-type: decimal;\">\n<div class=\"mw-references-wrap\"><ol class=\"references\">\n<li id=\"cite_note-MillsGetting21-1\"><span class=\"mw-cite-backlink\"><a href=\"#cite_ref-MillsGetting21_1-0\">\u2191<\/a><\/span> <span class=\"reference-text\"><span class=\"citation web\">Mills, R. (20 December 2021). <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external text\" href=\"https:\/\/gathercontent.com\/blog\/getting-stakeholder-buy-in-across-a-siloed-organisation\" target=\"_blank\">\"Getting stakeholder buy-in across a siloed organization\"<\/a>. <i>GatherContent<\/i><span class=\"printonly\">. <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external free\" href=\"https:\/\/gathercontent.com\/blog\/getting-stakeholder-buy-in-across-a-siloed-organisation\" target=\"_blank\">https:\/\/gathercontent.com\/blog\/getting-stakeholder-buy-in-across-a-siloed-organisation<\/a><\/span><span class=\"reference-accessdate\">. Retrieved 19 July 2023<\/span>.<\/span><span class=\"Z3988\" title=\"ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.btitle=Getting+stakeholder+buy-in+across+a+siloed+organization&rft.atitle=GatherContent&rft.aulast=Mills%2C+R.&rft.au=Mills%2C+R.&rft.date=20+December+2021&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fgathercontent.com%2Fblog%2Fgetting-stakeholder-buy-in-across-a-siloed-organisation&rfr_id=info:sid\/en.wikipedia.org:Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Gaining_buy-in_from_management_and_other_stakeholders\/The_importance_of_manager_(and_stakeholder)_buy-in\"><span style=\"display: none;\"> <\/span><\/span>\n<\/span>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"cite_note-:0-2\"><span class=\"mw-cite-backlink\">\u2191 <sup><a href=\"#cite_ref-:0_2-0\">2.0<\/a><\/sup> <sup><a href=\"#cite_ref-:0_2-1\">2.1<\/a><\/sup><\/span> <span class=\"reference-text\"><span class=\"citation book\">Stumpf, K. (2015). <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external text\" href=\"https:\/\/books.google.com\/books?id=Lu35CQAAQBAJ&pg=PA80\" target=\"_blank\"><i>Leading Business Change: A Practical Guide to Transforming Your Organization<\/i><\/a>. CRC Press. pp. 80\u201382. <a rel=\"nofollow\" class=\"external text wiki-link\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/International_Standard_Book_Number\" data-key=\"f64947ba21e884434bd70e8d9e60bae6\">ISBN<\/a> 978-1-4987-2662-7<span class=\"printonly\">. <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external free\" href=\"https:\/\/books.google.com\/books?id=Lu35CQAAQBAJ&pg=PA80\" target=\"_blank\">https:\/\/books.google.com\/books?id=Lu35CQAAQBAJ&pg=PA80<\/a><\/span>.<\/span><span class=\"Z3988\" title=\"ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Leading+Business+Change%3A+A+Practical+Guide+to+Transforming+Your+Organization&rft.aulast=Stumpf%2C+K.&rft.au=Stumpf%2C+K.&rft.date=2015&rft.pages=pp.%26nbsp%3B80%E2%80%9382&rft.pub=CRC+Press&rft.isbn=978-1-4987-2662-7&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fbooks.google.com%2Fbooks%3Fid%3DLu35CQAAQBAJ%26pg%3DPA80&rfr_id=info:sid\/en.wikipedia.org:Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Gaining_buy-in_from_management_and_other_stakeholders\/The_importance_of_manager_(and_stakeholder)_buy-in\"><span style=\"display: none;\"> <\/span><\/span>\n<\/span>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"cite_note-ASQStake-3\"><span class=\"mw-cite-backlink\">\u2191 <sup><a href=\"#cite_ref-ASQStake_3-0\">3.0<\/a><\/sup> <sup><a href=\"#cite_ref-ASQStake_3-1\">3.1<\/a><\/sup><\/span> <span class=\"reference-text\"><span class=\"citation web\"><a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external text\" href=\"https:\/\/asq.org\/quality-resources\/stakeholders\" target=\"_blank\">\"Stakeholders\"<\/a>. <i>Quality Resources<\/i>. American Society for Quality<span class=\"printonly\">. <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external free\" href=\"https:\/\/asq.org\/quality-resources\/stakeholders\" target=\"_blank\">https:\/\/asq.org\/quality-resources\/stakeholders<\/a><\/span><span class=\"reference-accessdate\">. Retrieved 19 July 2023<\/span>.<\/span><span class=\"Z3988\" title=\"ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.btitle=Stakeholders&rft.atitle=Quality+Resources&rft.pub=American+Society+for+Quality&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fasq.org%2Fquality-resources%2Fstakeholders&rfr_id=info:sid\/en.wikipedia.org:Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Gaining_buy-in_from_management_and_other_stakeholders\/The_importance_of_manager_(and_stakeholder)_buy-in\"><span style=\"display: none;\"> <\/span><\/span>\n<\/span>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"cite_note-KujalaStake22-4\"><span class=\"mw-cite-backlink\">\u2191 <sup><a href=\"#cite_ref-KujalaStake22_4-0\">4.0<\/a><\/sup> <sup><a href=\"#cite_ref-KujalaStake22_4-1\">4.1<\/a><\/sup><\/span> <span class=\"reference-text\"><span class=\"citation Journal\">Kujala, Johanna; Sachs, Sybille; Leinonen, Heta; Heikkinen, Anna; Laude, Daniel (1 May 2022). <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external text\" href=\"http:\/\/journals.sagepub.com\/doi\/10.1177\/00076503211066595\" target=\"_blank\">\"Stakeholder Engagement: Past, Present, and Future\"<\/a> (in en). <i>Business & Society<\/i> <b>61<\/b> (5): 1136\u20131196. <a rel=\"nofollow\" class=\"external text wiki-link\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Digital_object_identifier\" data-key=\"ae6d69c760ab710abc2dd89f3937d2f4\">doi<\/a>:<a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external text\" href=\"http:\/\/dx.doi.org\/10.1177%2F00076503211066595\" target=\"_blank\">10.1177\/00076503211066595<\/a>. <a rel=\"nofollow\" class=\"external text wiki-link\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/International_Standard_Serial_Number\" data-key=\"a5dec3e4d005e654c29ad167ab53f53a\">ISSN<\/a> <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external text\" href=\"http:\/\/www.worldcat.org\/issn\/0007-6503\" target=\"_blank\">0007-6503<\/a><span class=\"printonly\">. <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external free\" href=\"http:\/\/journals.sagepub.com\/doi\/10.1177\/00076503211066595\" target=\"_blank\">http:\/\/journals.sagepub.com\/doi\/10.1177\/00076503211066595<\/a><\/span>.<\/span><span class=\"Z3988\" title=\"ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.atitle=Stakeholder+Engagement%3A+Past%2C+Present%2C+and+Future&rft.jtitle=Business+%26+Society&rft.aulast=Kujala&rft.aufirst=Johanna&rft.au=Kujala%2C%26%2332%3BJohanna&rft.au=Sachs%2C%26%2332%3BSybille&rft.au=Leinonen%2C%26%2332%3BHeta&rft.au=Heikkinen%2C%26%2332%3BAnna&rft.au=Laude%2C%26%2332%3BDaniel&rft.date=1+May+2022&rft.volume=61&rft.issue=5&rft.pages=1136%E2%80%931196&rft_id=info:doi\/10.1177%2F00076503211066595&rft.issn=0007-6503&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fjournals.sagepub.com%2Fdoi%2F10.1177%2F00076503211066595&rfr_id=info:sid\/en.wikipedia.org:Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Gaining_buy-in_from_management_and_other_stakeholders\/The_importance_of_manager_(and_stakeholder)_buy-in\"><span style=\"display: none;\"> <\/span><\/span>\n<\/span>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"cite_note-TWAHowEach22-5\"><span class=\"mw-cite-backlink\"><a href=\"#cite_ref-TWAHowEach22_5-0\">\u2191<\/a><\/span> <span class=\"reference-text\"><span class=\"citation web\">Third Wave Analytics (14 September 2022). <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external text\" href=\"https:\/\/thirdwaveanalytics.com\/blog\/how-each-lab-stakeholder-can-benefit-from-a-laboratory-information-management-system-lims\/\" target=\"_blank\">\"How Each Lab Stakeholder Can Benefit from a Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS)\"<\/a>. Third Wave Analytics, Inc<span class=\"printonly\">. <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external free\" href=\"https:\/\/thirdwaveanalytics.com\/blog\/how-each-lab-stakeholder-can-benefit-from-a-laboratory-information-management-system-lims\/\" target=\"_blank\">https:\/\/thirdwaveanalytics.com\/blog\/how-each-lab-stakeholder-can-benefit-from-a-laboratory-information-management-system-lims\/<\/a><\/span><span class=\"reference-accessdate\">. Retrieved 19 July 2023<\/span>.<\/span><span class=\"Z3988\" title=\"ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.btitle=How+Each+Lab+Stakeholder+Can+Benefit+from+a+Laboratory+Information+Management+System+%28LIMS%29&rft.atitle=&rft.aulast=Third+Wave+Analytics&rft.au=Third+Wave+Analytics&rft.date=14+September+2022&rft.pub=Third+Wave+Analytics%2C+Inc&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fthirdwaveanalytics.com%2Fblog%2Fhow-each-lab-stakeholder-can-benefit-from-a-laboratory-information-management-system-lims%2F&rfr_id=info:sid\/en.wikipedia.org:Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Gaining_buy-in_from_management_and_other_stakeholders\/The_importance_of_manager_(and_stakeholder)_buy-in\"><span style=\"display: none;\"> <\/span><\/span>\n<\/span>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol><\/div><\/div>\n<!-- \nNewPP limit report\nCached time: 20230726151428\nCache expiry: 86400\nDynamic content: false\nComplications: []\nCPU time usage: 0.112 seconds\nReal time usage: 0.130 seconds\nPreprocessor visited node count: 3823\/1000000\nPost\u2010expand include size: 44654\/2097152 bytes\nTemplate argument size: 9539\/2097152 bytes\nHighest expansion depth: 19\/40\nExpensive parser function count: 0\/100\nUnstrip recursion depth: 0\/20\nUnstrip post\u2010expand size: 9814\/5000000 bytes\n-->\n<!--\nTransclusion expansion time report (%,ms,calls,template)\n100.00% 106.458 1 -total\n 89.93% 95.742 1 Template:Reflist\n 58.01% 61.754 5 Template:Citation\/core\n 37.22% 39.622 3 Template:Cite_web\n 21.11% 22.473 1 Template:Cite_book\n 17.07% 18.173 1 Template:Cite_journal\n 11.43% 12.163 3 Template:Citation\/identifier\n 9.93% 10.576 1 Template:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Gaining_buy-in_from_management_and_other_stakeholders\/The_importance_of_manager_(and_stakeholder)_buy-in\n 9.78% 10.407 3 Template:Date\n 4.43% 4.719 7 Template:Citation\/make_link\n-->\n\n<!-- Saved in parser cache with key limswiki:pcache:idhash:14323-0!canonical and timestamp 20230726151427 and revision id 52653. Serialized with JSON.\n -->\n<\/div><\/div><div class=\"printfooter\">Source: <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external\" href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Gaining_buy-in_from_management_and_other_stakeholders\/The_importance_of_manager_(and_stakeholder)_buy-in\">https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Gaining_buy-in_from_management_and_other_stakeholders\/The_importance_of_manager_(and_stakeholder)_buy-in<\/a><\/div>\n<!-- end content --><div class=\"visualClear\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"visualClear\"><\/div><\/div><!-- end of the left (by default at least) column --><div class=\"visualClear\"><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<\/body>","ca4122eec3c0c2bdf8f694de8e637384_images":["https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/e\/e6\/Noun_project_organization_icon.svg\/500px-Noun_project_organization_icon.svg.png"],"ca4122eec3c0c2bdf8f694de8e637384_timestamp":1690384838,"2d981a25d06eb8d4b4fc7dffbba9f6e5_type":"article","2d981a25d06eb8d4b4fc7dffbba9f6e5_title":"2.3 Practical considerations and justifications","2d981a25d06eb8d4b4fc7dffbba9f6e5_url":"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Organizational,_economic,_and_practical_justifications_for_a_LIMS\/Practical_considerations_and_justifications","2d981a25d06eb8d4b4fc7dffbba9f6e5_plaintext":"\n\nBook:Justifying LIMS Acquisition and Deployment within Your Organization\/Organizational, economic, and practical justifications for a LIMS\/Practical considerations and justificationsFrom LIMSWikiJump to navigationJump to search-----Return to the beginning of this guide-----\nContents \n\n1 2.3 Practical considerations and justifications \n\n1.1 2.3.1 Tangible benefits \n1.2 2.3.2 Intangible benefits \n\n\n2 References \n3 Citation information for this chapter \n\n\n\n2.3 Practical considerations and justifications \nSo far, we've looked primarily at the economic justifications for LIMS acquisition and deployment, with a few nods to why it makes practical sense (e.g., reducing data entry errors). Let's take a closer look at more practical justifications, both tangible and intangible.\n2.3.1 Tangible benefits \nHere we provide examples of more tangible benefits to LIMS acquisition and deployment. Much of this list comes from the 1986 article by Joseph H. Golden previously mentioned in the prior chapter.[1] Further insight is gained from Marking and Hald[2], and, more recently, the Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL).[3] These are areas in the work environment that can benefit from a LIMS, reduce costs, and improve both productivity and lab operations. The list is not exhaustive but sufficient for a basic LIMS installation. Note, however, that capabilities will naturally vary among LIMS offerings, and as such researching options and participating in demonstrations prior to acquisition is valuable.\nThe items in the list are points that should measurably demonstrate improvement by using a LIMS versus working with paper-based systems or spreadsheet implementation. If nothing else, with a two-seat LIMS license you can have one seat for administrative work and the second for others working with the system, making an improvement in the use of people's time.\nFunctions that can be improved by LIMS technology\nAnalytical support functions\n\nData entry through automated instrument interfacing and computational support (see notes above on barcodes and instrument connections)\nAnalytical result report generation, which can be automatic (100% improvement) or manual, which requires a few parameters for complete reports to be produced\nData archiving and retrieval, where archiving may be automatic and data retrieval is a matter of simply entering a query\nMethod and specification storage and retrieval, wherein an electronic format means it is a matter of simply completing a standardized form and then pulling it up later as-needed\nWork and resource management: Manual searching is replaced with entering data into a form. This process can further be assisted by a barcode system for significant improvement in productivity.\n\nSample login\nReceipt and label generation\nWork assignment and scheduling\nWorklist preparation\nSample tracking and status reporting\nBacklog reporting\nReport approval and release\nReagent inventory and preparation control\nLaboratory quality assurance support\n\nAudit trail generation, which is automatic with a LIMS\nMulti-analysis, blind sampling, round robin tracking, and variance reporting, which is a matter of setting up a standard report that can be executed with a few mouse clicks\nAutomatic tolerance verification and limit checking\nInstrument calibration scheduling and tracking, which can be automatically managed and alerted in the LIMS\nManagement support reporting: For each of the items below, this is a matter of setting up a standard report that can be executed with a few mouse clicks.\n\nLab productivity analysis\nTurn-around time (TAT) and customer service analysis\nCost per analysis computation\nEquipment utilization analysis\nBusiness support: For each of the items below, this is a matter of setting up a standard report that can be executed with a few mouse clicks.\n\nLabor time charge entry and reporting\nCustomer account charging and\/or billing of inventoried product data for order entry processing\nQC test data for feedstock purchasing and vendor qualification\nCorporate database data for regulatory agencies\nCompliance reporting\nTo put things into perspective, consider the work involved in generating a lab\u2019s monthly reports on any of the points above by manually searching paper records or at best a spreadsheet system (and while you are doing this, no one else may be able to use the system). Now replace that effort with a few mouse clicks using automated report generation, which could be set up on a regular schedule.\n\n2.3.2 Intangible benefits \nUsing economic analyses like ROI doesn't provide a complete picture of a LIMS' benefits, as it can be difficult to turn intangible benefits into measurable cost savings.[4][5] (We'll further discuss why ROI shouldn't be the sole selling point of a LIMS project proposal in the next chapter.) The importance of an intangible asset depends upon the issues facing your lab. If you\u2019re swamped with work and can\u2019t hire more people (e.g., because of lack of availability, space, and budget limitations), improving efficiency might be the best alternative, and that could mean a LIMS. If you\u2019re facing regulatory challenges and a plant shutdown is possible, then a LIMS might mean staying in business. What issues are important, and what\u2019s the value of successfully addressing them? As is often the case, the intangible benefits can overshadow more quantitative analysis.[4][5]\nThe following represent intangible benefits the laboratory can gain by acquiring and deploying a LIMS.[5][6][7][8][9][10] There is no guarantee your lab will benefit in every area, but realistically one can imagine a scenario where some of these benefits are realized. What is viewed as an intangible benefit to one laboratory may be viewed as tangible by another, and vice versa. Though viewed as \"intangible,\" any inability to quantify a benefit does not make it any less important to an organization acquiring and deploying a LIMS.\nImproved support for production operations\n\nFaster delivery of results to production\nMore useable result formats\nLess production waste\nFaster detection of production\/quality issues, which reduced wasted product and production time\nBetter integration with production and process control software (e.g., enterprise resource planning, manufacturing execution systems, and product lifecycle management)\nBetter, more easily managed, regulatory compliance\nImproved perception of lab capabilities due to improved performance\n\nBetter customer relations\nImprovement in lab personnel's attitude about their work, potentially reducing turnover and costs of hiring and training\nImproved projected business from extra profits (e.g., as a contract testing lab)\nCentralized and streamlined lab information, data, and operations\n\nReduction in duplicate testing\nEasy production of pending, overdue lists\nEasier prioritization of work\nEasier evaluation of the lab\u2019s workload\nImproved reporting\nDeveloped basis for further lab automation work, resulting in higher productivity\nImproved data security (physical and access control)\nAdditional gained value from lab data, turning it into a usable asset and improving access to results\nMore efficient lab operations\nBetter regulatory compliance (in non-production environments) and fewer audits\nImproved data management\/governance\n\nImproved data quality\nOverall error reduction, e.g., reduced transcription error through the use of barcodes and electronic transfer of IDS results\nReduction in transcription errors\nImproved accuracy of data\nImproved data integrity\nImproved compliance with data-driven regulations\nReferences \n\n\n\u2191 Golden, J.H. (1986). \"Chapter 2: Economic Considerations of Laboratory Information Management Systems\". In Provder, Theodore (in en). Computer Applications in the Polymer Laboratory. ACS Symposium Series. 313. Washington, DC: American Chemical Society. pp. 6\u201316. doi:10.1021\/bk-1986-0313.ch002. ISBN 978-0-8412-0977-0. https:\/\/pubs.acs.org\/doi\/book\/10.1021\/bk-1986-0313 .   \n \n\n\u2191 Markin, Rodney S.; Hald, David L. (1 December 1992). \"Cost justification of a laboratory information system: An analysis of projected tangible and intangible benefits\" (in en). Journal of Medical Systems 16 (6): 281\u2013295. doi:10.1007\/BF00996362. ISSN 0148-5598. http:\/\/link.springer.com\/10.1007\/BF00996362 .   \n \n\n\u2191 \"Laboratory Information Systems Project Management: A Guidebook for International Implementations\" (PDF). Association of Public Health Laboratories. May 2019. https:\/\/www.aphl.org\/aboutAPHL\/publications\/Documents\/GH-2019May-LIS-Guidebook-web.pdf . Retrieved 19 July 2023 .   \n \n\n\u2191 4.0 4.1 O'Driscoll, A. (16 February 2023). \"7 Best Practices for a Successful LIMS\/LIS Implementation\". Clinical Lab Products. https:\/\/clpmag.com\/lab-essentials\/information-technology\/middleware-software\/7-best-practices-for-a-successful-lims-lis-implementation\/ . Retrieved 19 July 2023 .   \n \n\n\u2191 5.0 5.1 5.2 Novak, C. (27 February 2020). \"The Benefits of Implementing a LIMS \u2013 Beyond ROI\". CSols, Inc. https:\/\/www.csolsinc.com\/blog\/the-benefits-of-implementing-a-lims-beyond-roi\/ . Retrieved 19 July 2023 .   \n \n\n\u2191 Nakagawa, Allen S. (1994). \"Chapter 12: Justification and Approvals\". LIMS, implementation and management. Cambridge: Royal Society of Chemistry. pp. 143\u201344. ISBN 978-0-85186-824-0.   \n \n\n\u2191 \"ASTM E1578-18 Standard Guide for Laboratory Informatics\". ASTM International. 2018. doi:10.1520\/E1578-18. https:\/\/www.astm.org\/Standards\/E1578.htm . Retrieved 19 July 2023 .   \n \n\n\u2191 Todd, H.N. (18 April 2018). \"MRSA testing workflow study assesses impact of automation\". Medical Laboratory Observer. https:\/\/www.mlo-online.com\/information-technology\/lis\/article\/13009471\/mrsa-testing-workflow-study-assesses-impact-of-automation . Retrieved 19 July 2023 .   \n \n\n\u2191 Paszko, C. (2019). \"Quality Assurance - Laboratory Information Management Systems\". In Miro, Manuel; Worsfold, Paul; Townshend, Alan et al.. Encyclopedia of Analytical Science. 8 (Third ed.). Amsterdam: Elsevier\/Acad. Press. pp. 473\u2013491. ISBN 978-0-08-101983-2.   \n \n\n\u2191 \"How to Get Management Buy-in for a New Lab Informatics Implementation\". CSols, Inc. 14 July 2022. https:\/\/www.csolsinc.com\/blog\/persuasion-how-to-get-management-buy-in-for-a-new-lab-informatics-implementation\/ . Retrieved 19 July 2023 .   \n \n\n\n\r\n\n\n-----Go to the next chapter of this guide-----\nCitation information for this chapter \nChapter: 2. Organizational, economic, and practical justifications for a LIMS\nTitle: Justifying LIMS Acquisition and Deployment within Your Organization\nEdition: First Edition\nAuthor for citation: Joe Liscouski, Shawn E. Douglas\nLicense for content: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International\nPublication date: July 2023\n\r\n\n\n\n\n\n\nSource: <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external\" href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Organizational,_economic,_and_practical_justifications_for_a_LIMS\/Practical_considerations_and_justifications\">https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Organizational,_economic,_and_practical_justifications_for_a_LIMS\/Practical_considerations_and_justifications<\/a>\nNavigation menuPage actionsBookDiscussionView sourceHistoryPage actionsBookDiscussionMoreToolsIn other languagesPersonal toolsLog inNavigationMain pageEncyclopedic articlesRecent changesRandom pageHelp about MediaWikiSearch\u00a0 ToolsWhat links hereRelated changesSpecial pagesPermanent linkPage informationPopular publications\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\n\n\t\r\nPrint\/exportCreate a bookDownload as PDFDownload as PDFDownload as Plain textPrintable version This page was last edited on 26 July 2023, at 14:56.Content is available under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License unless otherwise noted.This page has been accessed 6 times.Privacy policyAbout LIMSWikiDisclaimers\n\n\n\n","2d981a25d06eb8d4b4fc7dffbba9f6e5_html":"<body class=\"mediawiki ltr sitedir-ltr mw-hide-empty-elt ns-208 ns-subject page-Book_Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization_Organizational_economic_and_practical_justifications_for_a_LIMS_Practical_considerations_and_justifications rootpage-Book_Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization_Organizational_economic_and_practical_justifications_for_a_LIMS_Practical_considerations_and_justifications skin-monobook action-view skin--responsive\"><div id=\"rdp-ebb-globalWrapper\"><div id=\"rdp-ebb-column-content\"><div id=\"rdp-ebb-content\" class=\"mw-body\" role=\"main\"><a id=\"rdp-ebb-top\"><\/a>\n<h1 id=\"rdp-ebb-firstHeading\" class=\"firstHeading\" lang=\"en\">Book:Justifying LIMS Acquisition and Deployment within Your Organization\/Organizational, economic, and practical justifications for a LIMS\/Practical considerations and justifications<\/h1><div id=\"rdp-ebb-bodyContent\" class=\"mw-body-content\"><!-- start content --><div id=\"rdp-ebb-mw-content-text\" lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\" class=\"mw-content-ltr\"><div class=\"mw-parser-output\"><div align=\"center\">-----Return to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Introduction\" title=\"Book:Justifying LIMS Acquisition and Deployment within Your Organization\/Introduction\" class=\"wiki-link\" data-key=\"05b67a0bceac708006b29f16d3336070\">the beginning<\/a> of this guide-----<\/div>\n\n\n<h3><span class=\"mw-headline\" id=\"2.3_Practical_considerations_and_justifications\">2.3 Practical considerations and justifications<\/span><\/h3>\n<div class=\"floatright\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/File:Naval_Hospital_Camp_Pendleton_activity_160119-N-LK819-006.jpg\" class=\"image wiki-link\" data-key=\"091c3dd2d0e00e662dfa6a5d8261893e\"><img alt=\"Naval Hospital Camp Pendleton activity 160119-N-LK819-006.jpg\" src=\"https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/8\/8a\/Naval_Hospital_Camp_Pendleton_activity_160119-N-LK819-006.jpg\" decoding=\"async\" style=\"width: 100%;max-width: 400px;height: auto;\" \/><\/a><\/div><p>So far, we've looked primarily at the economic justifications for LIMS acquisition and deployment, with a few nods to why it makes practical sense (e.g., reducing data entry errors). Let's take a closer look at more practical justifications, both tangible and intangible.\n<\/p><h4><span class=\"mw-headline\" id=\"2.3.1_Tangible_benefits\">2.3.1 Tangible benefits<\/span><\/h4>\n<p>Here we provide examples of more tangible benefits to LIMS acquisition and deployment. Much of this list comes from the 1986 article by Joseph H. Golden previously mentioned in the prior chapter.<sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-GoldenEcon86_1-0\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-GoldenEcon86-1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup> Further insight is gained from Marking and Hald<sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-2\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup>, and, more recently, the Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL).<sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-APHLandLIS_3-0\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-APHLandLIS-3\">[3]<\/a><\/sup> These are areas in the work environment that can benefit from a LIMS, reduce costs, and improve both productivity and lab operations. The list is not exhaustive but sufficient for a basic LIMS installation. Note, however, that capabilities will naturally vary among LIMS offerings, and as such researching options and participating in demonstrations prior to acquisition is valuable.\n<\/p><p>The items in the list are points that should measurably demonstrate improvement by using a LIMS versus working with paper-based systems or spreadsheet implementation. If nothing else, with a two-seat LIMS license you can have one seat for administrative work and the second for others working with the system, making an improvement in the use of people's time.\n<\/p><p><b>Functions that can be improved by LIMS technology<\/b>\n<\/p><p><i>Analytical support functions<\/i>\n<\/p>\n<ul><li>Data entry through automated instrument interfacing and computational support (see notes above on barcodes and instrument connections)<\/li>\n<li>Analytical result report generation, which can be automatic (100% improvement) or manual, which requires a few parameters for complete reports to be produced<\/li>\n<li>Data archiving and retrieval, where archiving may be automatic and data retrieval is a matter of simply entering a query<\/li>\n<li>Method and specification storage and retrieval, wherein an electronic format means it is a matter of simply completing a standardized form and then pulling it up later as-needed<\/li><\/ul>\n<p><i>Work and resource management<\/i>: Manual searching is replaced with entering data into a form. This process can further be assisted by a barcode system for significant improvement in productivity.\n<\/p>\n<ul><li>Sample login<\/li>\n<li>Receipt and label generation<\/li>\n<li>Work assignment and scheduling<\/li>\n<li>Worklist preparation<\/li>\n<li>Sample tracking and status reporting<\/li>\n<li>Backlog reporting<\/li>\n<li>Report approval and release<\/li>\n<li>Reagent inventory and preparation control<\/li><\/ul>\n<p><i>Laboratory quality assurance support<\/i>\n<\/p>\n<ul><li>Audit trail generation, which is automatic with a LIMS<\/li>\n<li>Multi-analysis, blind sampling, round robin tracking, and variance reporting, which is a matter of setting up a standard report that can be executed with a few mouse clicks<\/li>\n<li>Automatic tolerance verification and limit checking<\/li>\n<li>Instrument calibration scheduling and tracking, which can be automatically managed and alerted in the LIMS<\/li><\/ul>\n<p><i>Management support reporting<\/i>: For each of the items below, this is a matter of setting up a standard report that can be executed with a few mouse clicks.\n<\/p>\n<ul><li>Lab productivity analysis<\/li>\n<li>Turn-around time (TAT) and customer service analysis<\/li>\n<li>Cost per analysis computation<\/li>\n<li>Equipment utilization analysis<\/li><\/ul>\n<p><i>Business support<\/i>: For each of the items below, this is a matter of setting up a standard report that can be executed with a few mouse clicks.\n<\/p>\n<ul><li>Labor time charge entry and reporting<\/li>\n<li>Customer account charging and\/or billing of inventoried product data for order entry processing<\/li>\n<li>QC test data for feedstock purchasing and vendor qualification<\/li>\n<li>Corporate database data for regulatory agencies<\/li>\n<li>Compliance reporting<\/li><\/ul>\n<p>To put things into perspective, consider the work involved in generating a lab\u2019s monthly reports on any of the points above by manually searching paper records or at best a spreadsheet system (and while you are doing this, no one else may be able to use the system). Now replace that effort with a few mouse clicks using automated report generation, which could be set up on a regular schedule.\n<\/p>\n<h4><span class=\"mw-headline\" id=\"2.3.2_Intangible_benefits\">2.3.2 Intangible benefits<\/span><\/h4>\n<p>Using economic analyses like ROI doesn't provide a complete picture of a LIMS' benefits, as it can be difficult to turn intangible benefits into measurable cost savings.<sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-ODriscollSeven23_4-0\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-ODriscollSeven23-4\">[4]<\/a><\/sup><sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-NovakTheBen20_5-0\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-NovakTheBen20-5\">[5]<\/a><\/sup> (We'll further discuss why ROI shouldn't be the sole selling point of a LIMS project proposal in the next chapter.) The importance of an intangible asset depends upon the issues facing your lab. If you\u2019re swamped with work and can\u2019t hire more people (e.g., because of lack of availability, space, and budget limitations), improving efficiency might be the best alternative, and that could mean a LIMS. If you\u2019re facing regulatory challenges and a plant shutdown is possible, then a LIMS might mean staying in business. What issues are important, and what\u2019s the value of successfully addressing them? As is often the case, the intangible benefits can overshadow more quantitative analysis.<sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-ODriscollSeven23_4-1\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-ODriscollSeven23-4\">[4]<\/a><\/sup><sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-NovakTheBen20_5-1\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-NovakTheBen20-5\">[5]<\/a><\/sup>\n<\/p><p>The following represent intangible benefits the laboratory can gain by acquiring and deploying a LIMS.<sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-NovakTheBen20_5-2\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-NovakTheBen20-5\">[5]<\/a><\/sup><sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-6\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-6\">[6]<\/a><\/sup><sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-ASTME1578_7-0\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-ASTME1578-7\">[7]<\/a><\/sup><sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-ToddMRSA18_8-0\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-ToddMRSA18-8\">[8]<\/a><\/sup><sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-9\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-9\">[9]<\/a><\/sup><sup id=\"rdp-ebb-cite_ref-CSolsHowToGet22_10-0\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"#cite_note-CSolsHowToGet22-10\">[10]<\/a><\/sup> There is no guarantee your lab will benefit in every area, but realistically one can imagine a scenario where some of these benefits are realized. What is viewed as an intangible benefit to one laboratory may be viewed as tangible by another, and vice versa. Though viewed as \"intangible,\" any inability to quantify a benefit does not make it any less important to an organization acquiring and deploying a LIMS.\n<\/p><p><i>Improved support for production operations<\/i>\n<\/p>\n<ul><li>Faster delivery of results to production<\/li>\n<li>More useable result formats<\/li>\n<li>Less production waste<\/li>\n<li>Faster detection of production\/quality issues, which reduced wasted product and production time<\/li>\n<li>Better integration with production and process control software (e.g., <a href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Enterprise_resource_planning\" title=\"Enterprise resource planning\" class=\"wiki-link\" data-key=\"07be791b94a208f794e38224f0c0950b\">enterprise resource planning<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.limswiki.org\/index.php\/Manufacturing_execution_system\" title=\"Manufacturing execution system\" class=\"wiki-link\" data-key=\"02e93282eda3e4708b1789cb47519917\">manufacturing execution systems<\/a>, and product lifecycle management)<\/li>\n<li>Better, more easily managed, regulatory compliance<\/li><\/ul>\n<p><i>Improved perception of lab capabilities due to improved performance<\/i>\n<\/p>\n<ul><li>Better customer relations<\/li>\n<li>Improvement in lab personnel's attitude about their work, potentially reducing turnover and costs of hiring and training<\/li>\n<li>Improved projected business from extra profits (e.g., as a contract testing lab)<\/li><\/ul>\n<p><i>Centralized and streamlined lab information, data, and operations<\/i>\n<\/p>\n<ul><li>Reduction in duplicate testing<\/li>\n<li>Easy production of pending, overdue lists<\/li>\n<li>Easier prioritization of work<\/li>\n<li>Easier evaluation of the lab\u2019s workload<\/li>\n<li>Improved reporting<\/li>\n<li>Developed basis for further lab automation work, resulting in higher productivity<\/li>\n<li>Improved data security (physical and access control)<\/li>\n<li>Additional gained value from lab data, turning it into a usable asset and improving access to results<\/li>\n<li>More efficient lab operations<\/li>\n<li>Better regulatory compliance (in non-production environments) and fewer audits<\/li><\/ul>\n<p><i>Improved data management\/governance<\/i>\n<\/p>\n<ul><li>Improved data quality<\/li>\n<li>Overall error reduction, e.g., reduced transcription error through the use of barcodes and electronic transfer of IDS results<\/li>\n<li>Reduction in transcription errors<\/li>\n<li>Improved accuracy of data<\/li>\n<li>Improved data integrity<\/li>\n<li>Improved compliance with data-driven regulations<\/li><\/ul>\n<h2><span class=\"mw-headline\" id=\"References\">References<\/span><\/h2>\n<div class=\"reflist references-column-width\" style=\"-moz-column-width: 30em; -webkit-column-width: 30em; column-width: 30em; list-style-type: decimal;\">\n<div class=\"mw-references-wrap\"><ol class=\"references\">\n<li id=\"cite_note-GoldenEcon86-1\"><span class=\"mw-cite-backlink\"><a href=\"#cite_ref-GoldenEcon86_1-0\">\u2191<\/a><\/span> <span class=\"reference-text\"><span class=\"citation book\">Golden, J.H. (1986). <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external text\" href=\"https:\/\/pubs.acs.org\/doi\/book\/10.1021\/bk-1986-0313\" target=\"_blank\">\"Chapter 2: Economic Considerations of Laboratory Information Management Systems\"<\/a>. In Provder, Theodore (in en). <i>Computer Applications in the Polymer Laboratory<\/i>. ACS Symposium Series. <b>313<\/b>. Washington, DC: American Chemical Society. pp. 6\u201316. <a rel=\"nofollow\" class=\"external text wiki-link\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Digital_object_identifier\" data-key=\"ae6d69c760ab710abc2dd89f3937d2f4\">doi<\/a>:<a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external text\" href=\"http:\/\/dx.doi.org\/10.1021%2Fbk-1986-0313.ch002\" target=\"_blank\">10.1021\/bk-1986-0313.ch002<\/a>. <a rel=\"nofollow\" class=\"external text wiki-link\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/International_Standard_Book_Number\" data-key=\"f64947ba21e884434bd70e8d9e60bae6\">ISBN<\/a> 978-0-8412-0977-0<span class=\"printonly\">. <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external free\" href=\"https:\/\/pubs.acs.org\/doi\/book\/10.1021\/bk-1986-0313\" target=\"_blank\">https:\/\/pubs.acs.org\/doi\/book\/10.1021\/bk-1986-0313<\/a><\/span>.<\/span><span class=\"Z3988\" title=\"ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.btitle=Chapter+2%3A+Economic+Considerations+of+Laboratory+Information+Management+Systems&rft.atitle=Computer+Applications+in+the+Polymer+Laboratory&rft.aulast=Golden%2C+J.H.&rft.au=Golden%2C+J.H.&rft.date=1986&rft.series=ACS+Symposium+Series&rft.volume=313&rft.pages=pp.%26nbsp%3B6%E2%80%9316&rft.place=Washington%2C+DC&rft.pub=American+Chemical+Society&rft_id=info:doi\/10.1021%2Fbk-1986-0313.ch002&rft.isbn=978-0-8412-0977-0&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fpubs.acs.org%2Fdoi%2Fbook%2F10.1021%2Fbk-1986-0313&rfr_id=info:sid\/en.wikipedia.org:Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Organizational,_economic,_and_practical_justifications_for_a_LIMS\/Practical_considerations_and_justifications\"><span style=\"display: none;\"> <\/span><\/span>\n<\/span>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"cite_note-2\"><span class=\"mw-cite-backlink\"><a href=\"#cite_ref-2\">\u2191<\/a><\/span> <span class=\"reference-text\"><span class=\"citation Journal\">Markin, Rodney S.; Hald, David L. (1 December 1992). <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external text\" href=\"http:\/\/link.springer.com\/10.1007\/BF00996362\" target=\"_blank\">\"Cost justification of a laboratory information system: An analysis of projected tangible and intangible benefits\"<\/a> (in en). <i>Journal of Medical Systems<\/i> <b>16<\/b> (6): 281\u2013295. <a rel=\"nofollow\" class=\"external text wiki-link\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Digital_object_identifier\" data-key=\"ae6d69c760ab710abc2dd89f3937d2f4\">doi<\/a>:<a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external text\" href=\"http:\/\/dx.doi.org\/10.1007%2FBF00996362\" target=\"_blank\">10.1007\/BF00996362<\/a>. <a rel=\"nofollow\" class=\"external text wiki-link\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/International_Standard_Serial_Number\" data-key=\"a5dec3e4d005e654c29ad167ab53f53a\">ISSN<\/a> <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external text\" href=\"http:\/\/www.worldcat.org\/issn\/0148-5598\" target=\"_blank\">0148-5598<\/a><span class=\"printonly\">. <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external free\" href=\"http:\/\/link.springer.com\/10.1007\/BF00996362\" target=\"_blank\">http:\/\/link.springer.com\/10.1007\/BF00996362<\/a><\/span>.<\/span><span class=\"Z3988\" title=\"ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.atitle=Cost+justification+of+a+laboratory+information+system%3A+An+analysis+of+projected+tangible+and+intangible+benefits&rft.jtitle=Journal+of+Medical+Systems&rft.aulast=Markin&rft.aufirst=Rodney+S.&rft.au=Markin%2C%26%2332%3BRodney+S.&rft.au=Hald%2C%26%2332%3BDavid+L.&rft.date=1+December+1992&rft.volume=16&rft.issue=6&rft.pages=281%E2%80%93295&rft_id=info:doi\/10.1007%2FBF00996362&rft.issn=0148-5598&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Flink.springer.com%2F10.1007%2FBF00996362&rfr_id=info:sid\/en.wikipedia.org:Book:Justifying_LIMS_Acquisition_and_Deployment_within_Your_Organization\/Organizational,_economic,_and_practical_justifications_for_a_LIMS\/Practical_considerations_and_justifications\"><span style=\"display: none;\"> <\/span><\/span>\n<\/span>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"cite_note-APHLandLIS-3\"><span class=\"mw-cite-backlink\"><a href=\"#cite_ref-APHLandLIS_3-0\">\u2191<\/a><\/span> <span class=\"reference-text\"><span class=\"citation web\"><a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external text\" href=\"https:\/\/www.aphl.org\/aboutAPHL\/publications\/Documents\/GH-2019May-LIS-Guidebook-web.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">\"Laboratory Information Systems Project Management: A Guidebook for International Implementations\"<\/a> (PDF). Association of Public Health Laboratories. May 2019<span class=\"printonly\">. <a rel=\"external_link\" class=\"external free\" href=\"https:\/\/www.aphl.org\/aboutAPHL\/publications\/Documents\/GH-2019May-LIS-Guidebook-web.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">https:\/\/www.aphl.org\/aboutAPHL\/publications\/Documents\/GH-2019May-LIS-Guidebook-web.pdf<\/a><\/span><span class=\"reference-accessdate\">. Retrieved 19 July 2023<\/span>.<\/span><span class=\"Z3988\" title=\"ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.btitle=Laboratory+Information+Systems+Project+Management%3A+A+Guidebook+for+International+Implementations&rft.atitle=&r
