Your school’s software plays a vital part in both keeping your school running and its overall performance. Without systems that fully support your staff and their needs, day-to-day school operations become more and more time-consuming.
That’s why it’s so important to choose the right new software for your school. This doesn’t necessarily mean choosing the most popular option. Your systems should suit your individual needs and drive your school towards its goals.
However, it’s not always easy to know which software is truly right for you. Ultimately, no software provider can build a solution that answers every question and addresses every challenge that a school might face – since all schools are unique. Integration is a vital component to consider when searching for a new school management system.
So, if you’re considering a switch of software, where do you start? How do you know you’re making the right decision and enlisting the best integrated school management system?
Before you even start engaging with providers, you need to look inwards. Work with your entire school to understand what your needs are from your software, from both a macro and micro level. Each department will have different priorities and requirements, so it’s key to take the entire school into consideration.
Work with your departments and the staff that use your existing software on a day-to-day basis. However you choose to conduct this research, ensure that all voices are heard. Find out what their current challenges are with your existing software and how those challenges could be resolved.
Once you’ve conducted a review into the current experience and your school’s software priorities, work to generate your key goals for your software migration. What do you really need from your software? Answering this question ensures that you’re starting your search in the right place and gives your potential providers a clear view of your school’s specific needs. Ultimately, if you’re not sure what you want from your software, it’s impossible for your providers to meet expectations.
The structure of your software can have a considerable impact on its effectiveness for your school. You may need a solution that can support multiple goals, but it’s important to consider how any systems work together and what would best suit your needs.
Are there systems that your school is currently using that you would like to keep? Or would you prefer a solution that can offer maximum functionality under one provider?
Modular software structures enable you to select the systems that your school needs, without carrying the ones that you don’t. This ensures that you can create a solution that is specific to your school. For most schools, this is better than an off-the-shelf or disparate selection of software.
Consider an all-in-one solution that offers as much as possible, in-house, to build the foundation of your school software. You don’t need to subscribe to every single system, but having the option to expand your range of solutions supports your school growth.
As above, an all-in-one solution is a great foundation for your school management system. However, it’s unlikely that any one software provider can offer a system that meets every individual need of your school and its staff.
In that case, it’s also important to select a system that offers flexibility. Does the system offer a suite of APIs or work with a range of existing integrators to further enhance the reach of their software? The system needs to be flexible enough to meet your school’s needs where their software doesn’t have the specific functionality.
The best software providers will realise that there will always be requirements that they can’t fulfill for schools, and empower schools to work with the solutions that suit them best – as easily as possible.
Software flexibility also ensures that the solution is scalable. Choosing the right school management system means selecting a provider that supports your school’s growth goals and can grow with you. Consider whether you can see your choice lasting for the long haul, or whether you might need to migrate in the years ahead. Keeping both your current requirements and your future goals in mind when considering software is vital.
You might also have existing systems that you’d like to keep. Always check in with your potential provider to ensure they can facilitate integration and recognise the importance of your vital systems.
It goes without saying that data security is a top priority for your school, particularly your IT teams and data managers. You have a responsibility to protect the data of your staff, students, and parents – particularly since you will handle a large amount of private and sensitive data on a daily basis.
This should be a key consideration when searching for the best integrated school management system. Both the foundational software and its integration process need to have data protection at their heart.
How is your potential new system hosted? What technology is used for data storage, sharing, and integration? You may need to involve your data managers or IT teams here for the best advice. Search for a provider that works with cloud hosting as a starting point, and then discuss your specific needs and how the software can meet the relevant legislation for your area.
When working with any software, there will come a time where you will need to call upon the provider for support, whether with installing the software or queries that crop up in the future. It’s important that support is accurate and efficient to reduce potential downtime or lack of progress due to an unresolved query.
Take the time to discuss the support offering with your provider and ensure it meets your needs. For example, what hours are support available? And how can you contact the team? Is this flexible enough for your school? You may wish to speak to other schools to discuss their experience with the provider’s software support.
Similarly, consider the support experience when working across providers. Identify who provides support for all the systems that you may wish to integrate. Is it possible to liaise with one support team, or will you need to take a more disparate approach? How well do your integrated system providers communicate?
No one system will work perfectly 100% of the time, but the key is to feel confident in the level of support provided when there is an issue.
As briefly mentioned above, one of the best ways to identify the best school management systems is to speak to other schools – particularly those that have similar requirements to your own. Each provider should be able to offer testimonials or case studies from schools they’ve previously worked with. However, you might also wish to do your own research.
Companies that are more widely recognised or have a better reputation, particularly with integration and APIs, are more likely to already have the functionality to meet your needs. Your chosen provider should have plenty of experience in the space, thereby providing them with a deeper understanding of your school’s individual requirements.
The iSAMS system was designed to be as comprehensive as possible to support schools across departments, with a modular system that empowers you to build the unique solution you need.
However, we recognise that we cannot build a solution for every requirement. Each school is fundamentally different and might rely on a range of systems to function efficiently. That’s why we already partner with a range of third-party solutions to provide seamless integrations, further enhancing the potential of iSAMS.
Can’t find the right partner for your needs? The iSAMS API enables schools to integrate their chosen third parties with ease. We utilise industry-standard API technology, ensuring that software partners can take full advantage of data synchronisation with iSAMS, including everything from admissions and course enrolments, to examinations.
Interested in learning more about the iSAMS integrated school management system for your school? You can access a full demo below: