Technology plays a pivotal role in boosting operational efficiency and resident satisfaction within the senior living industry. That makes choosing the right technology solution for your care community critical — and your choices fall broadly into two camps. You can select a best-in-class system, such as one built on Sage Intacct or what we refer to as an all-in-one senior living management suite. Which is right for your organization, and why?
Best-In-Class or All-In-One — What’s the Difference?
Let’s start by defining what we mean by best-in-class and all-in-one.
A best-in-class solution refers to an integrated collection of software applications that when combined (aka integrated) form a best-in-class solution. A single best-in-class application is one that specializes in a particular function or area of operations, such as your financial solution, your HR Management or payroll solution, your clinical solution, etc. Each striving to deliver the highest quality and performance in that specific domain. These solutions are typically developed by companies focused on optimizing a single aspect of business processes, and sometimes then get even more optimized for specific industries.
On the other hand, an all-in-one solution is designed to provide a comprehensive suite of tools that cover multiple operational and functional needs within a single platform. These solutions aim to handle a broad range of functions — from accounting and HR to CRM and clinical management — all under one roof. Because their goal is to “do it all” these applications are usually generalists when it comes to depth of functionality, being average at a lot of things. These solutions are sometimes created by one company but are also often created by companies who have developed one area of the solution and then purchased other solutions to combine into an all-in-one, and these two types offer different experiences.
Advantages of Choosing Best-In-Class
Best-in-class systems offer numerous advantages, especially in diverse, complex industries like senior living. The benefits of choosing best-in-class include:
- Choose the Best Tool for the Job
If you opt for a best-in-class system, you get to choose the most suitable accounting application (think Sage Intacct), clinical management software (think ALIS or PointClickCare), payroll system (think ADP or Paylocity), marketing and sales tools (thinkMatrixCare), electronic health records (EHR), electronic medical records (EMR), and electronic medication administration records (eMAR). Each of these applications is designed with integration in mind. Taking this approach means you can select each application based on its performance, ease of use, and how well it meets the specific needs of your community and staff — not because it’s your only option. - Flexibility to Grow and Adapt
Best-in-class solutions allow you to choose the best tools for each function and ensure you can replace or upgrade individual components without overhauling your entire system. Such adaptability is crucial in the fast-evolving senior care industry, where being able to implement new technologies or compliance measures quickly can significantly impact your service quality and operational efficiency.
All-in-one systems lock you into using their tools—whether they fully meet your needs or not. The lack of choice and ability to integrate other solutions in when needed in all-in-one systems can prevent you from adapting to evolving industry standards and technologies, potentially stalling the growth and adaptability of your portfolio.
- Specialization Breeds Excellence
Because each tool in a best-in-class solution specializes in a specific area, it often provides more robust features and better performance in its niche compared to broader systems. When a vendor has to maintain an application that claims to “do it all,” some areas inevitably suffer. Case in point, we’d argue that no all-in-one system currently on the market can compare with Sage Intacct’s accounting and finance capabilities.
Options vs. Lock-Ins — the Power of Choice
In addition to the benefits above, perhaps the biggest advantage of choosing a best-in-class solution for your senior living management is simply gaining the power of choice.
When we speak to finance teams at senior care communities, they instantly recognize the value of Sage Intacct, a system designed by accountants, and quickly jump in camp “Best-in-Class.” However, when the clinical side of the business weighs in, they’ve often only seen all-in-one systems that market directly and heavily to the industry. Sometimes, there’s even a battle between the two camps to pick the right system for the organization as a whole — resulting in (at least) one business unit compromising.
We always share with these diverse teams that there’s no need to compromise. With a best-in-class solution, both the back office and the operational sides of the community can use the software applications they choose because best-in-class is built around integration. For example, we have numerous clients running Sage Intacct in combination with Salesforce, ALIS, and ADP. Each application is a proven leader in its class, combining to provide these communities with a best-in-class solution.
The No Compromise Choice for Senior Living Management
Choosing a best-in-class strategy with Sage Intacct places the power of choice back in your hands, making sure you can always use the best tools available for each specific need. This approach contrasts sharply with the restrictive nature of all-in-one systems, offering better performance today and the flexibility to continue adapting and growing into the future.
While all-in-one systems might promise convenience and an industry focus, they often fail to deliver the specialized tools and flexibility senior living management requires — specifically regarding finance and accounting. Sage Intacct’s best-in-class approach provides the specialization, flexibility, and integration capabilities that match the needs of modern senior care facilities. Our team has extensive experience in this space, and we’d love the opportunity to work with you to select, implement, and optimize a best-in-class solution.
