Eulogica acquires competitor

Mr Roger Harrop, who established Dignity Software more than a decade ago, had for some time been looking for an opportunity to arrange his retirement. It was important for him, however, to organise this in a way that would ensure that his clients receive uninterrupted and excellent service. Roger says he is delighted with the solution which has now been found.

Few if any of the established companies supplying funeral management software in the UK have been specialists in this field and market alone, apart from Dignity Software and Eulogica. Roger Harrop says, “I believe my clients will have the best of all worlds: Not only the most advanced Funeral software system available, but also a dedicated, well funded, broad based, specialist supplier in the business of funeral management, widely known for excellence in their customer service.” Eulogica is a well established business with operations in several countries, strong financial backing, ambitious future plans, and highly qualified support staff including several former funeral directors.

On the technical side, both parties are aware that any funeral management software is an essential tool at the heart of the funeral business, so it has been agreed to create a special Dignity edition of the Eulogica software to benefit the Dignity clients.

This new software will incorporate not only the traditional benefits of the Eulogica system, like their graphical diary and reliable database, but also the traditional functionality from the Dignity system, laid out in a manner familiar to Dignity clients. Every Dignity client will be offered a smooth transition to this new merged “super-system”. A conversion tool will be provided to import records and data into the new system, and free Eulogica training will even be available at the funeral premises.

Other established and new Eulogica clients will also benefit from the new added functionality, as part of Eulogica's ongoing support and maintenance service.

Dignity Software Ltd will effect a gradual transfer of its support and maintenance contracts to Eulogica by the end of the year 2009. Until the installations have been upgraded, Roger Harrop of Dignity Software will continue to provide support. At an agreed mutually convenient date, each client will receive a visit from Eulogica's David Wright, to install the new Eulogica Dignity edition, after which time support and maintenance will be provided by Eulogica.

The Eulogica software is well known for its flexibility – for instance, input fields may be added, taken away or moved around according to each business' wishes. Eulogica is based on tailoring the software precisely to the needs of individual Funeral Directors. So this will also be an opportunity for clients to change anything they might have grown to dislike about Dignity Software!

Roger continues, “I recommend that clients see this transition as an opportunity for their business to upgrade the internal systems in order to improve efficiency and quality, and provide their own customers with an even better service than before.”

Eulogica's David Wright will become the primary point of support for the former Dignity clients. David took up employment with Eulogica in 2005 as their Client Support Manager. The Funeral profession was not new to David, as he holds the NAFD Diploma in Funeral Directing and also has over 5 years experience of working as a Funeral Director for his step father's business, Eric Eyre of Sheffield. Being a qualified Funeral Director and a certified IT networking specialist, as well as an expert on Eulogica, there are not many funeral software questions he cannot answer. David is now working with Roger Harrop to understand every detail of the Dignity system, in order to be able to assist the former Dignity clients with the upgrade in the best possible way. Roger Harrop will retire from the funeral software business after the 2009 transition period.

Eulogica has a history going back more than 12 years and the software is installed in around 300 locations in some 200 funeral organisations across 3 European countries. The UK business was established in 2003. ”What is really unique is that Eulogica can be custom built to every funeral home and funeral director’s needs,” says Gary Bakke, Marketing Director at Eulogica. “We have discovered during our in-depth analysis of funeral processes that every funeral home and director has their own way of conducting a funeral. Our software has been developed in such a way that we can sit side by side with Funeral Directors and custom build the software in accordance to how they conduct their funerals. We believe the software should be adopted to the Funeral Director - not the other way round!”

The pictures show Svein Mytting from Eulogica with Roger Harrop from Dignity Software, and David Wright discussing the technical details with Roger.