The verdict in three sentences
Software that links care plans, shift handovers and billing to long term care insurers and residents for a group of four care homes in Munich realistically goes live in 7 to 13 months, depending on scope and how available nursing teams are. The timeline is won or lost early: 2 to 3 months of discovery with nursing leads, care assistants and billing staff prevent lost months at the end. Present your board with a phase plan and a home by home rollout, not a single switchover date.
Phase by phase plan
| Phase | Scope | Realistic duration | Board milestone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Discovery | workshops by role (care, housekeeping, social care, billing), handover flows, billing rules, hosting choice | 2 to 3 months | requirements and budget approved |
| Design and prototype | care plan, tablet handovers, nursing manager dashboard, all in German | 1 to 2 months | prototype tested by 10 to 15 staff |
| Build, release 1 | resident record, care plan, structured care documentation, alerts | 3 to 4 months | pilot version |
| Data migration | resident data import, checks by nursing teams | 2 to 6 weeks, in parallel | data verified in the pilot home |
| Pilot | one care home for 4 to 6 weeks | 1 to 1.5 months | review and fixes |
| Build, release 2 | billing to long term care insurers and residents, social welfare co-payments, management dashboards, telematics infrastructure link | 3 to 4 months, partly in parallel | full version |
| Rollout | the three other homes, one at a time | 2 to 4 months | full go live |
Add it up: 7 to 8 months for the first home in production, 11 to 13 months for all four with billing. A scope limited to care plans and handovers can fit in 7 months.
Timeline and budget by scope
| Scope | Overall timeline | Market budget (2026 ballpark) |
|---|---|---|
| Care plan and handovers, one home | 5 to 6 months | EUR 70,000 to 120,000 |
| Care plan and handovers, 4 homes | 7 to 8 months | EUR 110,000 to 200,000 |
| Plus long term care insurance and resident billing | 10 to 12 months | EUR 180,000 to 320,000 |
| Plus family portal, payroll and telematics links | 11 to 13 months | EUR 250,000 to 400,000 |
| Health data hosting in Germany | from go live | EUR 700 to 3,000 per month |
Germany's electronic billing to long term care insurers and its telematics infrastructure follow detailed technical specifications: check the current requirements published by gematik and the insurers' associations before fixing your release 2 date. Kolonell can take on specific modules such as the family portal or dashboards: its prices for a custom application are 6,100 to 10,670 EUR (medium) and 10,670 to 22,870 EUR and up (complex), hosting extra. These are Kolonell's prices, not market prices.
What usually causes delays
| Cause | Typical delay | How to avoid it |
|---|---|---|
| Nursing teams unavailable for workshops | 3 to 6 weeks | short workshops at shift change, cover budgeted |
| Incomplete or inconsistent resident records | 2 to 6 weeks | one data lead per home from discovery |
| Insurer billing specifications underestimated | 4 to 8 weeks | involve a billing specialist in discovery |
| Late hosting decision | 2 to 4 weeks | decide during discovery, with a German or EU provider holding a BSI C5 attestation where required |
| Weak wifi in residential wings | 2 to 8 weeks | network audit before the pilot, offline tablet mode |
| Staff onboarding underestimated | 2 to 4 weeks per home | peer champions per shift, short sessions on the ward, German language guides for staff whose first language differs |
Munich care homes employ many staff whose first language is not German: plain German interfaces with clear icons shorten onboarding far more than long manuals.
Mini case study
Illustrative example: Markus, managing director of a group of four care homes in Munich, employs 260 care staff. He estimates each loses 15 minutes a day to re-typing and repeated verbal handovers, over 18 shifts a month: 260 × 0.25 × 18 = 1,170 hours. At EUR 32 an hour fully loaded, that is EUR 37,440 a month. A realistic 12 month plan with the first home live in month 8 recovers that time step by step. An optimistic plan that keeps slipping instead costs up to EUR 37,440 of unrecovered care time for every month of delay: an 8 month slip adds up to EUR 299,520, before counting the damage to staff trust.
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FAQ
Can four homes go live in 7 months?
Only with a scope limited to care plans and handovers and teams available for discovery. With insurer billing, plan 11 to 13 months.
Where must resident data be hosted?
Resident care data is health data under Article 9 of the GDPR; hosting in Germany or the EU with a provider meeting German healthcare security expectations is the safe default. Budget EUR 700 to 3,000 a month as a 2026 ballpark.
Should all homes switch at once?
No, a home by home rollout over 2 to 4 months limits risk. The first home becomes the reference and its staff support the next ones.
How long does resident data migration take?
2 to 6 weeks for 300 to 450 residents, depending on data quality. Plan a check by nurses before go live.
How should we present this to the board?
With a phase plan, a go or no-go milestone after discovery and release 1 budgeted separately from release 2. A board accepts 3 dated milestones more easily than one big date.
Let's scope your project. Tell us about your homes, teams and current software, and we will propose a phase plan, an indicative budget and milestones for your board. Detailed quote within 48 h. WhatsApp +221 77 596 93 33.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
