Tips for Evaluating Technology Providers for Business Needs

How do I recommend you evaluate a potential technology provider? Over the years, I've focused on six key dimensions when completing my due diligence of any tech provider: 1. Requirements vs. Vendor Capabilities - I typically recommend a customized RFP based on customer / user requirements, followed by some limited scope POC. If the vendor is unwilling to support a POC, then I recommend disqualifying them. - Engagement with end users during RFP process is critical, which includes involving them in some form of vendor scoring exercise. - Ensure you also engage all the necessary IT stakeholders from an architecture and security perspective as engaging them too late could throw a big wrench into your process. - Criticality of this dimension: 30% of total vendor score 2. Business Value and Pricing/License Options - Will the vendor help you build a business case to justify a spend? If not, this is a huge red flag. - Ensure your financial evaluation method aligns to your CFO's preferred method (TCO vs. ROI vs. NPV vs. IRR, etc.) - License restrictions, exit options, pricing levers - Is the vendor pricing roughly aligned to how others price? - Does the pricing / licensing model support flexibility for future growth? - Criticality of this dimension: 25% of total vendor score 3. Roadmap & Strategic Alignment - Does the vendor have a well-articulated roadmap, and does it align to how you see your requirements evolving in the future? - Does the vendor roadmap align to where you see the market heading? - Does the vendor solution, and their roadmap align to your long-term data and IT strategies? - Criticality of this dimension: 10% of total vendor score 4. Market Feedback - customer testimonials and references - analyst reviews - peer insights, reviews, social media - Criticality of this dimension: 15% of total vendor score 5. Ongoing Support - what is the vendor support model? - do you have an assigned customer success manager? - how dedicated is the vendor to your success? - Criticality of this dimension: 10% of total vendor score 5. The overall vendor 'vibe' - difficult to quantify and beware of biases, but also listen to your gut - does your experience with the vendor feel like a partnership, or a transaction? - how important is your success to the vendor? - Criticality of this dimension: 10% of total vendor score What have I missed? What else would you add? #cdo #chiefdataofficer #rfp

Technology vendors can’t build a great solution if buyers don’t share a great amount of information. And not just within the category of technical requirements. To make the biggest impact, vendors need to understand their buyer’s business strategy and objectives by asking questions like: 1. Where can we make the most impact on your operations? This narrows the scope of the problem for the vendor. 2. What does the buying journey look like, and who are the stakeholders involved in validating vendor solutions? This tells the vendor how the decision process works end to end. 3. What does your current tech stack look like? This shows the vendor what kind of technical constraints they’re working with. 4. What are some of the milestones you want to hit? This tells the vendor how to budget their time and resources. 5. What exactly do you want your solution to look like? Do you know what UI and UX needs will be non-negotiable? Do you need agents working out of your CRM, or open to something different? Do you need reporting in PowerBI, Tableau, or within the SaaS tool? This is another helpful way for vendors to narrow the scope of the problem so they can build the right solution. 6. How would you like to engage with your vendor after they have implemented the solution? This tells the vendor how to scope their or a partner's support and provides you as a buyer with a much better Total Cost of Operating. By asking these kinds of questions, vendors won’t miss the mark on something they just didn’t know the buyer needed. With this information in hand, it creates an opportunity for vendors to separate themselves and create more certainty for the client.

Tech sustainability is no longer just about environmental and social issues — it’s also about how well your tech helps your organization deliver value. That’s what jumped out at me in Gartner’s strategic tech trends report for 2024. Businesses are broadening their view of sustainability, and the kinds of tech choices they make are top of mind. As you evaluate tech vendors, here are 4 questions to keep in mind: 1. Does this vendor prioritize flexibility or lock you into a long-term contract? 2. Will they protect your investment by keeping your data safe and keeping their product operational 100% of the time? 3. Will they continue to innovate or stay the same product you purchased at the outset? 4. Will it take an unnecessary amount of time for the tech to deliver value? Based on their answers, you can determine if their tech is sustainable for your business (or not). Leaders, what conversations are you having about sustainability in your tech stack? #tech #technology #techcommunity #saas #innovation