How to Evaluate Software for Business Needs

How We Evaluate Technology at SOCPAC: A New Standard At SOCPAC, we’ve reached an inflection point in how we engage with technology companies. The days of buzzwords and slide decks are over. Moving forward, our evaluation process is guided by four criteria, each rooted in our operational needs and foundational architecture: 1. Production-Proven: Your technology must work in real-world environments, not just in a lab, demo, or wargame. If your product doesn’t already run at scale, on-network, and under pressure, it’s not ready for our missions. 2. User-Validated: We don’t just ask what your platform does. We ask: Do our operators want to use it? If an end user on our team says your tool gives them an edge, that carries more weight than any technical spec. 3. Architecture-Integrated: Every capability must connect to the platforms we’ve already deployed, a platform for strategic workflows and data fusion, a platform for tactical autonomy and sensor-to-shooter control, and a platform for AI tuning, feedback, and agent deployment. If your system can’t plug into this triad, it will create friction, not an advantage for us. 4. Culturally Aligned: We look for companies that embody intellectual honesty, speed of iteration, and a bias for solving problems over selling products. We want partners who thrive in ambiguity and innovate under constraint. This isn't about shutting the door. It's about raising the bar. We’re building a digital warfighting ecosystem, not a tech museum. If your team can plug into our architecture, align with our culture, and deliver capabilities that actually matter to the mission, we’re ready to work with you. Let’s move fast together.

"Should we implement a CDP?" "Do we have the right CDP?" "Should we trade out our packaged CDP for a composable CDP? Or get rid of it altogether?" Too many CDP options make it hard to know which solution actually fits your needs. You're unsure if your current CDP investment delivers value or if you're missing out by not having one. More than anything, you just want to use customer data effectively. After looking at our customer base, I've observed some interesting patterns: -- Only 26% of our customers at Stitch use a CDP -- A third of those are moving capabilities to their data warehouse, so that 26% will reduce -- Over half of those keeping their CDP use it only for data collection and identity resolution Many companies successfully use CDPs to create unified customer views, deliver personalized experiences, and drive meaningful engagement. When aligned with clear business goals, CDPs can be powerful tools. However, as noted in the data, it's not a requirement and many brands are leveraging their data warehouse. Before making your next CDP decision, gather your team to map out your specific needs against your existing technology. Identify the actual gaps that need filling... ✔️ Define your specific needs first - Let your actual requirements drive your technology decisions. ✔️ Evaluate what you already have - Many companies have tools that can handle some CDP functions, like the data warehouse, Amplitude & Mixpanel, or Braze's identity resolution features. ✔️ Consider alternatives for basic needs - For data collection or integration, tools like Fivetran, Snowplow, & Jitsu might be simpler options. ✔️ Look at your data warehouse capabilities - Modern data warehouses can often handle identity resolution, data collection & other CDP features effectively Without a thoughtful approach, you risk paying for expensive software that duplicates capabilities you already have elsewhere in your technology stack. This isn't about whether CDPs are good or bad. Many organizations get tremendous value from their CDPs when they've carefully matched the technology to their specific needs. However, the data is telling us that organizations are overestimating the need for a CDP and too many jump in without a plan.

Adopting new technology requires what I call “foundational”work. Here are three such key tasks: 1) Conduct a Thorough Needs Assessment -Evaluate existing tools and workflows: Are they meeting your needs, or are inefficiencies and manual tasks slowing you down? -Pinpoint pain points: Identify recurring challenges such as data silos, integration issues, or compliance gaps. -Engage your team: Host discussions or surveys to uncover their everyday challenges and gain insights from those closest to the work. 2) Map and Analyze Workflows -Document end-to-end processes: Map each step of key workflows, from intake to output. -Spot inefficiencies: Look for bottlenecks, redundant steps, and high-risk areas where errors commonly occur. -Visualize opportunities: Use these insights to identify areas ripe for automation or enhancement. 3) Set Clear, Data-Driven Goals -Tie goals to business outcomes: Define objectives that align with broader organizational priorities—e.g., "Reduce contract review time by 30%" or "Achieve a 15% increase in team productivity." -Define metrics of success: Establish KPIs that will help you track progress and assess ROI over time. 4) Build Cross-Functional Buy-In -Engage early with stakeholders: Collaborate with legal, IT, finance, and operations teams to ensure the chosen solution addresses both tactical needs and strategic objectives. -Promote transparency: Share the rationale behind adopting new technology and the benefits for each stakeholder group to build trust. #legaltech #innovation #law #business #learning

**Choosing the Right Software Vendor: A Strategic Perspective** Leading business technology division my role involves not only identifying the right software solutions for business processes and internal customers but also serving as a technical advisor to other organizations, such as Engineering and Operations. I assist these teams in selecting the most suitable software vendors to address their business challenges. Over the years, I’ve developed a technique, along with a vendor selection process, that ensures we implement vendors that are objective and aligned with the diverse needs of multiple stakeholders across the organization. 1. Define Success Early Before diving into vendor demos or feature lists, align internally on your goals. What does success look like for your business? Whether it’s scalability, cost efficiency, or seamless integration, a clear vision helps narrow down choices. 2. Prioritize Flexibility and Scalability The perfect solution today might not meet your needs tomorrow. Look for vendors who can evolve with your business, offering customization and scalability as your requirements grow. 3. Evaluate Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) It’s easy to focus on upfront costs, but hidden expenses can quickly add up. Consider licensing, implementation, training, and ongoing support to calculate the true cost of ownership. 4. Check for Strategic Alignment Beyond technical capabilities, does the vendor’s vision align with your organization’s? Strong cultural and strategic alignment can lead to a long-term partnership rather than just a transaction. 5. Involve Stakeholders Involve end-users, IT, and business leaders early in the process. Their buy-in ensures smoother adoption and better alignment of the solution to day-to-day needs. 6. Don’t Skip the References Talk to other customers using the software. Their real-world experiences often reveal insights that demos and sales pitches might not. Choosing a software vendor is as much about trust and partnership as it is about technology. Take the time to evaluate thoroughly, and remember, the right choice can set your business up for success for years to come. What strategies or lessons have you found helpful in selecting software vendors? Let’s share insights and build on each other’s experiences! #SoftwareVendorSelection #TechnologyLeadership #StrategicPartnerships #BusinessSystems #BusinessTransformation

I have a dear friend who is the CIO of a PE-backed firm. She shared that she's "drowning in AI salespeople" and needs to know how to vet their solutions. Her words echo the challenge that I hear from many executives and board directors. 🗨 One recently said to me, "I'm so sick of AI. I can't tell what's real and what's hype. The risk is high if I do nothing. And if I go too fast or make bad choices, the risk is even higher. I've got to figure this out." I hear you. Your concerns and frustration are warranted. To help you, I hammered out 3 guides - business value, risk, and technical - that include questions to help you to identify AI solutions that are best fit for YOUR organization. These guides are designed to help you create business value with AI, avoid risks, and sustainably deploy and scale your AI solutions. 📊 Business Value Questions: This guide includes 24 questions designed to ensure that the AI solutions align with your strategic objectives and deliver tangible business outcomes. 🔍 Risk-Based Questions: This guide covers 33 questions focused on identifying and assessing potential risks associated with AI solutions, helping you to make informed decisions that mitigate risks. 🔧 Technical Questions: This guide contains 48 technical-based questions to ensure the AI solutions under evaluation have the technical robustness necessary to support your business objectives. 👉 Click below, share your email address, and you'll receive an email with links to all 3 documents. #AI #AIEvaluation #BusinessValue #RiskManagement #Innovation Disclaimer: While these questions provide a solid foundation for evaluating AI solutions, it's not possible to cover every possible needed question in a concise format. As always, I encourage you to apply your own expertise and judgment. https://lnkd.in/ghG4RdP4

Once companies have identified their AI opportunities, the first question they ask is: "Should we build custom or buy off-the-shelf?" Most large companies I speak with think they need a custom build. But in reality, there may already be a tool that fits their needs. Here's the framework I use to evaluate off-the-shelf solutions: (Across 5 key dimensions) 1. Costs A $30 per user per month fee seems reasonable now. But how affordable is it at scale? I recently worked with a startup that would have paid $7,000/month just in API calls for a basic recommendation engine. Always calculate projected costs at scale before committing. 2. Business risks You must understand how the underlying algorithms of specific AI tools make decisions. - What variables is it using in making decisions? - Is it using demographic data that could perpetuate specific types of biases?  - Or is it strictly using task-relevant variables? For example, many companies now use AI-powered hiring tools to streamline recruitment. However, these systems can unintentionally inherit biases from historical hiring data, reflecting and amplifying past patterns that favor certain demographics over others. A serious risk for all sorts of hiring decisions. 3. Model quality Key questions I ask vendors: - How often is the model retrained? - How do you monitor for degradation? - What testing ensures consistent performance? Which us leads to the next criteria. 4. Usability and performance Always test vendor solutions on YOUR data before purchasing. Their published accuracy rates may look impressive, but performance can vary significantly when applied to your specific use case. Take it for a test drive to make sure it satisfies your features and accuracy requirements. 5. System compatibility Will it integrate smoothly with your existing systems? Some solutions require specialized infrastructure or complex integrations that can create additional costs and technical debt. Bottom line: Don't skip proper evaluation because a tool seems convenient or popular. Testing different vendors gives you an apples-to-apples comparison. But you must know what to look for.

If you’re a finance leader and the GenAI black box has you worried about accuracy, repeatability, and controls. Transform that unease to confidence and familiarity with these steps ⬇️ AI technologies like Klarity, Numeric, Trullion and others, offer impressive ROI, however in the world of accounting and finance, knowing what lies beneath the surface is mandatory as you adopt new tech. 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗞𝗘𝗬 𝗖𝗢𝗡𝗦𝗜𝗗𝗘𝗥𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗦 🛡️ 📝 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗲𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 The ability to trace outputs to original source materials and trace actions. 𝘘𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘴𝘬: - Does the AI provide a detailed audit trail and the ability to find data in source documents? - Can you trace actions performed by users or the systems including changes made, who made these and the date/time of these actions? 💡 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆 The ability to understand the AI’s decision-making processes or to reperform it. 𝘘𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘴𝘬: - How does the AI makes its decisions? - Are these clearly defined? - Can a user specifically define the logic? - Can a user reperform the logic and get the same outcome? 🤖 𝗔𝗜 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗳𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 The ability to understand the AI’s confidence in its decisions. 𝘘𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘴𝘬: - Does the AI provide confidence scores? - Can it explain them? - Can you manage or define confidence levels? - Can users easily make corrections? 🔄 𝗔𝗜 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗹𝘀 Automated processes within the AI to validate decisions & outcomes. 𝘘𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘴𝘬: - What steps or procedures are embedded within the technology to improve levels of accuracy? - How does the AI learn and improve over time? 𝗜𝗠𝗣𝗟𝗘𝗠𝗘𝗡𝗧 𝗟𝗜𝗞𝗘 𝗔 𝗣𝗥𝗢 📋𝗘𝗻𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗱 𝗘𝘃𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 Build out your technology evaluation process to include explicit questions on the above considerations. Dig into these! 👥 𝗛𝘂𝗺𝗮𝗻 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗟𝗼𝗼𝗽 Identify key decision points in the process and establish manual reviews to validate AI outputs. 📝 𝗔𝘂𝗱𝗶𝘁 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗹𝘀 Map out the entire process from start to finish. Ensure detailed documentation is created and maintained to support data inputs, AI’s decision rationale, and manual updates. ✔️ 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗻𝘂𝗼𝘂𝘀 𝗠𝗼𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 Establish regular monitoring and control points to address the evolutionary nature of AI. Your human in the loop processes may be a very good way of providing regular comfort in the technology (at least as it relates to accuracy of outputs). 𝗙𝗥𝗘𝗘 𝗘𝗡𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗣𝗥𝗜𝗦𝗘-𝗚𝗥𝗔𝗗𝗘 𝗧𝗢𝗢𝗟 Explore our GenAI Governance Framework [https://lnkd.in/gGjVrqiv] and learn how our Transparency, Accountability, and Continuous Improvement domain provides essential safeguards. Stay ahead in the AI game and safeguard your tech future! Connect with me, Jason Pikoos, to explore the full potential of our framework for your organization.

𝑇ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑘 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑜𝑓𝑓-𝑡ℎ𝑒-𝑠ℎ𝑒𝑙𝑓 𝑠𝑜𝑓𝑡𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑖𝑠 𝑠𝑎𝑓𝑒 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑖𝑑𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛? 𝑇ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑘 𝑎𝑔𝑎𝑖𝑛. Here's the problem: Many organizations assume that just because software is commercially available and widely used, it doesn't need thorough validation. This assumption can jeopardize your compliance and data integrity. Solution? A rigorous validation process specifically tailored to off-the-shelf software. Personal Story: I worked for a few years in risk management, helping to evaluate vendor assessments and the risks they bring to regulated companies. We had a robust set of questionnaires and various assessments to ensure the product we install in our ecosystem is safe and secure. We asked for industry audit reports, and based on the responses and the risk categorization of the vendor's product, we conducted personal interviews that included additional questions and documentation of all responses and evidence. We maintained a tracker to evaluate and identify risks. Most well-established vendor companies have robust internal SDLC best practices and demonstrate that it is safe to use their product. The more transparent the vendor is in sharing its best practices and industry certifications, the more confident the regulated company feels about doing business with them. With increasing data security issues, ensuring data integrity and safety is paramount. Here's my step-by-step guide to ensure your off-the-shelf software meets the necessary validation standards: 1. Vendor Assessment: Evaluate the vendor’s development and maintenance practices. Ensure they have a robust quality system in place. 2. Risk Analysis: Perform a risk assessment to identify potential impacts on product quality and patient safety. 3. Documentation Review: Scrutinize all available documentation from the vendor, including development, testing, and maintenance records. 4. Testing: Conduct thorough testing within your environment to confirm the software functions as intended and integrates seamlessly with your existing systems. 5. Change Control: Establish a change control process to manage updates and modifications to the software, ensuring ongoing compliance. By following these steps, you can mitigate the risks associated with off-the-shelf software and maintain a high standard of data integrity and compliance. This aspect of vendor risk assessments is exciting because you learn a lot about different vendor companies and their products. It helps you grow your awareness of the tech ecosystem in the pharma, biotech, and med device world. I strongly encourage you to grab any opportunity to be part of vendor risk assessment if given a chance. It adds to your perspective and helps you excel at computer system validation. P.S Have you recently done any vendor assessment? Yeah or No? ♻️ Repost and 👋 follow Sreejith Kanhirangadan More about my courses - see comments below. #csv #csa #biotech #ai #onlinecourse #learnai

We spent $34,079.84 on Salesloft and never sent a single email. It was not on purpose (and not Salesloft’s fault), but we missed the auto-renewal, pivoted strategies, and never made it the priority. I tell you this because too many companies - including us - buy tools without a REAL plan. Here’s the two questions I now ask when evaluating new software: 1. Who Is The Day to Day Executive Sponsor of the Tool? Tools need to be integrated into the culture of operations. If you do not fully engrain the tool into your strategy + vision it becomes an under underutilized widget. Now, if the Director/VP is not fully bought in, we don’t buy. 2. Does This Purchase Have a Business Plan? You don’t need a 30-page document, but you do need direction. Define who will use the tool (SDRs, AEs, Ops), what outcomes you’re expecting (e.g. 200 new leads in 60 days or $500k in pipeline this quarter), and how often your team will use it. Here’s a sample template: - Goal: Generate $__ in bookings within 6 months. - Metrics/Team Members: SDRs A, B, and C will send X emails/day from the platform. - Tactics: Here are the exact emails that marketing has approved and will be sent within 30 days of our onboarding. You need enough clarity so everyone knows the goals, ownership, reporting cadence, and plan to get there. TAKEAWAY You can have the best software on the planet, but without a committed executive sponsor and a plan everyone understands, you risk wasting budget Don’t do what we did. Save your $34,079.84 (or more). Make the tool the last step, not the first.

Over my career in software implementation consulting, one pattern keeps emerging: c͟o͟m͟p͟a͟n͟i͟e͟s͟ ͟b͟u͟y͟ ͟t͟o͟o͟l͟s͟ ͟f͟i͟r͟s͟t͟,͟ ͟t͟h͟e͟n͟ ͟s͟t͟r͟u͟g͟g͟l͟e͟ ͟w͟i͟t͟h͟ ͟a͟d͟o͟p͟t͟i͟o͟n͟ ͟a͟n͟d͟ ͟R͟O͟I͟. The core question "Why are we doing this?" gets lost somewhere between the sales pitch and implementation. The fundamental issue: We've got the sequence backwards. Business outcomes must drive technology decisions, not the other way around. Here's the framework I've found effective: 🎯 𝗪𝗛𝗬 - Define your business goals first. - The specific pain we're solving. The measurable impact. The consequences of inaction. - When budgets get tight, technology initiatives without clear business justification are the first to go. I've seen this repeatedly. 🧩 𝗪𝗛𝗔𝗧  - Determine the capabilities needed. - The specific outcomes that will get us to our goal. Success in measurable terms. - This isn't about features - it's about results. The capabilities needed by Marketing, Sales, or Operations should determine the requirements, not the other way around. 🛠️ 𝗛𝗢𝗪 - Only now choose your approach. - This includes people, process changes, AND technology. - The software is just one piece of the business 𝘀𝗼𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻. Here's where things break down if you don't follow this workflow: Organizations routinely dump technology initiatives on IT departments simply because they have "technology" in their name. But IT typically isn't the primary beneficiary of these initiatives - they don't experience the business pain that sparked the project. The disconnect is predictable. IT, or an agency you hired, implements exactly what was requested (a new tool) without necessarily understanding what the business actually needs (improved decision-making, faster customer service, etc.). This is precisely where a strong Product Manager or, at the very least, a Product Owner becomes essential 💡 These roles bridge the gap between business needs and technical implementation. They translate the WHY and WHAT into clear requirements while ensuring the HOW remains aligned with business outcomes. Without this crucial translator role, business goals and technical solutions often remain disconnected. When you start with the business outcome and work backward, technology decisions become clearer and more focused. The emphasis shifts from features to results.✅ Most tools can't answer 𝗪𝗛𝗬 you're implementing them. That responsibility remains with the business. #ProductManagement #ProductManager #ProductOwner #ProductVision #Roadmapping #TechnologyStrategy #SoftwareSolutions #B2Bcommerce #B2Ccommerce #eCommerce #collaboration #planning #BusinessAnalysis #RequirementsGathering #success #BusinessStrategy #operations #efficiency #ROI