Ideally, if you have gone through all the software selection steps and carried out the relevant due
diligence, it should be straight forward as to which software to acquire. But sometimes it’s not
obvious and you still have a choice of 2 or 3 good solutions. So, here are some guidelines to follow to
help you decide:
1.
Gather all the information for each potential vendor and prepare a summary of the key criteria
for each.
2.
Bring your project team together to jointly review the information, the summaries, discuss the
pros and cons of each of the potential vendor solutions.
3.
Then, jointly rank each of the vendors against your key criteria. See the example below:
Example of ranking 3 vendors against key criteria - Vendor A ranks ahead of the other 2 vendors and
should be chosen.
Notes
(i) Software functionality. Focus on your mandatory and most important functional requirements and
where the vendor solution(s) differ from each other.
(ii) Implementation. How easy is the software to implement? Do you have the skills, experience and
resources on board, or you can obtain these from the vendor, other service providers, or by
retraining existing employees.
(iii) ROI (return on investment) / TCO (total costs of ownership). Re-check both calculations for 5 year
time scale, for each vendor - as each vendor solution may have different costs and benefits.
(iv) Maintenance and support / SLA (Service Level Agreement). Be sure of what you are getting for
your annual (or regular) payments, that it is appropriate and represents good value for money.
(v) Software technology. Should be forward looking technology and either match that of your
business or heading where you are heading. However, some forward looking technologies may be
closer to where you are heading than others.
(vi) The vendor. The business and software product direction, business strength and how well you get
on with the vendor are important. Equally, so is an arrangement to protect your investment in the
software, should the vendor themselves be acquired or taken over by another organisation.
For more due diligence checklists and questions, visit: Software vendor support, Implementation
support, Reference site visit checklist, Vendor accounts, Vendor personnel, Vendor software product
development, Software payment terms, Final software decision, Software agreement checklist
The Final Software Decision
Tips on making the final decision as to which software to acquire
Axia Consulting
© 2022 Axia Consulting Ltd. All rights reserved.
17 New Road Avenue, Chatham, Kent ME5 9RL, United Kingdom Contact Us
Key Criteria
Vendor A
Vendor B
Vendor C
(i) Software functionality
1
3
2
(ii) Implementation
1
2
3
(iii) ROI / TCO
2
1
3
(iv) Maintenance and support / SLA
1
2
3
(v) Software technology
2
3
1
(vi) The vendor
1
2
3
Average ranking
1.33
2.17
2.50
Ideally, if you have gone through all the software
selection steps and carried out the relevant due
diligence, it should be straight forward as to
which software to acquire. But sometimes it’s not
obvious and you still have a choice of 2 or 3 good
solutions. So, here are some guidelines to follow
to help you decide:
1.
Gather all the information for each potential
vendor and prepare a summary of the key
criteria for each.
2.
Bring your project team together to jointly
review the information, the summaries,
discuss the pros and cons of each of the
potential vendor solutions.
3.
Then, jointly rank each of the vendors against
your key criteria. See the example below:
Example of ranking 3 vendors against key criteria
- Vendor A ranks ahead of the other 2 vendors
and should be chosen.
Notes
(i) Software functionality. Focus on your
mandatory and most important functional
requirements and where the vendor solution(s)
differ from each other.
(ii) Implementation. How easy is the software to
implement? Do you have the skills, experience
and resources on board, or you can obtain these
from the vendor, other service providers, or by
retraining existing employees.
(iii) ROI (return on investment) / TCO (total costs
of ownership). Re-check both calculations for 5
year time scale, for each vendor - as each vendor
solution may have different costs and benefits.
(iv) Maintenance and support / SLA (Service Level
Agreement). Be sure of what you are getting for
your annual (or regular) payments, that it is
appropriate and represents good value for
money.
(v) Software technology. Should be forward
looking technology and either match that of your
business or heading where you are heading.
However, some forward looking technologies
may be closer to where you are heading than
others.
(vi) The vendor. The business and software
product direction, business strength and how well
you get on with the vendor are important.
Equally, so is an arrangement to protect your
investment in the software, should the vendor
themselves be acquired or taken over by another
organisation.
For more due diligence checklists and questions,
visit: Software vendor support, Implementation
support, Reference site visit checklist, Vendor
accounts, Vendor personnel, Vendor software
product development, Software payment terms,
Final software decision, Software agreement
checklist
The Final Software
Decision
Tips on making the final decision as to which
software to acquire
© 2022 Axia Consulting Ltd
All rights reserved. Contact Us
Key Criteria
Vendor
A
Vendor
B
Vendor
C
(i) Software functionality
1
3
2
(ii) Implementation
1
2
3
(iii) ROI / TCO
2
1
3
(iv) Maintenance and support
/ SLA
1
2
3
(v) Software technology
2
3
1
(vi) The vendor
1
2
3
Average ranking
1.33
2.17
2.50
