Software Selection
Analysis
Start with an understanding of Critical Success Factors (CSFs)
CSFs are defined as those things that you must do well in order to be successful.
You can use CSFs as a way to determine whether a requirement is really critical.
If a requirement can't be mapped directly to a CSF, then it's not critical.
Define measurements of success
Before starting any project, you should know how to measure success in terms of
saving money by streamlining operations, increasing revenues, increasing market
share... Measurements of success act as a motivator for staff during the implementation,
help keep the project on track and focus effort on attaining important business
objectives.
Understand existing business process and seek opportunities for business process
improvement
Until you have understood the existing business process, you are not ready. Employees
may not know that what they are doing is atypical. Roll up your sleeves and talk
to the people who do the work. Remember the devil is in the details. Along the way,
your value add may be in identifying ways to improve business process.
Don't be ambiguous in the definition of requirements
The more ambiguous the requirement, the more interpretation in whether a particular
vendor meets the requirement. You need to be precise so that you can compare apples
to apples.
Don't waste time on basic functionality
Systems have matured to the point where the basics are done well. Focus only on
the requirements that are unique or could vary by vendor.
Prioritize
Not all requirements are created equally. Use a numbering system such as "5" for
critical, "4" for high, "3" for medium, "2" for low, "1" for N/A. If you have mostly
"5"s, there is something wrong.
Manage scope, budget and timing
Project management is the key factor in predicting success of any project. Project
management includes management of scope, budget and timing. Rather than using the
school of hard knocks, you should consider working with a structured methodology
such as published by the Project Management Institute (PMI).
Get employee involvement
Recognize the significant amount of employee knowledge and the potential contribution
of the employees. Unfortunately, the knowledge is typically in the heads of the
employees and care must be taken to include their input. At the same time, you are
effectively including them in the process and securing their buy-in for the process.
Assign an internal champion
An internal champion should be allocated to the project. Even the most difficult
projects can become successful when you have an internal champion who is ready to
do whatever it takes to get the job done. It is best to assign the internal champion
at the beginning of the system selection project to ensure their commitment and
agreement with the system selected.
Manage the risks
Seek out potential risks, their impact, and their likelihood of occurring. Encourage
all interested parties to develop strategies to mitigate the risks. Every organization
has at least 1 naysayer, who can cause a lot of problems, but who is also very knowledgeable.
The naysayers must be included in the risk management process. By getting their
input early, you can avoid problems and you effectively limit their negativity.
Ensure management buy-in
Communicate scope of project and get sign off at critical steps along the way. Management
should develop or ratify the measurements of success.
Vendor Selection
Identify potential vendors
You would be amazed at how many vendors want your business. Start with a buyer's
guide such as the one published on the CAmagazine web site which you can access
from the menu on the left. You will notice in the buyer's guide that the vendors
are split into Tiers. The largest companies are usually best served by Tier One
and Tier Two vendors. Smaller companies are generally served better by the other
vendors partly because of smaller investment, but also because of less complexity.
Tier One products generally have a lot of flexibility but it takes more time to
set-up, train and operate.
There are a number of different kinds of vendors for you to consider:
|
Type |
Advantage |
|
Generic/Horizontal - apply across different industries |
Typically have more customers and more resellers, which means more access to support.
The generic systems usually shine when it comes to financials and user interface. |
|
Vertical - apply to a specific industry |
Additional functionality for the specific industry as well as more knowledge of
best practices for that industry. |
|
Custom - built to your specification |
These vendors start with a base product and will build exactly what you want. |
There is typically more risk associated with vertical and custom vendors. However,
the benefits could outweigh the potential risks. To obtain lists of potential vendors:
Find a good reseller
The reseller or Value Added Reseller (VAR)/implementer can make a big difference.
Often, companies selecting new systems spend a lot of time analyzing the product
and the vendor but not enough time analyzing the capabilities of the VAR. The VAR
could have been assigned by the vendor, and the VAR may not be the best choice.
The vendors have a methodology for assigning leads to their partners/VARs that is
not well-understood. You could be getting the next VAR on a list. Once a VAR is
assigned, the vendors are reluctant to introduce another VAR, as it can lead to
VARs competing with each other for the same prospect. So do some pre-screening of
the VAR. Better yet, get the VAR's name from someone you know.
Issue a Request for Proposal (RFP)
An RFP is a good tool to communicate your needs uniformly to vendors and to create
a short list of vendors. Ask vendors to answer questions related to cost, technology,
customer base, developer and implementer qualifications, and similar customers.
Have the vendors respond to each requirement with a number such as "7" in current
release and quoted in estimate, "6" in current release, "5" available in 6 months,
"4" minor modification or workaround, "3" third party, "2" available in a year,
"1" major modification or workaround, "0" not available. By extending the priority
of each requirement times the vendor response, and then summing the results, you
get a score that will give you an indication of closeness of fit for each vendor.
Attend demonstrations
The vendors should now know your Critical Success Factors and key requirements,
and should be given an agenda so that time is allocated properly. You should attend
no more than 4 demonstrations, and limit the time to 2-3 hours. There will be time
for a more detailed review later. Ask each attendee to identify major strengths
and weaknesses, as well as score (-10 to +10) how well they did for each topic on
the agenda as well as indicate its importance (1 to 10).
Call references
You will be amazed at how much you learn and how little some of the vendors know
their customers. Have a checklist of questions to ask such as our checklist that
can be obtained by clicking here. Tell
the reference a little about yourself before asking any questions so that they have
a level of comfort with you.
Prove that the system will work for you
Prepare a script that contains sample transactions that should be processed through
the entire system. The script is a day in the life at your company will contain
the most important business processes with sample documents and reports. You could
ask 1-2 vendors to prepare a proof of concept. This is a time consuming task for
the vendors as well as for you in attending the demonstration. But you are only
focusing on the vendors most likely able to win your business.
Negotiate the price and the contract
It's a buyer's market. You will get a minimum of 10% off the first quote. Many of
the vendors offer competitive pricing when they know they could lose to a competitor
who could offer a reasonable solution at lower a price.
Know the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO)
You need to understand all the costs including license fees, implementation, support,
hardware, networks and communications before making a decision. There should be
no surprises later. Click here for more
about TCO.
Do a Boardroom Pilot
You need to work with the system to understand the many options. You may think that
a customization is required until you better understand the various workarounds.
The vendor has an idea of the customizations, but has probably not created a specification
or given you a firm quote. Use the boardroom pilot as a way for the vendor to understand
your requirements and for you to better understand the system before signing a contract
and purchasing the software. You will need to pay the vendors for their time. You
should get a fixed price as one of the deliverables of the boardroom pilot.
