The guidelines established in the plan helps in narrowing down the selection process. Request for Information in Business Directories like www.erpdeals.com can help the Buyers in reducing time and effort in getting the Right Vendors contact them for Software Demos or Service Agreements.
Evaluation process starts with meetings with the selected Software Vendors. The Software Requirements and Business Objectives for acquiring the software or service should be clearly communicated to the Vendors. Vendors should be rated on their competence on the basis of these meetings.
Also, any Client reference in Similar industry or Business Function, a Success Story, or Implementation experience can be taken from the Vendor during such meetings. Additional communication with the existing clients of the Vendor can give more insight into the level of Vendor’s Competence.
The next step is to schedule product demonstrations with the selected Vendors. Often involvement of the End IT users during such product demonstrations can help in getting the right feedback about the product.
Technology, infrastructure and Support requirements should be clearly understood from these demonstrations. Scalability and Security issues should be identified with the Vendor. Also additional efforts involved in customizations and end user should be determined.
Once the evaluation is completed, the next step is to Request for Proposal from different Vendors. The scoring attributes for the RFQ’s should be determined very judiciously. Price should not be the only factor in determining the Vendor for Awarding the RFQ’S. Determining the right ERP/Business Software /Service Vendor can be very critical for the success of the entire project.
Once the right vendor is chosen, the focus should be in developing a long tem relationship with the Vendor, which is mutually beneficial.
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2009