Tilson takes an impartial approach to evaluating the software solutions that address your business’s needs. Our team of industry experts and technology veterans work directly with your cross-functional team to manage the selection process and help you choose an optimal solution for your organization.
We believe it is important to work with a cross-functional team in the selection process. Early involvement and communication with the team helps ensure that an optimal selection is made while also creating organizational buy-in to the process and the ultimate software applications selected. Tilson makes recommendations on team member profiles and helps your company’s management establish the team’s objectives.
Our consultants interview key managers and subject matter experts in key functional areas of the business. We review existing processes at a high level with the objective of identifying inefficiencies, important functional requirements, and best practice opportunities. Once completed, we review the results with your team to validate our findings and discuss next steps.
During this phase, we develop a detailed requirement list for each area of the business based on the earlier assessments and send a Request for Information (RFI) package to the selected vendors. The RFI also includes pricing requests, a set of background questions for the vendor including customer base, client references and of course technical requirements.
We conduct a thorough review of the vendor responses and ensure that key functional requirements have been addressed in the proposals. Tilson summarizes the responses and meets with your selection team to discuss and determine which vendors to bring in for product demonstrations.
Our consultants work with the selection team to prepare vendor-specific demonstration scripts, defining the requirements for the product demonstrations. Once approved, the scripts are distributed to the vendor in advance of the demonstrations so that they can prepare. The use of the demonstration scripts during the actual demos ensures that all of the items identified as important to your organization have been reviewed. We then work with the selection team to determine how the demonstrations should be facilitated and by whom.
After each demonstration, Tilson prepares, with input from the members of the selection team, a brief recap of that specific demo. The goal of which is to determine which products require a follow-up demo as well as document which products still have outstanding issues, concerns, and questions. Once the demonstrations are complete, we meet with the selection team to discuss the results and help you select a preferred vendor or vendors.
We help prepare the selection team for the due diligence aspect of the project. While this is the final step of the process, some of these activities can start earlier. The degree of due diligence performed varies based on preferences but can include reference checking, customer site visits, and vendor home office visits.
If requested, Tilson is prepared to assist our clients with vendor negotiations and contract review. Our consultants have many years of experience with vendor contracts and can often help our clients avoid challenges and avoid significant costs.