Buying business software

Take one piece of work that your current system makes difficult. Put a person, a frequency and a measure against it. A supplier can demonstrate how a recruiter sends one shortlist to a client. It is much harder to test a promise to “streamline recruitment”.

Write a buying brief in one page

In our worked examples, Merebridge Recruitment is a fictional agency. Its weekly client report takes two consultants 45 minutes each to assemble. The operations manager wants one consultant to produce it in 15 minutes, including a check against the original records. A timed trial can establish whether a new product actually saves those 75 minutes.

Give each supplier the same starting point. Include the current workflow, the users who need access, existing systems, data volumes, budget, decision date and person who can approve a purchase. List any conditions that rule a product out. For Merebridge, being able to export records with their vacancy identifiers is essential because an unmatched export would leave the agency unable to reconstruct a placement.

Download the blank software buying brief (.txt).

Put competing prices on the same basis

Merebridge is comparing two illustrative quotes for ten users over 24 months. Both figures below exclude VAT. Both quotes assume the same storage allowance, payment schedule and support hours.

The cheaper monthly rate would cost the agency £800 more over the term. Get a written answer on whether prices can change at renewal, extra seats are billed for a full term, exports cost extra and moving down a plan removes a feature you use. Give unknown charges a separate line and ask the supplier to price them.

Trial the awkward part

Choose one person who does the work and give them fictional records resembling the messier cases they see on a Tuesday afternoon. Ask them to generate a report with one withdrawn applicant and one duplicate record. Save the export, time the exercise and record where somebody had to help. Use the weighted supplier scorecard to compare all shortlisted vendors against the same evidence.

If the supplier also manages your infrastructure, establish who restores a backup, who can grant administrator access and who answers an incident outside office hours. Ask for the relevant contract wording while the choice is still open.

Record the decision and renewal date

Give the budget holder the two-year cost, test results, unresolved points and the terms for leaving. Name the person who will check the first invoice against the accepted quote. Put the renewal notice deadline in that person's calendar and use the software licence audit before the next commitment.