A bad software choice stays with you for about five years. The switching cost is high enough that most organisations live with the wrong system rather than admit it and start again.
The single most common mistake is seeing an impressive demo and writing the requirements around it. By then the selection is over, and everything after is justification.
Agreed with the people who'll use it, separated into must-have and nice-to-have, and signed off before any vendor is contacted.
A longlist that includes the options you haven't heard of, since the vendors with the largest marketing budget are not reliably the best fit.
Vendors walked through your scenarios with your data, rather than presenting the polished path they've rehearsed for everyone.
Customers we find ourselves, asked what went wrong during implementation, rather than the three happy accounts the vendor curated.
Licence, implementation, migration, training, and exit costs modelled over five years, which regularly reorders the shortlist.
Renewal terms, price escalation, data ownership, and how you'd leave. These are the clauses that matter most in year three.
Vendors run an excellent, well-practised sales process. Without an equally structured buying process, the outcome is decided by whoever presents best.
Selection works best inside a wider plan; see IT strategy consulting.
Tell us what you're replacing and who has to live with the result. We'll run the process independently and hand you a recommendation you can defend.