There are many steps involved in buying enterprise software and a new LMS can gain much attention given the organisation-wide impact it can have. No matter which scenario you face for procurement, a lot of questions will be sent your way, and you need to answer them well.
For more content like this, check out the full Acorn Resources blog: https://acornlms.com/resources
There are many steps involved in buying enterprise software and a new LMS can gain much attention given the organisation-wide impact it can have. No matter which scenario you face for procurement, a lot of questions will be sent your way, and you need to answer them well.
For more content like this, check out the full Acorn Resources blog: https://acornlms.com/resources
There are many steps involved in buying enterprise software and a new LMS can gain much attention given the organisation-wide impact it can have. No matter which scenario you face for procurement, a lot of questions will be sent your way, and you need to answer them well.
For more content like this, check out the full Acorn Resources blog: https://acornlms.com/resources
Buying LMS Questions There are many steps involved in buying enterprise software and a new LMS can gain a lot of internal interest given the impact they have on everyone’s training and development. With more eyeballs comes more scrutiny, and more questions from within. Common Buying Scenarios There are 3 common ways an LMS purchase can be made: committee, consensus or independent. Each has its own nuances, though there are a number of recurring questions you’ll hear asked in each scenario. Having thorough and well-researched answers for these questions will help ease buyer group concerns. The Committee Scenario What is it? Purchase or procurement committees are groups established to review and evaluate recommendations for purchase, typically large contracts. It is the most complex scenario and comes with the most questions. Some common questions you’ll be asked: Do you have a business case carefully thought out and documented? LMS software is often bought as part of a digital transformation strategy. As such, you’ll need to create a strong business case. A business case goes a long way to proving the value created by the solution you choose. What are the associated business risks with moving forward? Identifying the potential challenges is time and money well spent in software procurement. It’ll pay to not only define these business risks, but to showcase the plans you have to mitigate them if they do arise. What are the transition and change management plans that have been put in place? Create a change management plan before you meet with your buyer group. It’s best done after a needs analysis. A comprehensive plan should include defined goals, a defined team, scope documentation and how change will be reinforced. Is there a detailed overview of privacy, data and security protocols? Outline the security standards that are currently utilised in your organisation including functional requirements, high-risk functionality and testing environments. Anticipate any questions around ambiguity, consistency and protocols. The Consensus Scenario What is it? The consensus scenario sees an array of people involved from multiple business departments, all of whom need to agree (or build consensus). Building consensus is about finding a solution that everyone can support by getting them all behind a common thread. Some common questions you’ll be asked: How will this software help us manage our business drivers? Defining a problem stakeholders face (shared or otherwise) will go a long way toward proving the merit of a solution. Not every department will see they have common issues. It’s up to you to find those shared pain points. What processes will the software support and will we have to displace existing software for it? Integrations between different workplace software are becoming more and more popular, and the LMS is no different. In fact, an LMS can bring the power of automation which helps users, administrators and managers alike. The Independent Scenario What is it? This scenario is where a purchase decision is made within a single department. Under this scenario, questions come from your immediate team members. Some common questions you’ll be asked: Users: Is this easier to use than our current platform or platforms? Users want something that’s easy to use and navigate. We’re in an era where end users have a lot of say in software decisions. Get a thorough understanding via surveys and seek out a chief representative who can relay where the team stands. Influencers: How does this help me and my teammates do our jobs? Likely tech personnel or mid-level managers, influencers need to advocate the solution to their team. They need to directly address how the solution will address pain points and improve their day-to-day. Buyers: How can I make this buying process as easy as possible? The buyer is on the hook for any stuff ups – likely because they are responsible for budget and resource allocation. Alleviate their concerns by breaking down the buying process into 3 key steps – define project roles, build out a timeline and prepare documentation. You can learn more about this topic by checking out the full article: