Understanding Business Agreements When Implementing Technology

6 Phases of the Buying Process

Once all aspects of your technology solution have been evaluated and confirmed, the next step is to review and sign business agreements with your partner. Such agreements outline the responsibilities and expectations relevant to the solution implementation, ensuring everyone understands their roles before the process begins.

This discussion is part of a Technology Buying Guide we’ve assembled to help organizations navigate the buying process thoughtfully so they can move forward confidently in their digital strategy. If you missed the last phase, jump back to Phase 4: Solution Review. 

Phase 5: Business Agreements

The fifth phase in switching to a new technology system is the business agreements phase. In many cases, you’ll move right into this phase following the solution review. If you’re confident in your partner and the solution you’ve designed with them, you can start reviewing the contracts.

Business agreements you can expect to review and sign in this phase include:

• Master services agreement
• Software agreement
• Services agreement

At this time, you should read through the agreements and make sure you understand the details. Such contracts help you confirm the deliverables will align with your expectations. They will also outline who is responsible for which components of the process.

This process may take more time depending on your business and legal considerations. It is important to involve these parties early in this phase to make sure there are no surprises further down the road.

Seize this Last Opportunity to Vet the Partnership

When you’re at this stage in the process, most of the major decisions have been made. What’s critical now is to evaluate whether your partner is easy to do business with. The implementation is going to take time, and you want to work with a company whose focus and methods align with your organization’s culture, communication styles, and expectations.

Additionally, be sure:

• The agreements make sense to you.
• To ask questions if you are unclear on something.
• To ask about the current lead time for the project kickoff, as it won’t necessarily be right away.

Next Steps

The Business Agreements phase sets you up for the Kickoff, during which you’ll begin the implementation process with your partner and bring your careful planning to fruition.

We've put together everything you need to know when it comes to buying and implementing new technology for your organization. From calculating your timeline and complexity to learning about all six phases, we've got you covered.

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