Negotiating Requirements

for Successful IT Deals

Overview

This Practical, hands-on Negotiation class will help you get the right warranties and remedies into your SOWs that can help customers get full, timely performance of technical requirements for the agreed-to price and avoid expensive and time-consuming litigation or other delays.

You don’t need this class if:

  • Your technical SOWs are written with laser clarity and no ambiguities
  • Your vendors don’t write the Requirements to their own advantage
  • Your vendors meet Requirements flawlessly
  • Your technical SOW timelines are always met
  • Your SOW budgets are NEVER busted, fixed price NEVER exceeded
  • Your Non-complying Vendors are quickly corrected with gentle reminders
  • Each SOW includes warranties specific to your Customer needs
  • Your SOWs have meaningful Remedies for any Vendor failure

Frequently customer technical requirements are drafted by the vendor to its advantage and to the painful detriment of the Customer. After all, the Vendor usually is the technical expert in its products and services. Even when the SOW includes a well-defined set of technical requirements, there may be no or few Remedies to protect the Customer from Vendor failures. The Customer may be stuck with Vendor excuses and a near meaningless promise to try harder next time.

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Available At-Your-Site

Online or In-person

Customized to Your Specific Needs

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Benefit Takeaways

  • Understand the process Vendors use to manipulate Customer technical Requirements
  • Develop a Customer-specific process to negotiate technical SOWs
  • Learn how to write attachments for technical Requirements to purchase Equipment, Software, Cloud services, etc.
  • Create warranties specific for technical SOWs
  • Master drafting multilevel Remedies for technical Requirements
  • Use Remedies to get performance instead of lawsuits
  • Sample wording for technical Requirement attachments – Customer version
  • Checklist for drafting technical SOWs
  • Tools for negotiating technical Requirements and SOWs with Vendors

The class members will engage in group Exercises to enhance learning of key takeaways.

Workshop Outline

Workshop Length: 2 Days

Introductions & Level Setting

  • IT deals – software, hardware, cloud, etc.

Pitfalls in IT Requirements Including

  • Unclear IP ownership
  • Non-committal wording

Challenges Unique to IT Requirements

  • IP law: copyright, patent, trade secret, trademark
  • Work Product ownership
  • Results vs resources
  • Scope creep
  • Agile vs waterfall

Collecting IT Requirements

Prioritizing IT Requirements

Using Prioritized Technology Requirements

  • Stakeholder education
  • Internal alignment
  • Evaluation process
  • Developing negotiation strategies
  • Negotiating with Vendors

Warranties & Service Levels for IT Requirements

Remedies for Missed IT Requirements

  • Damages
  • Limitation of Liability
  • Financial
  • Non-financial
  • Layering

Structures for Technology Agreements & Exhibits

Bid Solicitation Process

  • IT Requirement Questions
  • Contract template Questions

Evaluating Vendor Bids

Table Negotiations With Vendors

Managing IT Requirements

Keys to Successful IT Requirements

  • 10 does and don’ts for technology Requirements

Group Exercises

Collateral Materials – Contract Wording & Checklists