¨ Vendors must often be forced to clearly identify the status of the information in specific responses. For example, InfoTech found that vendors were sometimes ambigu-ous, i.e., was a particular func-tionality included in the charges, was it a not-included option, or was it shown as just informational?

¨ It is important to take all necessary steps to ensure that requirements are stated in clear, quantitative terms and that the RFP is structured so that responses are expressed in quantitative terms, e.g., check boxes, fill-in tables, or report samples.

A Look Ahead

       Part Two of  this article series will discuss the challenges involved  in determining the TCO of these bid systems in relation to numerous compliance issues that arose and   how these issues complicated the analysis and comparison of the received responses.

charges was 126%, and the range in four year maintenance charges was 47%.

       Moreover, there is no consistent ranking among the respondents in terms of charges per category. As a result, looking at the bids for each of the three elements separately would be of no use in determining the best value offered.  InfoTech speculates that the closeness of the final bids may be a function of discounting policies applied in relation to desired profit margins.

Other Observations

¨ Discount rates are usually meaningless and only discounted charges should be compared. For example, of the five vendors, two did not discount implementation services, but they had both the

¨ lowest and highest charges for implementation in the study.

¨ As a result, InfoTech recommends that customers always request bids on all elements constituting TCO, i.e., system, implementation, and extended maintenance, over multiple years. In this way, even if the TCOs are close, the customer is probably getting a better total discount than if the RFP is not specific in terms of all TCO elements. Vendors are more likely to apply their best discounts to sales with the largest revenue potential.

¨ It is not easy to make detailed, accurate comparisons among RFP responses for IP telephony systems. As a result, it is critical that the system components and requirements be understood fully before an RFP is even issued. Knowing the right questions to ask in constructing an RFP will be highly situation specific, and may require an extended information discovery process, including the issuance of a Request For Information.

Cruise, Anyone?

       Networking will be easy aboard the MT Celebration, which we will board for a cruise Friday evening.  Dinner and entertainment will be provided as we cruise the peaceful waters of Biscayne Bay.

An Unbelievable Room Rate

       The STC has negotiated a reduced room rate of $99 per night for attendees who reserve rooms by  April 25th.

Value On Top of Value

       So don’t pass up the opportunity to network, improve your practice, and touch up your technical skills, all in one place!

New Dimensions In TCO, Part One

 

Continued from Page 7