26.5 Requirements for the Tool Supplier

Acquiring and implementing a tool is not just a large investment here and now; it also has far-reaching consequences, both economic and organizational. When choosing a tool, you don't choose only a tool. Just as you get the in-laws thrown in when choosing a spouse, you get the supplier thrown in when selecting a tool. Therefore, it's important to also look at the supplier during the selection process. Some of the aspects to consider are (in alphabetical order) the supplier's acquaintances , employees , financial status, focus, use of the tool, reputation, and support facilities.

Acquaintances

In today's IT world, no supplier can live in isolation. Tools run on platforms and work together. It's important to look at which other companies a supplier cooperates with in areas such as distribution, marketing, and technology.

Employees

The supplier's employees are the ones the company will deal with in implementing and maintaining a tool. This may include management, sales, technical consultants (for installation and customization), trainers , support/helpdesk, and development. If possible, look at the employees and their backgrounds and education. Listen to the tone and try to feel the atmosphere in the supplier's company, among the employees and their attitude toward a third party and toward the company itself. Are they friendly and helpful or pressed and too busy to bother?

Financial Status

A look at a potential supplier's financial status may be worthwhile. Is the supplier a sound company that will stay in business for the foreseeable future? Or will it fall flat on its face in the lightest breeze , jeopardizing the long- term maintenance of the tool?

Focus

A supplier's focus on its product lines can be both an advantage and a disadvantage . Investigate whether the tool is the supplier's main product or is placed in a far corner. A main product will be maintained , but it may be difficult to get it to cooperate with other tools. The company must decide what is most important. A number of smaller companies developing configuration management tools are being bought by other companies producing larger development environments, who don't necessarily have expertise in configuration management tools.

Tool Use

Some companies live by the slogan "Use what we sellsell what we use." It's a good idea to find out if the supplier uses its own tool and, if so, how. Presumably, a supplier must keep its own products under configuration management. It should therefore not be too difficult to get some information about this regarding the tool. This could be done by asking the supplier for

• A short description of internal use of the tool

• Relevant status reports , such as a list of the contents of a delivery

• A description of the event registration procedure

• A description of the handling of event registrations

Reputation

Every evaluation of a tool should include inquiries about references to other companies that use the tool in comparable situations. The supplier may be able to explain, at least in broad terms, how others are using the tool. This will provide two other useful items of information:

• Does the supplier posses information it's fair to believe it has (in this case, an extra check on how the configuration management is working)?

• Does the supplier give out types of information that the company itself would not want to see distributed to third parties?

Talk to some of the references, to determine whether the supplier's information reflects the facts and how the other companies regard the tool and the supplier. It may also be a good idea to ask about other companies' plans for the future, especially if use of the tool will expand, either horizontally in the company and/or vertically to cover more for each product.

Support Facilities

Investigate support conditions, such as price in relation to the number of hours delivered or number of calls allowed, as well as possible upgrade guarantees . Geographical location of support facilities may also be important.