10 Steps for Choosing an AMS 

1. Get full commitment form the Executive Team. One executive should have overall responsibility for the success of the project.  Without their commitment to the project''s budget constraints and meetings, other capital projects can quickly become priority and make choosing a new AMS and AMS implementation DOA.
    
   
   
2. Identify the key stakeholders in the new system.  Whose areas will be impacted the most?  Have at least one or two representatives from each identified area involved in the selection process.  By having them be part of the process you will have an easier buy into making a change for the organization. 
   
    
3. Make sure that each person on the AMS project evaluation team is vested in the process.  Successful implementation should be part of their review and evaluation process as well.
   
    
4. Do a needs assessment of what you are using your current system to do and what you are looking for a new system to do.  Make a priority list as to what you cannot live without and what are wish-list items.  While evaluating RFPs and demos, make sure that you are only looking at those systems that fulfill your cannot-live-without items and compare the costs of what it would take to complete your wish-list items.
   
    
5. How will success be defined? Requirements and objectives need to be defined before the RFP and demos.  After your RFPs are received. meet with the team to review and see which ones meet the requirements you have set and then bring in the others for demos.  Make sure to focus on the functionality and ask questions to see the items you are most concerned with having the new system will handle.  After the demos, meet again and see how the requirements and objects have been met.
   
    
6. Each objective needs a measurement of success. What is the milestone …the metric and the impact.
   
    
7. When comparing the options make sure to look at the total cost of ownership and predictability of future cost.  Do you need to decrease functionality to get to a price point you can afford?  To add additional features are there hidden costs or 3rd party costs being passed on to you?
   
    
8. Vendor reputations matter. The acquisition phase is short, the implementation phase is longer, but the Support and Maintenance is indefinite.
   
    
9. Flexibility of the solution (adapting to changing needs; ease of adding functionality).
   
    
10. Don’t let limited funds force a short term solution to a long term problem. 
     

Share these tips with your colleagues.