ROI – Return of Investment should be the first factor to consider. ROI comes from considering the time spent before & after the implementation of a system. If an individual spends 6 hours a month, collating & reviewing timesheet data for all clients, without a system in place. What is the time spent with the system implemented ? After all , time is money & the overheads can be better spent for billable activities.

-Scalability & Adaptability: Software should be flexible enough to align with your business model . The solution should grow & evolve with time w.r.t users, data size & new features.

Desktop based application are on the verge of extinction with cloud hosted solutions ruling to roost. Infrastructure Management, Cost, Security the benefits are endless.

– Security : How secure is my data ? Who all can access it ? Software on Cloud is a scary thought for some, although some of it are mere myths but nevertheless solutions ignoring the data security aspects should be a big NO. Design & Architecture should have data security aspects embedded into it. Some of the basic security aspects should include SSL, data encryption, role defined access levels etc.

– Feedback from Existing Customers : Customers are the best brand ambassadors. They share honest opinion without any obligations . Ask them about the quality, response time & adaptability to fine tune the software to suit your business needs.

– Know the team : It is always the people behind Technology that matters. The core team should comprise of seasoned technology experts with significant years of experience in Product Development. Preferably, the team should have built software products for global markets in their past endeavors that helps in implementing global best practices.

– Technology : Is the technology used is of current generation ? The Technology should be tried & tested with proven track record. Microsoft, Java, PHP are few commonly used names. Open source systems are economical & also an option but require skills that are not available in abundance.

– Assess Risk : What if it doesn’t work out? What happens to your data in case you decide to move to other solution ? What happens to the subscription fee paid upfront ? Clear these questions before you pay.

– Adoption : Study says that above 70% of the software turns underutilized due to poor adoption. How much training is required to get started ? Does it need special skills to use the system ? Training & Setup effort should give you a fair bit of idea about how complicated a system is.