What Comes First? Choosing an eCommerce Platform or Systems Integrator
The Push & Pull of Technology Partner Selection
Selecting the right technology and services partner can be exhausting for both the buyer and seller -- between inflated expectations and pushy sales methods, the relationship devolves into one of misunderstanding and confusion. As an industry, we seem to have let "selling" take priority over "helping" which puts everyone's guard up.
As a decision maker, those of you with battle scars have seen this before and may have taken a 180-degree approach by creating a complex process to avoid becoming the victim. The result is elaborate RFI, RFP, and RFQ due diligence processes to make an informed decision. You still have a business problem to solve, but the solution-space seems riddled with mines that must be navigated.
Let's explore a different way where we can still get the right solution chosen faster, mitigate analysis paralysis, and validate that making a change is intentional with purpose.
Painting a Picture: The Digital Commerce Landscape
The Digital Commerce technology landscape has rapidly expanded its packaged business capabilities either based on point solutions, a suite, or combination. The conversations about monoliths, composable, MACH, Super Apps, etc. never end. If you've been in any demos or webinars with these technology vendors and you feel like they all sound somewhat similar - you're not alone. Add in the professional services component and now it seems like you need to procure 10 different things, dance on one foot, and throw a Hail Mary hoping it all works out in the end.
Any digital commerce solution typically has three common denominators that must work in concert to achieve an end result that adds value to your business:
Software Provider - Delivers a digital commerce capability that powers and enables business capabilities. This may be product catalog, storefront, search, checkout, payment processing, order management, etc.
Services Provider - Produces advisory, delivery, and engineering services for implementation, customization, integration, and ongoing support of the Software Provider(s) tailored to the digital commerce solution to an organization's specific requirements and needs.
Underlying Hosting/Cloud Provider - Offers the infrastructure and hosting environment where the digital commerce solution(s) reside to ensure reliability, scalability, and performance.
You, as a business, will be at the center of those three components. Each of the three functions above can be separate organizations or the same depending on the situation. Each also have their own incentives that may or may not be aligned with you which must be navigated.
Where should you start? A Problem Well-Defined is a Problem Half-Solved
We strongly suggest starting with the Services Provider (Systems Integrator) as it relates to digital commerce, or at least researching at the same time as the software. This isn't always true for other technologies like ERPs or CRMs, but we've found that the digital commerce ecosystem is typically comprised of multiple software providers cohesively working together in concert, orchestrated by the Services Provider. Knowing what instruments to add, modify, or remove is of significant importance as these technologies rarely thrive in isolation.
One of the primary reasons why we suggest this is because an experienced Systems Integrator will, most often, spend time understanding your current business and technologies supporting it. They will work with you to identify the true problem statements in conjunction with your strategic aspirations. By combining the current and future states appropriately, the Systems Integrator will ensure that your existing investments that you're satisfied with are capitalized on and bring on appropriate technologies that drive business value. Most importantly, make sure we're mutually building solutions together that are worth it and intentional.
Remember that the technology is a delivery and enablement mechanism, not the solution itself. Embarking on a quest for a solution without a recognized problem is an exercise that bears little fruit.
What's Next? The RFP Process at Light Speed in 7 Steps
At Luminos Labs, we read a lot of RFIs, RFPs, and RFQs. These range from single page summaries to multi-tab spreadsheets with accompanying glossaries. We feel we've learned a thing or two about what seems to really be the determining factors that drive the right decisions as many of our team members are former practitioners and decision makers from organizations like yours. That, combined with our 13 years of experience working with Digital Commerce systems to navigate through the technical complexities makes certain we've seen a wide variety across B2B, B2C, B2B2C models. Let's assume you've picked a good Systems Integrator partner who seems to have a good culture match with you, is capable of executing and delivering the solution you're looking for and is familiar with a spectrum of technologies that isn't too wide or narrow. This sounds easy but is a critical part of the process that sets you up for long term success or ongoing turbulence.
If you've made it this far then we're now in a position to go through the typical RFI/RFP/RFQ together, without reinventing the wheel, side by side. Below are the 7 core steps in this process. There will always be speed bumps in digital transformative projects as risk cannot be completely eliminated, but it can be mitigated through an experienced approach partnered with somebody who does this on a regular basis:
The RFP Process
Defined Requirements & Objectives - What are we looking to achieve and why?
Current State - How do things work today?
Scoped Future State - How should things look ahead and what's worth doing?
Research & Shortlist - Who do we think can help us?
Request for Information - Are we initially aligned?
Evaluation & Initial Selection - Is it viable to continue moving forward?
Due Diligence & Final Decision - Where do I sign?
Exact activities and deliverables may differ within the steps depending on levels of complexity required, but know that the experienced System Integrator will be helping you avoid brick walls that could be run into. An important part of these steps is to not begin solutioning too early without understanding the full picture.
The outcome we are looking to achieve by the end of these steps is a solution-set chosen to meet your organization's needs that cohesively matches the investments we'd like to keep in place, and more importantly, a detailed project plan with specs and requirements to move forward from using the technology chosen. This includes estimated timelines and costs. It's assumed that certain things may shift and change due; but a plan sets the spark for direction and momentum.
Wait, did we skip the RFP process?
We didn't skip the RFP process, but we did fast-track the formalized nature of many of the traditional steps. No sealed envelopes and taking the lowest bid here. This is why picking the right Systems Integrator is important, because you don't want to pick one who is a one-tricky pony, but you also may not want a partner who is completely agnostic. The right partner will provide recommendations right out of the gate on Step 4 above as they are understanding your current state and what you are capable of operationalizing in your business. In fact, the Systems Integrator likely knows what platforms are most suitable within the first two steps barring any significant curveballs in your industry, size (growth), or business model.
This means that you are putting trust and value in the Systems Integrator's experience, opinion, and expertise. Instead of researching platforms based on whitepapers, magic quadrants, waves, etc. on your own, you are jump starting that process by working with somebody who implements and supports these technologies every day. By using this methodology, you should not need to send all of the platforms a spreadsheet of hundreds of requirements with a complicated scoring mechanism that has to then be consolidated and synthesized via a VLOOKUP to come to an objective conclusion. Instead, we know the boxes the platforms checks and are looking out for the very unique things about your business that we need to consider that will be worth implementing.
When all is said and done, the Systems Integrator should ensure you are not going to run into brick walls and complete dealbreakers.
What if we select the platform first?
Selecting the platform first is still a common approach for those that are venturing into the digital commerce capability for their first or second time or are doing the implementation all in-house. However, more complex and mature organizations have found that the Systems Integrator becomes the "glue" which ties the various software solutions together from both a digital and back-office function standpoint. As the organization matures, replacing/adding/modifying certain capabilities like the PIM, CMS, Commerce, Search, etc. becomes second nature with a good Systems Integrator and keeps you flexible without being too locked in.
Additionally, the platform you like may recommend an implementation partner or two as a referral. As a Systems Integrator, we love this vote of confidence from our technology partners. However, we are also often "locked in" to this platform and assume it is the right choice for you as a business. Sometimes those ideals are not always aligned. A good Software + Services relationship must keep integrity and do what is right and fair for you, the customer, at all times.
Can we do both at the same time?
Absolutely. Just know that not all Systems Integrators will work with all Software platforms, and at some point, you will need them to have a cohesive match. Picking an experienced Systems Integrator is important here too, so take that into consideration. This isn’t a one-size-fits-all scenario, but you will need to have some forethought into which is going to make a bigger impact on the path of what you’re looking to achieve and the connections to other software, processes, and business units moving forward.
Where do we go from here?
Selecting the right technology platform and Systems Integrator is a critical decision that can greatly impact the success of your digital commerce journey. It's essential to prioritize "helping" over "selling" and seek a partner who understands your unique business needs and can navigate the complex landscape of technology and services. By starting with a systems integrator, you can leverage their expertise to define your requirements, assess your current state, and envision a future state that aligns with your strategic goals. They can help orchestrate the various software providers and ensure that your existing investments are maximized while introducing new technologies that drive value.
While the traditional RFP process can be time-consuming, partnering with an experienced systems integrator will streamline the evaluation and selection process. By trusting their knowledge and recommendations, you can focus on finding the right solution-set for your organization without drowning in an overwhelming sea of analysis paralysis.
Contact Us today and we can provide guidance on the best approach for you based on your level of maturity, complexity, and needs. A rising tide lifts all boats and we are here to help be good custodians of digital commerce success through informed decision-making.