The Software Buying Process for Contractors – One step forward, two steps backward

By Sheldon Needle

This article is based on my many conversations with prospective buyers of construction software designed for contractors. Depending on the particular operation and the applications required, many CIO’s, CFO’s and Operations Managers are totally confused about how to go about sorting out and selecting new software for their operation. They know they need better job cost accounting, project document control, equipment management and costing, inventory control, time and materials billing, prospect tracking, progress billing, subcontractor control and tracking earned value. Yet each vendor may describe and explain it differently. They can easily become victims of the FUD (fear uncertainly and doubt) factor which is right where some salespeople want them to be. This article discusses why selling and buying business application software is so fraught with confusion, delay and indecision.

One of the most inefficient and frustrating challenges in business is purchasing a complex software product. Certainly this may be doubly true of business application software which involves a mysterious confluence of function, technology, human engineering, selling technique and last, but not least, the limited attention span and lack of skills of many prospective buyers.

The process one follows executing a complex project has to be very methodical and supported by experienced people who have done it before. It is the process followed during the evaluation, selection and implementation of application software that determine success or disappointment.

Impediments to the software buying cycle:
Nowadays, companies rarely use experts to help them go about construction software selection. Management thinks because they are successful business people, they are smart enough to do it themselves. The truth is that without serious experience, they don’t usually understand what they are buying. As Socrates might say, they don’t know what they don’t know. Or, the project may be delegated to other staff who also don’t have the requisite experience. This is a common scenario with technical IT or networking staff who are assigned the task of investigating business application software for the company. They know about hardware, and the technical details of software but may fall short on their understanding of the details of the operational functions the software has to perform.

So how does this play out in terms of the software buying process? It often comes down to the salesperson who best educates the buyer. The company buys the software they are most comfortable with based on the salesperson’s approach. That does not, of course, mean it’s the best, most effective solution.

Beyond this, there is a second stage of selling and that is to “sell” the recommendation to management. This can be a major challenge. If management is not involved in the evaluation process, they are going to be suspicious of any recommendation simply because they are being asked to spend a significant amount of money on something they don’t really understand. Management should be phased into the project early with milestones for their involvement in the process of learning about what particular solutions have to offer, how they compare, what they cost and the anticipated ROI will be for the project.

Summary – Points to Remember

• Use experienced people to head up the software evaluation project. If none are available, use a consultant
• Buy the software and not the salesperson
• Involve the decision makers early in the project and keep them well informed as you go along
• Don’t be afraid to ask questions even if you think you are supposed to know the answer
• A good salesperson will be a good educator, otherwise they are not qualified to sell their product.

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