You're aiming to improve system performance. How can you ensure vendors meet your goals and objectives?

Improving system performance is a critical objective for any organization that relies on technology to drive its business processes. When you're working with vendors to achieve this goal, it's essential to ensure they understand and are committed to meeting your performance targets. This involves clear communication, setting precise expectations, and having mechanisms in place to monitor and enforce compliance.

1 Define Objectives

You must articulate your performance goals clearly to your vendors. This means translating your business needs into technical requirements that vendors can understand and work towards. Establish key performance indicators (KPIs) that are aligned with your system performance objectives, such as response time, uptime, and throughput. By doing so, you provide a clear roadmap for vendors to follow, ensuring that their efforts are directed towards achieving your system performance goals.

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Harvey L. Lampkin III

Independent Consultant | Process Improvements | Organizational Structure | Mergers/Acquisitions | Technology | Inspirational Speaker | Mentor | IT Infrastructure | Stakeholder Relationship | Team Strategy |
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I’ve found that, no matter how good vendors may be, it is still the responsibility of you the customer to advise them how your business processes currently work, your hurdles, the correlating tools, your budgets, approvals needed, expectations of outcomes, and the timeline to get it done. The success of the effort will only be as good as the overall communication with all stakeholders affected.

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Cristian Stanca

IT Infrastructure | Managed Services | Leadership | Prince2 | Project Management | ITIL | Innovation Masterclass | AI/COPILOT
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It's all beginning with defining your goals and as you are the one to best understand your business, you need to know what SLA's are most important. This will help choosing the right vendors for the job and then partner with them for a win-win scenario! Vendors will be happy to support your goals as your success (as a customer) will translate into their success. So have clear objectives and ensure vendors are onboard.

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2 Engage Partners

Selecting the right vendors is just as important as setting the goals themselves. You should look for partners who have a proven track record of delivering high-performing systems and who demonstrate a clear understanding of your industry's specific needs. Engage with them early in the process to discuss your objectives and get their input on how they can be achieved. This collaborative approach helps build a strong partnership and ensures that the vendor is fully invested in the success of your project.

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Cristian Stanca

IT Infrastructure | Managed Services | Leadership | Prince2 | Project Management | ITIL | Innovation Masterclass | AI/COPILOT
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In my experience, if your partner is not up to the job, you will get through tough times with your business. I know we did... It's not only about defining your goals and SLA's (that gives you a good perspective on what you need for your business) but then you need to ensure vendors master their space and can deliver on your goals.

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3 Set Benchmarks

Once you've defined your objectives and engaged your vendors, it's time to establish benchmarks. These are the standards by which you'll measure system performance throughout the relationship. Benchmarks should be realistic, achievable, and agreed upon by both parties. They serve as a baseline for evaluating the system's current performance and for setting improvement targets that vendors must strive to meet.

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Cristian Stanca

IT Infrastructure | Managed Services | Leadership | Prince2 | Project Management | ITIL | Innovation Masterclass | AI/COPILOT
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If we are aligned on the objectives and most important on how we measure then we're on a good track. Ensuring we both measure the same way, using the "source of truth" data will remove any confusion later.

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4 Monitor Progress

Monitoring progress is crucial to ensure that vendors are on track to meet your performance goals. Implement a system of regular reporting, where vendors provide data on key metrics. This enables you to track improvements over time and identify any areas where performance may be lagging. Regular monitoring also keeps vendors accountable and allows for timely interventions if performance targets are not being met.

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5 Ensure Flexibility

The technology landscape is constantly evolving, and system performance goals may need to adapt in response to new challenges and opportunities. Ensure that your agreements with vendors allow for flexibility to adjust goals as necessary. This might involve renegotiating service level agreements (SLAs) or incorporating new technologies that can enhance performance. Flexibility ensures that your systems can continue to meet the demands of your business, even as those demands change.

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6 Foster Communication

Effective communication is the backbone of any successful vendor relationship. Establish open lines of communication where feedback can be exchanged freely between your organization and your vendors. This includes not just formal reporting but also regular meetings and discussions about performance and potential improvements. When vendors feel they can communicate openly, they're more likely to be proactive in suggesting enhancements and addressing issues before they become significant problems.

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Harvey L. Lampkin III

Independent Consultant | Process Improvements | Organizational Structure | Mergers/Acquisitions | Technology | Inspirational Speaker | Mentor | IT Infrastructure | Stakeholder Relationship | Team Strategy |
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One of the ways that I kept the various vendors we used collaborated was to have weekly Stand-ups with their Leads. That ensured message consistency between all agencies and teams. It saved much time during communications on many very fast paced projects. Our weekly leadership readouts flowed much smoother, by the majority of teams understanding the content and background of projects discussed.

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You're aiming to improve system performance. How can you ensure vendors meet your goals and objectives?

1

2

3

4

5

6

1 Define Objectives

2 Engage Partners

3 Set Benchmarks

4 Monitor Progress

5 Ensure Flexibility

6 Foster Communication

Systems Management

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You're aiming to improve system performance. How can you ensure vendors meet your goals and objectives?

1

2

3

4

5

6

1 Define Objectives

2 Engage Partners

3 Set Benchmarks

4 Monitor Progress

5 Ensure Flexibility

6 Foster Communication

Systems Management

Rate this article

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