Top 10 Questions to Ask Your Workflow Vendor

From Jay Mellon, vice president at Savigent, Minnetonka, Minn., who blogged (blog.savigent.com) this Top 10 list, edited here for brevity:

Nov 5th, 2012

1. Tell me about your product. Where has it been implemented? How it is being used?

2. Will your product fit my business? (In asking this question, you are seeking to understand the configurability and adaptability of the vendor’s product)

3. Does your product comply with Industry standards such as ISA95?

4. Will your product help me leverage my existing MOM (manufacturing operations management) investments?

5. Can you integrate with my other related systems?

6. Is your product scalable and ready to support my Enterprise?

7. Can I use your product or will I need to hire “a bunch of IT guys” to help use it?

8. How will your product help me drive actual improvement in my operations? How can I know that I am realizing results?

9. How long will it take to implement your product? Can the vendor’s product be implemented in a matter of weeks versus months? How will the product be implemented?

10. What questions haven’t I asked that I should be asking?

>> Click here to read Automation World's complete coverage on Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES)

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