According to a new Gartner survey, 56 per cent of companies regret their biggest technology-related purchases.
The report identified several reasons for this regret, including slow purchasing decisions, the shift in decision-making on technology purchases from exclusive IT responsibility to a more democratic process, and the lack of responsiveness from vendors.
While organizations have remained bullish on digital transformation, some organizations are still yet to implement the technology they have purchased, as purchasing decisions can delay the project for another seven to ten months.
The report said vendors are part of the regret as they do not respond to specific information requests. Sellers also fail to provide details for more through evaluations.
The report identified the need to allow tech professionals handle tech buying. According to Gartner, 67 per cent of people involved in technology purchase decisions are not employed in IT and this could be a problem.
That is why it is important for organizations to involve IT and tech experts in the purchasing process and decision-making, because this can help drive better purchases, generate less regret and provide better support to the operational impact of the decision.
“The number one thing that can be done to reduce regret is to drive agreement on the objective of the purchase. Beyond driving consensus on a goal early in the process, Gartner would encourage forming diverse teams that bring multiple perspectives to support a more thorough and thoughtful decision,” said Hank Barnes distinguished VP analyst at Gartner.
In order to reduce regrets about purchasing technology, companies must work with their vendors to truly understand the products. It is also important that companies ask vendors to share comprehensive case studies that cover the results achieved.
It is critical that organizations evaluate the cost of implementing or migrating a technology before the purchase is made.