Five Steps to Better Data Center Vendor Vetting
Best choices aren't always evident until equipment has been installed. Here are some tips for avoiding nasty surprises.
May 3, 2017
Bigger isn’t always better, and innovative technologies aren’t always best. But, when choosing vendors and suppliers, the best choices aren’t always evident until the equipment is installed or the contract has been let. That’s when nasty surprises may occur and you realize that what you expected isn’t quite what you received, or—worse—what you asked for wasn’t exactly what you wanted.
To minimize the odds of that happening to you, use these five steps:
Develop a Process Framework
A structured process helps you compare apples to apples. It’s not unusual to submit a request for proposal (RFP) to six different vendors and get back six entirely different proposals, notes Tim Flynn, senior consultant, data center engineering, Forsythe Technology, a technology integrator. Differences may be as minor as cage sizes, but they often matter and can make it difficult to compare proposals.
“Power is where most operations’ expenses will be,” Flynn says. “Yet, most customers don’t make it a focal point when selecting vendors. Instead, power is discussed after they’ve narrowed their selections.” He advises considering power along with service level agreements (SLAs) early in the vetting process.
“Understand the contractual verbiage,” Flynn insists. If necessary, sign a non-disclosure agreement, or have providers sign one, to see the contract up front, before negotiations progress.
Define Requirements
When preparing a request for proposal, first articulate the businesses’ goals so you know what you expect the solution to accomplish. For example, rather than basing the RFP on the systems you have, consider the ideal result. Can you achieve that result by evolving the current system, or is something completely different needed?
Don’t limit the goal according to the technology you believe is available. Instead, focus on the desired outcome. Solution providers may have technology options that are unknown to you or to your usual suppliers.
This focus on results enables you and your potential providers to match the technologies to your goals rather than shoe-horning goals to fit pre-conceived notions or technological solutions. With this understanding, you can formulate your vision into a request that suppliers can address.
When specifying technological solutions, consultant Laura Brown, president and founder of System Innovations & LBPI, Inc., advises organizations to go beyond merely outlining features and functions, service levels and scalability.