Software+Strategy

An organisation needs to develop a software strategy, considering the following issues:

Evaluation
Any proposed software needs to be evaluated against the following criteria:
 * Functionality
 * What does the product do?
 * What features does it have?
 * Performance
 * How fast does the program run? Is it accurate? Does it use resources efficiently?
 * Use benchmarks to test different solutions.
 * Usability
 * How easy is the program to use?
 * What is the Human Computer Interface (HCI) like?
 * Compatibility
 * How will the software work with the existing systems?
 * Data Migration
 * How will data be moved from the existing system to the new system?
 * Support
 * What support mechanisms are in place? Manuals, online help, FAQs, help desk,
 * Cost
 * How much will the software cost to purchase and install?

Training
An organisation will need to consider training it's employees in the use of the new software. Training can be:
 * On-the-job training
 * The user is trained to use the system as part of their daily work
 * In-house training
 * Training is delivered by a specialist or expert from within the organisation
 * External training
 * Training is delivered by an outside organisation

Upgrading
As technology improves over time, so software becomes out of date. An organisation needs to consider the following factors when consider upgrading their software:
 * Cost
 * How much will it cost to upgrade the software in the system?
 * Time
 * How long will the upgrade take?
 * Will existing services be impacted?
 * How much time will need to be allocated for staff training?
 * Risk
 * What is the risk of the system not working properly after the upgrade has taken place?
 * Support
 * What support is available during the upgrade and in the period of time after the upgrade has taken place?