- You have been tasked with the selection of a student information system (SIS) to satisfy the needs of multiple stakeholders across campus, students, and external parties.
- You need a structured approach to the selection process of critical systems.
- The variety of software vendor offerings makes it difficult to determine the long-list of vendors to consider.
- The requirements needed to develop a short-list of vendors are not specific enough or not available.
- You do not have sufficient internal resources to invest in a formal selection process.
- The decision criteria is not defined or is unclear.
Our Advice
Critical Insight
- The SIS selected will impact your ability to deliver on strategic goals. Keep your goals in focus as you execute on the tactical exercise of replacement.
- Non-traditional vendors are bringing a new perspective to the market.
- Take a holistic approach to product evaluation. Consider all elements that support the SIS functions, including existing applications.
- Vendor selection is just as important as product selection. Select a partner with a strategy and support structure that align with those of your organization.
Impact and Result
- The impact:
- Improvement on the probability of selecting a system that aligns with the strategic goals of the institution by following a structured and holistic approach that considers all aspects and stakeholders.
- The result:
- Successful execution of a complex task that could have significant implications for the institution.
Member Testimonials
After each Info-Tech experience, we ask our members to quantify the real-time savings, monetary impact, and project improvements our research helped them achieve. See our top member experiences for this blueprint and what our clients have to say.
8.0/10
Overall Impact
5
Average Days Saved
Client
Experience
Impact
$ Saved
Days Saved
Minneapolis Public Schools
Guided Implementation
8/10
N/A
5
Minneapolis Public Schools
Guided Implementation
9/10
$30,023
90
Workshop: Select a Student Information System
Workshops offer an easy way to accelerate your project. If you are unable to do the project yourself, and a Guided Implementation isn't enough, we offer low-cost delivery of our project workshops. We take you through every phase of your project and ensure that you have a roadmap in place to complete your project successfully.
Module 1: Target and Current Capabilities
The Purpose
- Define overarching objectives.
- Identify constraints and hurdles.
- Define key success metrics.
- Define target capabilities.
- Define current capabilities.
Key Benefits Achieved
- Clear project objectives.
- Level-setting of SIS knowledge.
- Understanding of SIS current state.
- Agreement on SIS target state.
Activities
Outputs
Define overarching objectives.
- SIS operational objectives, updated charter.
Define constraints and hurdles.
- Project constraints, project hurdles.
Define key success metrics.
- Project metrics.
Define target capabilities.
- Level 1 target capabilities, updated project metrics.
Define current capabilities.
- Level 1 current capabilities.
Module 2: Capability Gaps and Requirements
The Purpose
- Identify capabilities gaps.
- Elicit and prioritize requirements.
Key Benefits Achieved
- Identify capabilities gaps.
- Priorities to pursue to fill gaps and requirements.
- Measures of project success.
Activities
Outputs
Define current capabilities gaps.
- Level 1 current capabilities, gaps between current and target.
Elicit and capture your SIS requirements.
- Inventory of business requirements, prioritized requirements.
Prioritize your solution requirements.
- De-duplicated, prioritized, and categorized requirements.
Module 3: Prepare RFP
The Purpose
- Develop content for the request of proposal (RFP) document.
- Prepare demonstrations and scoring templates.
Key Benefits Achieved
- Documented requirements for the request of proposal document.
- Demonstration scripts and vendor scoring tools ready.
Activities
Outputs
Create an RFP to submit to SIS vendors.
- Inventory of business requirements for RFP document.
Build a response template to standardize potential vendor responses and streamline your evaluation process.
- SIS Vendor Response Template.
Evaluate RFP responses with a clear scoring process.
- SIS Request for Proposal Template.
Module 4: Vendor Demonstrations and Selection
The Purpose
- Build a demonstration script.
- Prepare evaluation scorecard for vendor demonstrations.
- Define criteria for selection.
Key Benefits Achieved
- Structured approach to vendor demonstrations.
- Alignment on the evaluation criteria for the demonstrations.
Activities
Outputs
Build a demo script to evaluate product demonstrations by vendors.
- SIS demo script.
Evaluate vendor product demonstrations to inform your selection process.
- SIS Request for Proposal and Demonstration Scoring Tool.
Create short-list.
- SIS demonstration vendor scores.
Establish your vendor selection evaluation criteria.
- SIS demo scripts and evaluation criteria.
Select your solution.
- SIS vendor and product selection.